A new Avro Lancaster restoration - to FLYING condition!

[Stand By]

In a word: Wow!

http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/758243/RAF-Lancaster-bomber-restoration-British-war-aircraft

 

[Otter]

Kermit Weeks has one in his collection, stored out back in some very large shipping containers. It was always supposed to be restored to flying condition. That man has some impressive collection of warbirds, more operational planes than a lot of national airforces.

 

[Stearmen]

Good news! Funny, I thought Just Jane was already flying. I hope early attempts at restoration were not Ham Handed! Here she is, doing one of her taxi runs.

 

[MisterCairo]

If this proceeds to completion, there'll be three in the air!

 

[Stearmen]

Here you go, Just Jane with her four Merlin's running, and the sound of eight more over head. Wont it be great to hear all three flying!

 

[Tiki Tom]

Had a Lancaster hanging from the ceiling in my room when I was a boy. It was accompanied by about a dozen 1/48 scale plastic models from kits.
My brother and I spent hours and hours building plastic models. Probably accounts for my nostalgia for WWII aircraft.
Was surprised to walk into a toy store not long ago and to find out they don't even sell those kits anymore (at least not over here.)
I was always fascinated by the guy who had the job of lying on the deck of the Lancaster, all the way in the nose, doing the job of bomb targeting and helping with navigation. How exposed and vulnerable he must have felt. At the same time, the view out of that lower nose bubble must have been the closest thing you could get to flying like superman.

 

[Tiki Tom]

 

[Dated Guy]

'Just Jane' is a few miles from where I live, not far from Coningsby where the Memorial Flight Lancaster 'City of Lincoln' resides. I have seen the 'Just Jane' plane many times when we go for a memorial Motorbike club ride there. She had four engines alright, but one was not the correct type, she has now got four correct ones at last i.e Merlins. As the comment states, she would taxi people about the airfield perimeter for a handsome sum of money, occasionally lifting the rear wheel for effect. Very much against the rules to fly it at the time though despite wanting to. I recall a comment by a chap there about the main wing spar being a tad unknown in quality, so that has to be addressed of course. This is the bit between the wings that goes through the fuselage. I have a reissue 1940's 'Lancaster Handbook' which shows many of the needed repair facts for mechanics, plus, I think there may be a Hayman's Exploded view book like the car model books. I could be wrong though. I did read the re-issue about how to remove an engine, so can I now be classed as an expert.... !!!!!! ????

 

[MisterCairo]

The last time the two extant Lancs flew together, after Canadian Warplane Heritage's "Vera", the Mynarski memorial Lanc, flew to England to fly with "Thumper" on a tour, probably the last time this will happen:

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-29325810

 

[Mr. Godfrey]

I saw them while I was driving past Towster, great sight and exciting, not sure my wife was that impressed.

 

[Stand By]

Had a Lancaster hanging from the ceiling in my room when I was a boy. It was accompanied by about a dozen 1/48 scale plastic models from kits.
My brother and I spent hours and hours building plastic models. Probably accounts for my nostalgia for WWII aircraft.
Was surprised to walk into a toy store not long ago and to find out they don't even sell those kits anymore (at least not over here.)
I was always fascinated by the guy who had the job of lying on the deck of the Lancaster, all the way in the nose, doing the job of bomb targeting and helping with navigation. How exposed and vulnerable he must have felt. At the same time, the view out of that lower nose bubble must have been the closest thing you could get to flying like superman.

View attachment 66030

I hear you about the kits, Tom! I think it's a wonderful hobby and a rite of passage of sorts. Everyone at least tried them when we were young ... not so today. We all built them so we could hang them from the bedroom ceilings and imagine them in flight and engage our imaginations ... these days, kids design their own camouflage on their plane before they play the computers and insert a grinning photo of themselves into the game and they can then afterwards "watch themselves" fly the mission they just flew! Zero creativity and no skills learnt. Just a desire to play and to be amused fulfilled.
But I'm so glad I grew up when I did and began building at 6 yrs old ... and at 50 this year, happily still at it.
And the newly released Airfix 1/72 Lancaster kit is a wonder - and the perennial 1/48 by Tamiya is still magnificent today. It's been updated and even has props that spin from a battery in the bomb bay and a pre-painted canopy!

The thing with got me when I saw the local Lancaster here in Ontario was touching the skin of it - it's so thin! It's more like tin - and the sudden thought of all that flak and the shrapnel and machine gun and cannon fire just slicing right through it ... and being so high up and in the dark and over enemy-occupied territory. Jesus. We're all so lucky to have missed it - and I for one am grateful to all those born in an earlier and less fortunate time who didn't.

 

[Mr. Godfrey]

Ditto stand by, I loved model kits as a child, making dioramas with tanks and half tracks. Funny thing when my wife was expecting I was convinced she was having a boy so I brought an air fix RAF watch tower and paint , sorted out the airffix RAF figures from my mothers loft to paint and make a runway and base for more models. However we had a girl so I had to fore go the watchtower and aircraft. :-( at least she likes scouts and camping!

Now I think about I loved my half track and spitfire and wonder if they are in my parents loft?.

 

[Otter]

I knew a Halifax pilot, now sadly deceased. He told me the the only remotely armoured bits on one of those bombers was the pilots seat back.

 

[Stand By]

I knew a Halifax pilot, now sadly deceased. He told me the the only remotely armoured bits on one of those bombers was the pilots seat back.

Yikes! Talk about "on a wing and a prayer" ....

 

[Stearmen]

I knew a Halifax pilot, now sadly deceased. He told me the the only remotely armoured bits on one of those bombers was the pilots seat back.

Squadron Leader Leonard Cheshire became frustrated at all the losses of his squadrons Halifax, so he ordered the flame exhaust guards, extra gun turrets, and armor plating removed from the planes. The results were, far fewer losses! Why you ask? The planes were faster and could fly higher now. Curtis Lemay did the same thing to B-29s, even removing all the gun turrets except for the tail gun, and getting rid of the now useless aircrew. However, he then made the men fly lower, not very popular, but it did get results in the destruction of Japanese cities.

 

[Mr. Godfrey]

Funy how low flying became the norm in the long term.


C-GVRA at Montreal

 

[Stand By]

Just saw this very good article on the restoration of Just Jane - with great photos.
It's a piece from the UK's monthly "Aerodrome" magazine but via the Airfix newsletter.

https://www.airfix.com/uk-en/news/aerodrome/famous-lancaster-prepares-for-flight/

 

[nick123]

Just imagine seeing them all over the place back then! Beautiful plane. Brave souls those boys had.

 

[Stearmen]

Just imagine seeing them all over the place back then! Beautiful plane. Brave souls those boys had.

This will give you a little taste of what it sounded like! The BBC was recording the call of the nightingales, when it picked up some Lancaster and Wellington bombers headed for Germany. It gave me a chill down my spine!