MIGHTY BOMBER

Wairarapa Times-Age, 12 June 1943, Page 2

MIGHTY BOMBER

LANCASTER FLIES OVER MASTERTON THOUSANDS OF SPECTATORS. SPLENDID VIEW OF IMPRESSIVE AIRCRAFT. The biggest aircraft to visit Nev/ Zealand, a four-engine Lancaster bomber roared over Masterton today in the course of a Dominionwide tour, completely dwarfing an accompanying Kittyhawk. The bomber gracefully circled the town at a low level and enabled residents, who thronged the streets and other vantage points to obtain an excellent view of an impressive and formidable aircraft. The bomber arrived about half an hour behind schedule, but as the weather conditions were perfect those waiting for its appearance enjoyed the warmth of the sunshine. The Lancaster is being flown by an entirely R.A.A.F. crew. Among those who flew across the Tasman, to New Zealand yesterday in the bomber were Lord Burghley, Controller of American Supplies and Repairs in the Ministry of Aircraft Production. Lancasters made their debut on April 17, 1942, when twelve of them flew by daylight to Augsburg, 30 miles from Munich, to raid a Diesel-engine factory there. Another notable attack was made on the Schneider works at Le Creusot, in France, and a few days later they did a 1350 miles round trip to Milan and back. Their crowning achievement was in one of the most spectacular 1 strokes of the war, the destruction recently of the Ruhr dams. The Avro Lancaster four-engined mid-wing monoplane is the newest of - the R.A.F.'s heavy bombers. It has a wing span of 102 ft., a length of 70ft., and can carry a maximum of Ifj.OOOlbs. of fuel and bombs, the bomb bay having a capacity of 15,8001b5. or 7.08 tons. The four engines, with a total of 5120 horsepower, give a speed of 300 miles per hour at heights up to 21,000 ft., fully loaded. The armament consists of four power-operated turrets in the nose, in the tail above and below, housing ten guns. The Lancaster is a delightful machine on the controls as far as manoeuvrability is concerned. With full tanks it can fly nearly 3000 miles with almost two tons of bombs.