Battle of Britain Memorial Flight : 無料・フリー素材/写真
Battle of Britain Memorial Flight / afaloon
| ライセンス | クリエイティブ・コモンズ 表示 2.1 |
|---|---|
| 説明 | The LancasterThe Avro Lancaster is the most famous and successful RAF heavy bomber of World War Two. It is a legend that lives on today and the contribution made by the aircraft and its crews to the freedom of our nation will, hopefully, never be forgotten. The prototype Lancaster took to the air for its first flight from Woodford, Manchester, on 9th January 1941; the first production Lancaster flew later that year on 31st October. The first RAF unit to receive the new aircraft for operations (on Christmas Eve 1941) was No 44 Squadron at Waddington, quickly followed by 97 Squadron at Woodhall Spa. The performance of the Lancaster was simply outstanding. It could carry a maximum bomb load of 22,000 lb, its maximum level speed with a full load at 15,000 feet was 275 mph and it could cruise routinely at altitudes above 20,000ft at a range speed of 200 mph. With a full bomb load the aircraft had a range in excess of 1,500 miles. The Lancaster’s performance, its ruggedness, reliability and to many its sheer charisma, endeared it to its crews who were proud to fly this famous thoroughbred.An impressive total of 7,377 Lancasters were built between 1941 and early 1946. Of these, some 3,500 were lost on operations and another 200 or so were destroyed or written off in crashes. The vast majority of those Lancasters that did survive the war were simply scrapped when their services were no longer required, as the reverence in which the aircraft is now held had yet to develop to the point where their preservation seemed important.The Lancaster did not carry the weight of the night bombing offensive against Nazi Germany on its own but was supported by other earlier twin-engine bombers such as the Wellington and the other four-engine RAF heavy bombers – the Stirling and the Halifax – as well as medium bomber versions of the twin-engine De Havilland Mosquito. In total some 125,000 aircrew served in Bomber Command during World War Two; over 73,700 of them became casualties, either killed, wounded or shot down and made PoWs.In a letter to the head of Avro after the war, Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir Arthur Harris, the Commander in Chief of Bomber Command, said of the Lancaster:“I would say this to those who placed that shining sword in our hands: Without your genius and efforts we could not have prevailed, for I believe that the Lancaster was the greatest single factor in winning the war.”The SpitfireSpitfire MKIs from 65 Squadron Produced in greater numbers than any other British combat aircraft before or since the War, 20,341 Spitfires were built in 22 different variants (excluding the navalised Seafire) and the aircraft remained in production for 12 years.The prototype’s maiden flight took place on 5th March 1936 and Mk1 Spitfires entered RAF service (with No 19 Squadron) in August 1938.The development potential of the original design allowed the Spitfire to establish and then maintain the air superiority so vital to the defence of Britain and to keep pace with the 19 Squadron Spitfire taking off improvements in performance of enemy fighters throughout World War Two.Spitfires fought in every operational theatre of the War and remained in RAF front-line service up to 1954. At the end of its development the Spitfire carried an engine producing more than twice the power of the original, its maximum take-off weight and rate of climb had more than doubled, its firepower had increased by a factor of five and its maximum speed had been increased by a third; all this in essentially the same airframe.The Spitfire played a major part in achieving ultimate victory in World War Two and truly deserves its place as probably the most successful fighter design ever, and certainly as the most famous and charismatic of all time.The HurricaneThe Hawker Hurricane is one of the classic fighters of all time, designed and built for war. It was at the forefront of Britain’s defence in 1940 and it played a major part in achieving the victory of 1945.Sir Sydney Camm CBE commenced the design work for the Hurricane in 1934 (Camm went on to design the Typhoon, Tempest, Hunter and Harrier). The prototype Hurricane (K5083) made its maiden flight on 6th November 1935 and deliveries to the RAF commenced just before Christmas 1937 to 111 Squadron at Northolt (8 months ahead of the Spitfire). The Hurricane was the first British monoplane eight-gun fighter, the first RAF aircraft to exceed 300 mph in level flight and the first production fighter with a retractable main undercarriage.During the Battle of Britain, RAF Fighter Command fielded more Hurricanes than Spitfires, and Hurricanes achieved a similarly greater proportion of combat kills during the Battle.A remarkable total of 14,533 Hurricanes were built and the aircraft served operationally on every day throughout hostilities, in every operational theatre and in many roles. At the end of World War Two in 1945, Hurricanes were still in the front-line helping to ensure final victory in the Far East.With the end of the war, Hurricanes were quickly retired from service as the rapid progression of aircraft design and capabilities had effectively rendered them obsolete and the aircraft’s job was done. The vast majority were simply scrapped and broken up. Sadly, today, there are only 12 Hurricanes still airworthy worldwide; only 6 of those in UK. The BBMF is proud to operate two of these historically important and rare aircraft. |
| 撮影日 | 2014-08-16 15:23:21 |
| 撮影者 | afaloon |
| タグ | |
| 撮影地 | |
| カメラ | FinePix HS20EXR , FUJIFILM |
| 露出 | 0.003 sec (1/320) |
| 開放F値 | f/5.0 |