Avro Lancastrian
| Avro 691 Lancastrian | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Type: | Airliner |
| Design country: | |
| Manufacturer: | |
| First flight: |
1943 |
| Number of pieces: |
91 |
The Avro 691 Lancastrian was a passenger and cargo aircraft version of the Avro Lancaster heavy British bomber , manufactured by Avro .
history
Development began in 1943 when an Avro Lancaster bomber was converted for Trans-Canada Airlines . The glazed fuselage bow with the front turret was replaced by an aerodynamic cladding and additional tanks were installed in the bomb bay to increase the range . The conversion was carried out by the Canadian Victory Aircraft .
Towards the end of World War II , 30 Lancastrians were created for the BOAC . Since the fuselage corresponded to that of the relatively narrow bomber, the passenger capacity was very limited. The machines therefore served as VIP and airmail aircraft on the route from England to Australia from May 31, 1945 . Other operators were Flota Aérea Mercante Argentina (FAMA), British South American Airways , Silver City Airways , Skyways, Alitalia and Qantas . A Lancastrian was used by the Royal Air Force for the first flight around the world. The Lancastrian served as a flying test bench for numerous jet engines .
The BOAC machines were also used during the Berlin Airlift . Overall, however, they had a relatively short period of use, as the following models (such as the Douglas DC-6 ) could carry significantly more passengers and were thus more economical.
The G-AGWH Star Dust , which crashed on August 2, 1947 and was lost for over 50 years , became particularly well known .
The other heavy British bomber Handley Page Halifax was also used as the Halifax C.8 and HP70 Halton for civil passenger and cargo flights.
variants
- Lancaster XPP
- nine were converted from Lancaster bombers by Victory Aircraft Ltd Canada.
- Lancastrian C.1
- nine-seat airliner for BOAC and Qantas . In the Royal Air Force they were referred to as the Lancastrian C.1. A total of 23 built by Avro.
- Lancastrian C.2
- nine-seat military transport aircraft for the RAF, 33 built by Avro.
- Lancastrian 3rd
- thirteen-seat transport aircraft for British South American Airways . 18 built by Avro.
- Lancastrian C.4
- ten to thirteen seat military transport aircraft for the RAF, 8 built by Avro.
Military users
Incidents
From the first flight in 1943 to the end of operations in 1961, Avro Lancastrian suffered 25 total losses. In 8 of them, 81 people were killed. Examples:
- On June 10, 1947, an Avro Lancastrian C.4 of the Argentine Flota Aérea Mercante Argentina (FAMA) ( aircraft registration LV-ACS ) hit a mast when landing at Natal-Parnamirim airport ( Brazil ) and caught fire. Of the 18 occupants, 6 were killed, 4 crew members and 2 passengers.
- On August 2, 1947, the crew of a Lancastrian of British South American Airways (G-AGWH) on the flight from Buenos Aires to Santiago de Chile reported their approach to Santiago de Chile, but the machine never arrived. Apparently the crew had calculated their own position incorrectly and had flown in a snow storm at an altitude of about 4600 m against the mountain top of Tupungato , Argentina . All six passengers and five crew members were killed. The plane remained missing until some wreckage was found in the Andes in 2000 ( see: Crash of the Star Dust ).
Technical specifications
| Parameter | Data |
|---|---|
| crew | 5 |
| Passengers | 9 |
| length | 23.40 m |
| span | 31.10 m |
| height | 5.90 m |
| Wing area | 120.5 m² |
| Empty mass | 13,800 kg |
| Takeoff mass | 29,480 kg |
| Top speed | 500 km / h at 1520 m |
| Service ceiling | 7000 m |
| Range | 6680 km |
| initial rate of climb | 230 m / min |
| Engines | four 12-cylinder V-engines Rolls-Royce Merlin XXIV, each 930 kW |
See also
literature
- Richard A. Franks: The Avro Lancaster, Manchester and Lincoln. A Comprehensive Guide for the Modeller. SAM Publications, London 2000, ISBN 0-9533465-3-6 .
- Harry Holmes: Avro Lancaster. (Combat Legend series) Airlife Publishing Ltd., Shrewsbury 2002, ISBN 1-84037-376-8 .
- AJ Jackson: Avro Aircraft since 1908. 2nd edition, Putnam Aeronautical Books, London 1990, ISBN 0-85177-834-8 .
- Richard Riding: Avro's Stopgap Airliner - Part 1 . In: Airplane Monthly April 1981, pp. 188-195
- Richard Riding: Avro's Stopgap Airliner - Part 2 . In: Airplane Monthly May 1981, pp. 242-248
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ List of accidents with Avro Lancastrian , Aviation Safety Network (English), accessed on February 17, 2020.
- ^ Accident report Lancastrian LV-ACS , Aviation Safety Network (English), accessed on February 17, 2020.
- ↑ accident report Lancastrian G-AGWH , Aviation Safety Network (English), accessed on 23 November 2017th