The Lancaster holds a special place in the psyche and heart of Britain and her allies from the Commonwealth. Churchill knew that victory was impossible without mastery of the air. In as early as 1940 he told his war cabinet, the fighters have been our salvation, the bombers will give us the means to victory. There are only two left flying in the world now, from the 7,377 built, one in Britain and one in Canada and they are national treasures. A staggering 3,500 were lost flying an amazing 156,000 sorties, along with 55,573 men of Bomber Command. They had a crew of 7 men and the average age was 22 years old. We think the if somebody passes their driving test today at 19 he's achieved something when back then they could be flying a Lancaster into the heart of Germany, night after night when the German nation had over a million men involved in Germany's air defence trying to kill them. No wonder life expectancy was just two weeks. The four engined Lanc was what Bomber Command had waited for, a means to attack Germany, as they had attacked us. The Germans had shown the way with their bombing of Coventry. The city was the centre of much aircraft production but the Germans not only wanted to flatten all the factories, but kill all the aircraft workers too and so they indescriminately bombed the whole city. This policy became known as area bombing and no plane was better suited to the job than the Lanc, but it would not be ready for the task until Chadwick had done his work and that was in 1941 two and a half years into the war.

Truly the greatest generation, Major. They certainly were. Here's a little fact for you Tom, the Lanc was our first four engined bomber but not the RAF's, as we had imported some B17's before it came into service. In fact we used many American planes, which were absolutely invaluable and I'll cover them later. As mentioned, the Lanc was a derivitive of the twin engined Manchester, which used Rolls Royce Vulture engines. Paradoxically, the Vulture engine was a more powerful engine than the Merlin and if they could have sorted out its problems, it's not the Merlin that would be known as the 'engine that won WW2', it could have been the Vulture. Have you seen Jay Leno's programme, 'the engine that won the war'? He's got his own Merlin. He's a star that man, so entertaining.

Here's the Canadian one in Cold Lake 1989.  It was here for the presenting of the Sqn colours. We had some of the original second was pilots as guests. A group of them went up in it for a flight and the pilot let one of the old timers fly it. When they came down the press asked him  was it hard to fly and he said it's like riding a biciycle,  Once you learn you don't forget.

I said to a couple of the old timers ,One of you will have to run in an choke the wheels because none of us here are qualified to do it. Gave them both a laugh.

That should have said original second world war pilots. They were flown in by military aircraft from all over Canada and I think that there was one living in the Stated and they managed to get him there. We had guest historians of the war and even one of the guys from the great escape who brought hand made air pumps and trolley carts with him. He talked all about the escape for almost two hours. Meet a lot of very interesting people that day. Yes I'm in the picture.

Because 419 Sqn was the Squdron I was posted to in Cold Lake. The plane was painted in Canadian colours and was named the Mynarski after Andrew Mynarski a VC holder from 419 Sqn who was killed trying to save his crew members in Europe while returning from a  bombing run.

Here's a picture of the plane when the old guy was allowed to do a fly past in front of our hangars.

