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81-473: Carousel IV consisted of an inertial measurement unit (IMU) as its position reference, a digital computer to compute the navigation solution, and a control panel mounted in an aircraft's cockpit. It was used for long over water and over the North Pole aircraft navigation. Many aircraft were equipped with dual or triple Carousels for redundancy. Operation was relatively simple: a pilot or flight engineer would enter

162-582: A UHF transmitter-receiver (ARC-52). The initial B.2 radio fit was similar to the B.1A though it was ultimately fitted with the ARC-52, a V/UHF transmitter/receiver (PTR-175), and a single-sideband modulation HF transmitter-receiver ( Collins 618T). The navigation and bombing system comprised an H2S Mk9 radar and a navigation bombing computer Mk1. Other navigation aids included a Marconi radio compass ( ADF ), GEE Mk3 , Green Satin Doppler radar to determine

243-547: A V-class of bombers, and the Air Council announced the following month that the 698 would be called Vulcan after the Roman god of fire and destruction . In January 1953, VX770 was grounded for the installation of wing fuel tanks, Armstrong Siddeley ASSa.6 Sapphire engines of 7,500 lbf (33 kN) thrust and other systems; it flew again in July 1953. From 1957, VX770 was used as

324-472: A contract for the prototype SA.4 to the less-stringent Specification B.14/46. The SA.4, later named Sperrin, was not required. In April 1948, Vickers also received authority to proceed with their Type 660 , which, although falling short of the B.35/46 Specification, but being of a more conventional design, would be available sooner. This plane entered service as the Valiant. As Avro had no flight experience of

405-408: A conventional control wheel, was powered by four Rolls-Royce RA.3 Avon engines of 6,500 lbf (29 kN) thrust, its intended Bristol Olympus engines not being available. The prototype had fuselage fuel tanks but no wing tanks, so temporary additional tankage was carried in the bomb bay. VX770 made an appearance at the 1952 Society of British Aircraft Constructors' (SBAC) Farnborough Air Show

486-410: A dorsal spine; a new main undercarriage to carry an all-up-weight of 339,000 lb (154,000 kg); and reheated Olympus 301s of 30,000 lbf (130 kN) thrust. An amended proposal of October 1960 inserted a 10 ft 9 in (3.28 m) plug into the forward fuselage with capacity for six crew members including a relief pilot, all facing forwards on ejection seats, and aft-fan versions of

567-532: A heavy landing at Farnborough. It was repaired, fitted with Olympus 101 engines of 11,000 lbf (49 kN) thrust before resuming trials with Avro and the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment (A&AEE) at Boscombe Down . While exploring VX777's high-speed and high-altitude flight envelope at the A&;AEE, mild buffeting and other undesirable flight characteristics were experienced while approaching

648-570: A maritime radar reconnaissance role and six for an airborne tanker role. An updated bomb rack assembly allowing the carriage of 30 1,000 lb bombs, up from 21 was demonstrated by Avro but was not introduced. The updated wing profile increased range to 4,000 nm (7,400 km). The Avro 718 was a 1951 proposal for a delta-winged military transport based on the Type 698 to carry 80 troops or 110 passengers. It would have been powered by four Bristol Olympus BOl.3 engines. The Avro Type 722 Atlantic

729-613: A new AC electrical system, XA893; ECM including jammers within a bulged tail cone and a tail warning radar , XA895: and for Blue Steel development work, XA903. The 46th production aircraft and first B.2, XH533, first flew in September 1958 using Olympus 200 engines, six months before the last B.1 XH532 was delivered in March 1959. The second B.2, XH534, flew in January 1959. Powered by production Olympus 201s with 17,000 lbf (76 kN) thrust, it

810-502: A practical refit scheme was rejected. A rudimentary sixth seat forward of the navigator radar was provided for an additional crew member; the B.2 had an additional seventh seat opposite the sixth seat and forward of the AEO. The visual bomb-aimer's compartment could be fitted with a T4 (Blue Devil) bombsight , in many B.2s, this space housed a vertically mounted Vinten F95 Mk.10 camera for assessing simulated low-level bombing runs. Fuel

