The lethal Lancaster

THE City of Lincoln is the only Lancaster in Britain still flying. The most successful RAF bomber of the war, it bore the brunt of the strategic aerial attack on Germany.

Of 7,377 built, 3,500 were lost on operations and another 200 destroyed or writtenoff in crashes.

Led all the most controversial RAF raids of the war, including the assaults on Hamburg in the summer of 1943.

Its ability to fly low and sustain punishment also meant that it carried out precision raids like the attack on the German experimental rocket plant at Peenemunde in August 1943.

For the Dambusters raid, the crew first practised low-level flying over the Derwent reservoir in Derbyshire. During daylight training exercises, the cockpits were fitted with blue Perspex while the crews wore amber goggles to give the illusion of moonlight.

Its huge, long bomb bay meant the Lancaster had a loading capacity far beyond any other bomber in the European theatre. At the end of the war, the Head of Bomber Command Sir Arthur Harris declared: ‘The Lancaster was the greatest single factor in winning the war.’ MAIDEN FLIGHT: January 1941, entered RAF December 1941. MAX SPEED: 275mph.

NUMBER BUILT: 7,377. WEAPONRY: Initial loading capacity of 4,000lb but, by the end of the war, the Lancaster was able to drop the colossal, 22,000lb Grand Slam. When tested, it made a crater 70ft deep and 130ft in diameter.

WINGSPAN: 102ft. AIRWORTHY NOW: 2.