Avro Lancaster X
![View of the Avro Lancaster X cockpit](/web/20061029140108im_/http://www.aviation.technomuses.ca/images/collections/aircraft/lancaster1.gif)
![The Avro Lancaster X](/web/20061029140108im_/http://www.aviation.technomuses.ca/images/collections/aircraft/lancaster2.gif)
- Period: Second World War (1939-1945)
- Uses: Bomber
- First Flight: June 1941 (Lancaster I)
- Display Status: On the Museum Floor.
The “Lanc” was arguably the best heavy bomber used in Europe in Second World War. Although somewhat vulnerable to fighter attack, it was relatively fast, had a high ceiling, and could carry enormous loads for its size. Victory Aircraft at Malton, Ontario, produced the first Canadian-built Lancaster, a Mark X, first flown August 1, 1943. Many Canadian-built Mark Xs served overseas with No.6 Group. The Lancaster continued in the RCAF until 1965 for maritime patrol, photo survey, search and rescue, and navigator training.
Wartime crew was a pilot, flight engineer, navigator, bomb aimer, radio operator and two gunners. Peacetime maritime patrol crew was two pilots, flight engineer, two navigators, and three radio officers. A late Mark X, the museum aircraft has a Martin upper turret with two 50-calibre guns. Maritime patrol versions had no top turret, and only the front turret was armed with two .303-calibre machine guns. Drafty, noisy, and uncomfortable on long flights, the Lancaster was nevertheless strong, reliable, and a delight to fly. Pilot Officer A.C. Mynarski won a posthumous Victoria Cross for bravery in a Canadian Lancaster during an attack on Cambrai, France.
Museum Example
- Registration #: KB 944 (RAF)
- Manufacturer: Victory Aircraft Ltd., Canada
- Manufacture Date: 1945
- Construction #: Unknown
- Acquisition Date: 1964
- Provenance: Transfer from RCAF
Built in Canada in 1945, this Lancaster went overseas briefly, before entering long-term storage in Canada later the same year. It spent most of the following years in stored reserve, except for a brief period with 404 Maritime Patrol Squadron at Greenwood, Nova Scotia in 1952. In 1964 the RCAF refurbished this aircraft and placed it in the Force’s historical aircraft collection.
Specifications
- Wing Span:
- 31.1 m (102 ft)
- Length:
- 21.1 m (69 ft 6 in)
- Height:
- 6.2 m (20 ft 4 in)
- Weight, Empty:
- 15,985 kg (35,240 lb)
- Weight, Gross:
- 29,484 kg (65,000 lb)
- Cruising Speed:
- 322 km/h (200 mph)
- Max Speed:
- 438 km/h (272 mph)
- Rate of Climb:
- 277 m (910 ft) /min
- Service Ceiling:
- 7,530 m (24,700 ft)
- Range:
- 2,671 km (1,660 mi )
- Crew:
- seven (wartime)
- Power Plant:
- four Rolls-Royce (Packard) Merlin 224, 1,620-hp, 12 cylinder Vee engines
Additional Photographs
The Canada Aviation Museum’s Image Bank contains additional photographs of this aircraft. Images are provided for non-commercial study or research purposes only and may not be reproduced or published without the prior consent of the Canada Aviation Museum.
Find out more about our Image bank here.