Lancaster Part 1.mpgThe premier British heavy bomber of the war, the Lancaster was a redesign of the failed twin engine Manchester design.
With a few airframe modifications and the change to four Rolls-Royce "Merlin" engines, the Lancaster became a truly great aircraft.
In addition to the many night area bombing missions conducted by the RAF, Lancaster's were used for many special missions,
including the "Dam Busters" raid (the first precision bombing attack of the war), the bombing of the battleship Tirpitz,
and the delivery of the 20,000 lb "Grand Slam" bombs. After the war the airframe was again redesigned to accept four contra-rotating turboprop engines, and, as the "Shackleton", served until well into the 1960's.