The ineffectiveness of the bombing campaign had cost us many unnecessary lives, not just the means and strategy but inadequate tools for the job. Churchill took control and instigated a complete overhaul of the entire organisation, starting at the very top. He appointed Arthur Travis Harris, known as bomber Harris, butcher Harris or Butch for short, to run the branch. He was a dour, single minded, no nonsense man who you crossed at your own peril. He worked 18 hours a day and was convinced bombing alone could win the  war. Albert Speer certainly believed so and said that another seven missions like Hamburg and Cologne could have ended the war. The entire method of training and execution of the campaign was reorganised as the Lancaster came into service. Chadwick had delivered a masterpiece of mass destruction at just the right time. The bomb bay of this plane covered 2/3rds of its length and with its robust airframe and Merlin engines it the ability to carry 15-1000LB bombs. Bomb aiming, navigation, gunnery and strategy were completely overhauled and production raised to new levels. It had a total range of up to 2,500 miles, had a ceiling of 25,000ft and do 300 MPH. It was so robust that the crews had developed a method of evading fighters by going into a manoeuvre called the corkscrew, whereby the plane would be put into a violent spin, heading for the ground, where is could get up to 400mph and still pull out and stay in one piece. It would eventually go on to carry and deliver the 9,250lb bouncing bomb, the 21ft long 12,000lb Tallboy bomb and the awesomely destructive 22,000lb Grand Slam bomb. All three weapons coming from the mercurial Barnes Wallis. 75% of the crews were home grown and 25% came from the Empire and Commonwealth, all volunteers and they had a strange way of what they called 'crewing up' following their training. Dozens of them would meet in a hangar and literally go around talking to each other and form their own crews. Amazing people, amazing plane, it's a tragedy that all of that ingenuity, endeavour and courage was all just to kill people. One of my boozing mates, who I grew up with, his mother was a riveter on Lancs in the war and god knows how many thousands she must have put in throughout the war. She said the sound drove her to distraction at first and later became a comfort, mad eh? They used to call the Lanc, 10,000 rivets flying in close formation.

I was surprized how narrow they looked inside Major when we got a chance to look in that one. Seemed all wings and engines to me and the tires were also very large. You should be able to visit it in Hamilton Ontario with your brother next time over. Below is the one you seen by the water front on Lake Ontario by the Canadian National Exibition grounds.

More than 400 Avro Lancasters were built in Malton during the Second World War. Malton is where Avro was set up making planes and now it's part of Pearson International airport where you would have landed at when visiting your family. They also built the Avro Arrow there in later years.

I first went to Malton Airport at the age of 4 in 1953 and remember it well to see my aunt and uncle off when they were going back to Scotland for there first visit since arriving in Canada in 1920. The airport at that time was small and I mean small. If you paid a nickel you could go through a turn style which let you up on the roof of the building. The plane then pulled up directly in front of the same terminal so you could wave good bye to people leaving or see them arriving. Pearson now has at least 3 terminals and like all airports is a nut house.

Relatives of veterans who died while flying the legendary Avro Lancaster during the Second World War are urging Toronto to restore and display the city's bomber, one of the few surviving examples in the world.

The city's Avro Lancaster was prominently displayed along Toronto's waterfront from 1966 to 1999, when it was moved to a museum at Downsview Park. When the museum closed in 2011, the plane was dismantled and put in storage. My last posting was to Base Downsview which after closing became Downsview Park. I was in the Museum many times as I knew retired service guys who where working there but that was only up until 1995 and they didn't have the Lanc on display yet. I wrote my military entrance exams in Base Downview in 1966 along with doing all the shrink testing that they use to do. I flew out of Downsview in one of these Otter's north to Base Meaford Ontario which litterly scared the crap out of me when we landed on a grass runway. Dehavilland was also set up on Base Downview and made the moth to train pilots how to fly  and the Mosquito.

Single Otter

I use to see in the 50's the odd plane flying around with seemed to have two fuselages which were joined at the tail. Haven't a clue what they were and the closest thing that I can find is a de Halliland vampire but I'm not sure we even owned any. Any hints?? I know Britain did.

I have seen what the called signaling cannons. A smaller cannon but for it's size gave off a very large bang.

Yes a lot of war materials were produced in Canada but then our factories weren't under continuous bombing like yours were. We could also train pilot from the commonwealth countries out of airfield that were well out of range from enemy aircraft and preying eyes. Very few Canadians even knew where they were until after the war.

Production rated highest as a Canadian-built aircraft; Noorduyn Aviation Limited and Canadian Car & Foundry Limited produced 3,350 Harvards during and after the Second World War

I was surprized how narrow they looked inside Major when we got a chance to look in that one. The rear gunner had to virtually crawl to his turret and once in, he locked two swinging doors behind him. He was now sat in a very cramped space with no room to stretch his legs, looking out into the darkness of the night. He was now alone there for maybe 12 hours in temperatures that could get to minus 20. He had no parachute because he didn't have enough room for one. If the plane was hit and he had to get out, he would open the doors behind him, whilst still sat looking forward, reach for his parachute outside his turret, put it on and if he still had time, turn the turret around and fall out backward. I saw one rear gunner explaining how his screen was so scratched his view was badly affected. He complained to somebody in authority, who went up to it with a hammer and smashed out the frosted screen panels. He then spent the whole journey having a frozen wind battering him as well.