891-463: A prototype contract for its crescent-winged HP.80 B.35/46 tender in November 1947. Although considered the best option, the contract award for Avro's design was delayed while its technical strength was established. Instructions to proceed with the construction of two Avro 698 prototypes were received in January 1948. As an insurance measure against both radical designs failing, Short Brothers received

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972-613: A variety of other names, including Smallboy , the Mk.1 Atom Bomb , Special Bomb and OR.1001 , a reference to the Operational Requirement it was built to fill. The RAF V bomber force was initially meant to use Blue Danube as their primary armament at a time when the first hydrogen bomb had not been detonated, and the British military planners still believed that an atomic war could be fought and won using atomic bombs of similar yield to

1053-517: A version was also tested with a uranium-only core. The service chiefs insisted on a yield of between 10-12 kt for two reasons: firstly, to minimise usage of scarce and expensive fissile material ; and secondly, to minimise the risk of predetonation , a phenomenon then little understood, and the primary reason for using a composite core of concentric shells of plutonium and U-235. Although there were many plans for versions with higher yields, some up to 40 kt, none were developed, largely because of

1134-549: A wrap-around camouflage of dark sea grey and dark green because, during Red Flag exercises in the US, defending SAM forces had found that the grey-painted undersides of the Vulcan became much more visible against the ground at high angles of bank. The original Vulcan B.1 radio fit was: two 10-channel VHF transmitter/receivers (TR-1985/TR-1986) and an STR-18, 24-channel HF transmitter-receiver (R4187/T4188). The Vulcan B.1A also featured

1215-401: The Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment 's chief test pilot Squadron Leader Samuel Eric Esler, DFC, AE. The second low-speed 707, VX790, built with the still uncompleted 707A's nose section (containing an ejection seat ) and redesignated 707B, flew in September 1950 piloted by Avro test pilot Wg Cdr Roland "Roly" Falk . The high-speed 707A, WD480, followed in July 1951. Due to

1296-507: The Hiroshima bomb . For that reason the stockpile planned was for up to 800 bombs with yields of 10-12 kilotons . V-bomber bomb bays were sized to carry Blue Danube, the smallest-size nuclear bomb that was possible to be designed given the technology of the day (1947) when their plans were formulated. Initial designs for the Blue Danube warhead were based on research derived from Hurricane ,

1377-632: The Ministry of Defence in January 1982 stated that little prospect was seen of this happening without ascertaining the Argentine interest and whether such interest was genuine: 'On the face of it, a strike aircraft would be entirely suitable for an attack on the Falklands.' Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands less than three months later, after which a British embargo on the sale of any military equipment

1458-481: The Ministry of Supply distributed Specification B.35/46 to UK aviation companies to satisfy Air Staff Operational Requirement OR.229 for "a medium range bomber landplane capable of carrying one 10,000 lb (4,500 kg) bomb to a target 1,500 nautical miles (1,700 mi; 2,800 km) from a base which may be anywhere in the world." A cruising speed of 500 knots (580 mph; 930 km/h) at altitudes between 35,000 and 50,000 ft (11,000 and 15,000 m)

1539-683: The North American A-5 Vigilante , BAC TSR-2 , General Dynamics F-111 , had become available. Had the Australian government pre-ordered the TSR-2, several V-bombers, including Vulcans, would have been made available, for interim use by the RAAF; however, the F-111C was ordered. (The UK government almost followed that decision – after the cancellation of the TSR-2 – it was offered the similar F-111K .) In

1620-439: The groundspeed and drift angle , radio and radar altimeters , and an instrument landing system . TACAN replaced GEE in the B.1A and B.2 in 1964. Decca Doppler 72 replaced Green Satin in the B.2 around 1969 A continuous display of the aircraft's position was maintained by a ground position indicator. Vulcan B.2s were eventually fitted with the free-running dual-gyroscopic heading reference system (HRS) Mk.2, based upon

