John Lancaster 1937-2022
John Lancaster, who died last week aged 84, lived an interesting and full life. Apprenticed to the hallowed Royal Aircraft Establishment, he forged an impressive career in aeronautical and production engineering, ultimately with British Aerospace and the MOD.
He started racing in 1958, in a very tidy Austin 7 Special in 750 Formula, and was the 750 Motor Club’s final 1172 Formula champion in 1966. Driving his self-built ORVA 3 (AVRO backwards, mirroring the Lancaster bomber), an innovative spaceframe chassis with stressed aluminium sideskins, he beat 1964 title winner Brian Small by a point.
Lancaster and his brother Reg, a gifted machinist, went on to contest the Monoposto championship, driving JCM cars designed by John’s RAE chum John Clarke, who penned F2 cars for March, Frank Williams (the 1973 F1 Isomarlboros, later renamed FW01/FW02) and Brian Lewis’s F2/atlantic Boxers.
A Mono regular from 1972-81 with JCM 6, 6+ and 7, John Lancaster was uncle/great-uncle and inspiration to Alan and Andy Lancaster – Reg’s son and grandson – who currently compete in Classic Fford 2000 with a Pilbeam MP52.