Peninsula Aero ClubThe mystery aircraft for August 2010
This should be fairly easy to identify, so I will be looking for additional information so that I can declare a clear winner.
The competition is open to members and non-members. Your quest is to identify the aircraft, its country of origin, its purpose, the number built, its reputation in the field and the era when it flew.
The winner's answer will be displayed as part of this article.
In offering an answer, please give me your town of residence.
Good luck and go to it.
Peter
We have a winner
In fact, there were a number of correct answers. This competition proved the most difficult in selecting an outright winner. The person chosen is former Club member Jenny Thomson from Noble Park. Jenny wrote:
I believe the aircraft is the Avro Manchester heavy bomber produced during WW2. The primary users were the RAF and the RCAF. In all, 209 aircraft were built with 193 being operational during the war. Bomber Command had eight squadrons and they flew 1,269 operations over Europe. Sixty-three aircraft were lost in action whilst forty-five were lost in non-operational situations, with thirty of them involving engine failure. The last sorties undertaken by Manchesters was on June 25, 1942.
Crews grew to dislike the Manchester, largely on account of the unreliability of the engines and the perception that it did not live up to its design specifications. The Manchester was succeeded by the Lancaster.
Peter adds: Although the Manchester was a twin engine aircraft, each engine was a pair Rolls Royce V12 Peregrine engines modified and joined to form a Vulture X 24 cylinder engine.
Thanks for all our competitors.
Congratulations for Jenny Thompson for her winning entry.