1701-551: The inertial platform of the Blue Steel missile, which had been integrated into the system when the missile had been carried. With the HRS a navigator's heading unit was provided, which enabled the navigator plotter to adjust the aircraft heading, through the autopilot, by as little as 0.1 degrees. The B.2 (MRR) was additionally fitted with the LORAN C navigation system. The original ECM fit of

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1782-448: The 698's development. More influential than the Avro 707 in the 698's design was the wind-tunnel testing performed at RAE Farnborough . This necessitated a wing redesign incorporating a cranked and drooped leading edge and vortex generators to avoid the onset of compressibility drag, which would have restricted the maximum speed. This wing modification resulted in the "phase 2" wing which

1863-450: The A&AEE for trials for the type's initial Certificate of Airworthiness which it received the following month. (In 1956, VX777 was modified with the even larger phase 2(C) wing. Fitted with Olympus 104 engines, it became the aerodynamic prototype of the Vulcan B.2.) The first 15 production B.1s were powered by the Olympus 101. Many of these early examples in a metallic finish remained

1944-426: The B.1A and B.2 was one Green Palm voice communications jammer; two Blue Diver metric jammers; three Red Shrimp S-band jammers; a Blue Saga passive warning receiver with four aerials; a Red Steer tail warning radar ; and chaff dispensers. The bulk of the equipment was carried in a large, extended tail cone, and a flat ECM aerial counterpoise plate was mounted between the starboard tailpipes. Later equipment on

2025-577: The B.1As were not strengthened for low-level operations and all were withdrawn by 1968. As far back as 1952, Bristol Aero Engines had begun development of the BOl.6 (Olympus 6) rated at 16,000 lbf (71 kN) thrust but if fitted to the B.1, this would have reintroduced the buffet requiring further redesign of the wing. The decision to proceed with the B.2 versions of the Vulcan was made in May 1956, being developed by Avro's chief designer Roy Ewans . The first B.2

2106-551: The B.2 included: an L band jammer (replacing a Red Shrimp); the ARI 18146 X-band jammer; replacing the Green Palm; the improved Red Steer Mk.2; infra-red decoys (flares); and the ARI 18228 PWR with its aerials that gave a squared top to the fin. The aircraft was controlled by a fighter-type control stick and rudder bar, which operated the powered flying controls, which each had a single electrohydraulic-powered flying control unit, except

2187-420: The B.2) ejection seats whilst on the lower level the navigator radar , navigator plotter , and air electronics officer (AEO) sat facing rearwards and would abandon the aircraft via the entrance door. The original B35/46 specification sought a jettisonable crew compartment , but this requirement was removed in a subsequent amendment; the rear crew's escape system was often an issue of controversy, such as when

2268-455: The Barnham site becoming an industrial estate. The site at Barnham is a scheduled monument. Major deficiencies with Blue Danube included the use of unreliable lead-acid accumulators to supply power to the firing circuits and radar altimeters . Later weapons used the more reliable ram-air turbine -generators or thermal batteries . Blue Danube was not engineered as a weapon equipped to withstand

2349-516: The Control Display Unit (CDU). During the 1982 Falklands war, RAF Avro Vulcans were fitted with Carousels from RAF Vickers VC10s to enable Operation Black Buck . This article about aircraft components is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Avro Vulcan The Avro Vulcan (later Hawker Siddeley Vulcan from July 1963) is a jet-powered , tailless , delta-wing , high-altitude, strategic bomber , which

2430-556: The MoS's Air Fleet on radio trials), amazed crowds at the Farnborough Air Show by executing a barrel roll on his second flypast in front of the SBAC president's tent. After two days of flying, he was called in front of service and civil aviation authorities and ordered to refrain from carrying out this "dangerous" manoeuvre. Now fitted with a phase 2 wing, XA889 was delivered in March 1956 to

