British Heavy Bomber AVRO Lancaster B. III Dambuster COBI 5758 - Executive Edition WW II 1:48

You know that:

• The AVRO Lancaster bomber actually came about when the team of chief designer Roy Chadwick tried to redesign the popular but underpowered AVRO 679 model. And so they modified and modified until... a completely new aircraft was created.
• The brand new machine was given 4 Rolls-Royce Merlin engines to be able to take off for the first time on January 9, 1941 from Woodford Airport.
• The original name of the bomber was Manchester III and only later was it renamed Lancaster.
• The bomber proved itself in the performance of the first tasks and serial production was gradually extended to other factories in Birmingham, Elswick and also to Kandský Malton.
• The Lancaster was the only Allied bomber with a large bomb bay capable of carrying a 10,000 kg Grand Slam bomb.
• However, the Lancasters gained the greatest fame during Operation Chastice with the famous bouncing bomb of designer Barnes Wallis.
• The goal of the operation was the destruction of the German dams Möhne, Eder, Soroe and thus weaken the Nazi war production.
• The first step to a successful operation was the modification of the aircraft and the training of the crews for night raids. To practice night conditions, the cockpit was fitted with amber glass to simulate a dark environment. But the biggest challenge was not the darkness. Only the best of the best managed to pilot an aircraft weighing 31,900 kg at a constant height of only 18 m. Any slight deviation from the calculated flight drop levels meant that the bomb would miss its target.
• Britain's 617th Bombardment Squadron took off with specially modified Lancasters on the night of 16/17 May 1943. Each machine had a rotary jumping bomb attached under its fuselage, which bounced on impact to clear the anti-torpedo defense nets and eventually hit the dam embankment.
• Although it was not possible to destroy the dam of the Sorpe dam due to heavy fog, the result of the attack was overwhelming for Nazi Germany. 330 million cubic meters flooded an area of ​​80 km². 125 war factories and 26 bridges were destroyed.
  A total of 7,377 units were produced in several versions.
• The last aircraft were withdrawn from service with the Canadian Air Force in 1963.

Technical parameters:

• dimensions: span 31.09 m, length 21.18 m, height 5.97 m
• weight 16,737 kg empty
• maximum take-off weight 31,900 kg
• power unit 4x Rolls-Royce Merlin 224 1,208 kW petrol engine
• top speed 434 km/h
• rate of climb 1.27 m/s
• maximum flight level 6,553 m
• volume of fuel tanks 8,200 l
• range 4,072 km
• armament 8x 7.7 mm Browning MG machine gun + suspended jumping bomb 4,200 kg
• crew 7

From the memoirs of David Maltby:

"We Brits are directly addicted to tea. It's a tradition and we're not going to give it up under any circumstances, but once tea almost cost us our lives. During night flight training in April 1943, our Lancaster and I climbed to an altitude of 2000 meters and awaited the order to fly low to the training target. That day the temperature at the flight level of the Hlobuk was below freezing. We wanted to shorten the wait for the order with a cup of good tea. As soon as the water in the kettle began to boil, the radio crackled and the order came for a rapid descent with a flight over the target at a height of only 18 meters. A kettle of boiling water tipped over during the descent, splashing hot water onto the cold metal floor. Within a second, the water turned into thick steam that immediately filled the flight engineer's compartment and the cockpit. For several seconds, we couldn't even see our hands, let alone our instruments, or the rapidly approaching ground in front of us. Everything went well, but we never did something stupid like that again."