I use to see in the 50's the odd plane flying around with seemed to have two fuselages which were joined at the tail. Haven't a clue what they were and the closest thing that I can find is a de Halliland vampire but I'm not sure we even owned any. Any hints?? I know Britain did.

The RCAF flew the de Havilland Vampire from 1948 to the late 50s.

I think you are right Tommy, they must have been P-38's that I had seen. It was not only once that I seen them though flying over Toronto so don't really know what they were up to. They could have been refueling at either Malton or Base Downview.

Above is a list of the numbers and what they were trained for in Canada during the second war. Close to 50,000 pilots along. 

After you mentioned the swept wings on the Harvard Major I went to check the plane out in actuall flight on youtube. The leading edge of the wing is swept but the trailing edge is straight. I'm pretty sure they all came in two seat models because that way the instructor had a place to sit and could take control of the aircraft if the pilot was scewing up.

When I first went to Malton Airport in 1953 the two lane road to it was still in the gravel stage and now today is like a 4 lane highway.

Here is is in the early days around the time I first was there.

Here it is today with 3 terinals.

And that two lane gravel road to Malton today.

The rear gunner had to virtually crawl to his turret and once in, he locked two swinging doors behind him. He was now sat in a very cramped space with no room to stretch his legs, looking out into the darkness of the night. He was now alone there for maybe 12 hours in temperatures that could get to minus 20. He had no parachute because he didn't have enough room for one. If the plane was hit and he had to get out, he would open the doors behind him, whilst still sat looking forward, reach for his parachute outside his turret, put it on and if he still had time, turn the turret around and fall out backward. The tail gunners turret jammed in Andrew Mynarski's plane and all crew members had already bailed when he took it upon himself to stay and to try and free the gunner with a small fire axe, but to no advail. The gunner seen that Mynarski's clothes and parachute were already now on fire and he signed for him to jump. Mynarski finally raised his arm and held a salute to the gunner and then jumped. His chute was damaged so bad it never opened. The plane crash landed and somehow the tail gunner survived it and lived to tell the story so that's how Andrew Mynarski earned his VC.

Our airport in Manchester has always been known as Ringway by the locals even though it is now Manchester International. When we were kids about 11 we used to cycle five miles down the country lanes to get there. It was quite a sleepy place back then, now it's all tarmac and concrete for miles around. We went there because all the brick air-raid shelters from the war still surrounded the place which made it into an exciting place for us. All those dens and tunnels! There was also a number of small ponds in the surrounding fields, which we used to fish. When I think back to them, they were such idylls and in Autumn you had the apples and berries from the hedgrows to feast on. All under concrete now.

Yesterday they had a service in Toronto honouring the men that had died during the Battle of the Atlantic. I had an older corporal while serving with the 8th Canadian Hussars (Princess Louise's) who had started off as a very young teenager at age 15 as a merchant marine and had made several crossing. He use to have us all in stitches telling us about some of the sleezie bars they use to hang out in when down in the Islands. Too sleezie to even mention here. He then joined the Canadian Armoured Corp and served as part of the occupation force in Germany. He married a German girl who had been a switch board operator in Hamburg when the allies were advancing on it. She told me they got a phone call telling them that they would be safe and unharmed as long as they didn't try to damage or destroy the phone equipment there. She was 17 at the time. When she finished her shift she opened the door to leave and she came face to face with a tall British para trooper with a big smile on his face. He wished her a good morning in broken German and walker her back down the stairs to were the rest of the workers were and again said for them to carry on working but not to destroy any of the equipment and that's what they did.