2511-469: The Olympus 104 standard, ultimately rated at 13,500 lbf (60 kN) thrust. Rebuilding B.1s as B.2s was considered but rejected over cost. Nevertheless, to extend the B.1's service life, 28 (the surviving B1 aircraft fitted with Olympus 102/104 engines) were upgraded by Armstrong Whitworth between 1959 and 1963 to the B.1A standard, including features of the B.2 such as ECM equipment, in-flight refuelling receiving equipment, and UHF radio. However,

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2592-480: The Olympus 301. To counter improving Soviet defences after the cancellation of Skybolt , Avro proposed a Vulcan with three Gnat fighters slung underneath. The Gnats were to have been released in enemy airspace to provide fighter cover, and they were expected to land "in friendly territory" or return to the Vulcan to replenish their tanks by means of a specially installed flight-refuelling drogue. Other countries expressed interest in purchasing Vulcans, but as with

2673-840: The RAF with these modifications. When the Mk.2 version of Blue Steel was cancelled in favour of the Douglas GAM-87 Skybolt air-launched ballistic missile in December 1959, fittings were changed in anticipation of the new missile, one under each wing. Though Skybolt was cancelled in November 1962, many aircraft were delivered or retrofitted with "Skybolt" blisters. Later aircraft were delivered with Olympus 301 engines with 20,000 lbf (89 kN) thrust. Two earlier aircraft were re-engined (XH557 and XJ784) for trials and development work; another seven aircraft were converted around 1963. The last B.2 XM657

2754-542: The Smiths Military Flight System (MFS), the pilots' components being: two beam compasses; two director-horizons; and an Mk.10A or Mk.10B autopilot . From 1966, B.2s were fitted with the ARI 5959 TFR, built by General Dynamics , its commands being fed into the director-horizons. The B.1 had four elevators (inboard) and four ailerons (outboard). In the B.2, these were replaced by eight elevons . The Vulcan

2835-510: The U.S. Atomic Energy Act of 1946 (McMahon Act) having prohibited exporting atomic knowledge, even to countries that had collaborated on the Manhattan Project . OR.1001 envisaged a weapon not to exceed 24 ft 2 in (7.37 m) in length, 5 ft (1.5 m) in diameter and 10,000 lb (4,500 kg) in weight. The weapon had to be suitable for release from 20,000 to 50,000 ft (6,100 to 15,200 m). In January 1947,

2916-644: The Vulcan was typically armed with nuclear weapons , it could also carry out conventional bombing missions, which it did in Operation Black Buck during the Falklands War between the United Kingdom and Argentina in 1982. The Vulcan had no defensive weaponry, initially relying upon high-speed, high-altitude flight to evade interception. Electronic countermeasures were employed by the B.1 (designated B.1A) and B.2 from around 1960. A change to low-level tactics

2997-501: The bomb bay. Despite being designed before a low radar cross-section and other stealth factors were ever a consideration, an RAE technical note of 1957 stated that of all the aircraft so far studied, the Vulcan appeared by far the simplest radar-echoing object, due to its shape; only one or two components contributed significantly to the echo at any aspect, compared with three or more on most other types. The two prototype Vulcans were finished in gloss white. Early Vulcan B.1s left

3078-427: The cabin and was fitted with Bristol Olympus 100 engines of 9,750 lbf (43.4 kN) thrust. At Falk's suggestion, a fighter-style control stick had replaced the control wheel. Like VX770, VX777 had the original wing with straight leading edges. VX777 was joined in formation by the first prototype VX770 and four Avro 707s at the 1953 Farnborough Air Show. During trials in July 1954, VX777 was substantially damaged in

3159-500: The control column had to be pushed rather than pulled to maintain level flight. This artificial pitch-up made the Vulcan handle more like other aircraft as its speed increased. The first production B.1 XA889 first flew in February 1955 with the original wing and joined the trials in June. In September 1955, Falk, flying the second production B.1 XA890 (which had remained at Woodford as part of

3240-469: The delay of the 707 programme, the contribution of the 707B and 707A towards the basic design of the 698 was not considered significant, though it did highlight a need to increase the length of the nosewheel to give a ground incidence of 3.5°, the optimum take-off attitude. The 707B and 707A proved the design's validity and gave confidence in the delta planform . A second 707A, WZ736, and a two-seat 707C, WZ744, were also constructed, but they played no part in

3321-456: The delta wing, the company planned two smaller experimental aircraft based on the 698, the one-third scale model 707 for low-speed handling and the one-half scale model 710 for high-speed handling. Two of each were ordered. The 710 was cancelled when it was considered too time-consuming to develop; a high-speed variant of the 707 was designed in its place, the 707A. The first 707, VX784 , flew in September 1949, but crashed later that month, killing

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3402-518: The early 1980s, Argentina approached the UK with a proposal to buy a number of Vulcans. An application, made in September 1981, requested the 'early availability' of a 'suitable aircraft'. With some reluctance, British ministers approved the export of a single aircraft but emphasised that clearance had not been given for the sale of a larger number. A letter from the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office to

3483-437: The early aircraft were retained for trials, and the 12th B.2, XH558, was the first to be delivered to the RAF in July 1960. Coincidentally, XH558 was also the last Vulcan in service with the RAF, before being retired in 1992. The 26th B.2, XL317, the first of a production batch ordered in February 1956, was the first Vulcan, apart from development aircraft, capable of carrying the Blue Steel missile; 33 aircraft were delivered to

3564-441: The fact that the inertial reference platform was rotated 360° every 60 seconds as a technique to reduce drift and increase accuracy by countering systematic errors. Low drift operation was aided by maintaining the gyroscopes and accelerometers at a constant temperature of 60 °C. The elevated temperature was maintained whenever the system was switched on in either the 'Standby', 'Align', 'Navigate' or 'Attitude' mode, as selected on

3645-448: The factory in a natural metal finish; the front half of the nose radome was painted black, the rear half painted silver. Front-line Vulcan B.1s had a finish of anti-flash white and RAF "type D" roundels . Front-line Vulcan B.1As and B.2s were similar, but with pale roundels. With the adoption of low-level attack profiles in the mid-1960s, B.1As and B.2s were given a glossy sea grey medium and dark green disruptive pattern camouflage on

3726-632: The first British fission device (which was neither designed nor employed as a weapon), tested in 1952. The actual Blue Danube warhead was proof-tested during Operation Buffalo in Autumn of 1956 at the Marcoo (surface) and Kite (air-drop) nuclear trials at Maralinga , Australia, by a team of Australian, British and Canadian scientists. During the Kite test on 11 October 1956, a Vickers Valiant of No. 49 Squadron RAF piloted by Squadron Leader Ted Flavell became

3807-404: The first British aircraft to drop a live atomic bomb. Blue Danube added a ballistically shaped casing to the existing Hurricane physics package , with four flip-out fins to ensure a stable ballistic trajectory from the planned release height of 50,000 ft. It initially used a plutonium core , but all service versions were modified to use a composite plutonium/ uranium-235 (U-235) core, and

3888-489: The flying testbed for the Rolls-Royce Conway by-pass engine. It crashed at a flying display at RAF Syerston in September 1958. The second prototype, VX777, first flew on 3 September 1953. More representative of production aircraft, it was lengthened to accommodate a longer nose undercarriage leg to increase the angle of attack of the wing, shortening the take-off run. It featured a visual bomb-aiming blister under

3969-492: The individual waypoints by their latitude and longitude points and then the pilot or engineer would enter the starting location in latitude and longitude. The system used spinning mass gyroscopes and proof-mass accelerometers to measure movement from the start point. An involved calculation followed by sampling those sensors to determine a current position relative to the surface of the Earth. The Carousel IV system derives its name from

4050-534: The introduction of the Avro Blue Steel stand-off missile , then in development. To develop these proposals, the second Vulcan prototype VX777 was rebuilt with the larger and thinner phase-2C wing, improved flying control surfaces, and Olympus 102 engines, first flying in this configuration in August 1957. Several Vulcan B.1s were used for the development of the B.2: development of the BOl.6 (later Olympus 200), XA891;

4131-539: The last time in October 2015 and is also being kept in taxiable condition. XM612 is on display at Norwich Aviation Museum . The origin of the Vulcan and the other V bombers is linked with early British atomic weapon programme and nuclear deterrent policies. Britain's atom bomb programme began with Air Staff Operational Requirement OR.1001 issued in August 1946. This anticipated a government decision in January 1947 to authorise research and development work on atomic weapons,

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4212-426: The limiting Mach number, including an alarming tendency to enter an uncontrollable dive . This was judged unacceptable for an unarmed bomber. Fitting the phase 2 wing removed the buffeting and an auto-mach trimmer countered the high-speed dive. The latter applied up-elevator as the speed critically increased. This up-elevator force was greater than the force required to counter the dive. Consequently, as speed increased,

4293-411: The next month when Falk demonstrated an almost vertical bank. After its Farnborough appearance, the future name of the Avro 698 was a subject of speculation. Avro had strongly recommended the name Ottawa , in honour of the company's connection with Avro Canada . The weekly magazine Flight suggested Albion after rejecting Avenger , Apollo , and Assegai . The chief of the air staff preferred

4374-629: The other V-bombers, no foreign sales materialised. As early as 1954, the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) recognised that the English Electric Canberra might soon become outdated. Potential replacements, such as the Boeing B-47 E, Handley-Page Victor and Vulcan were considered. Political pressure for a Canberra replacement came to a head in 1962, by which time agile, supersonic bombers/strategic strike aircraft , such as

4455-472: The property of the Ministry of Supply, being retained for trials and development purposes. Those entering RAF service were delivered to No 230 Operational Conversion Unit (OCU), the first in July 1956. Later aircraft, painted in anti-flash white and powered by the Olympus 102 with 12,000 lbf (53 kN) thrust, began to enter squadron service in July 1957. The Olympus 102s were modified during overhaul to

4536-559: The prototype), the Type 732 showed its Vulcan heritage. In 1960, the Air Staff approached Avro with a request into a study for a patrol missile carrier armed with up to six Skybolt missiles capable of a mission length of 12 hours. Avro's submission in May 1960 was the Phase 6 Vulcan, which would have been the Vulcan B.3. The aircraft was fitted with an enlarged wing of 121 ft (37 m) span with increased fuel capacity; additional fuel tanks in

4617-559: The rigours of service life ; it was a scientific experiment on a gigantic scale, which needed to be re-engineered to meet service requirements, resulting in Red Beard . The same could be said of the first U.S. atomic bomb, Fat Man , which was quickly re-engineered after World War II . Parts of a Blue Danube could be viewed by the public at old Sellafield Visitors Centre in Cumbria, England. This centre closed in 2008. A replica Blue Danube bomb

4698-423: The rudder, which had two, one running as a back-up. Artificial feel and auto stabilisation in the form of pitch and yaw dampers were provided, as well as an auto Mach trimmer. The flight instruments in the B.1 were traditional and included G4B compasses; Mk.4 artificial horizons; and zero reader flight display instruments. The B.1 had a Smiths Mk10 autopilot. In the B.2, these features were incorporated into

4779-489: The scarcity of fissile materials, and there is no evidence that any were seriously contemplated. The first Blue Danube was delivered to stockpile at RAF Wittering in November 1953 although there were no aircraft equipped to carry it until the following year. No. 1321 Flight RAF was established at RAF Wittering in April 1954 as a Vickers Valiant unit to integrate the Blue Danube nuclear weapon into RAF service. The Short Sperrin

4860-472: The specification. No worthwhile information about high-speed flight was available from the Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) or the US. Avro were aware that Alexander Lippisch had designed a delta-wing fighter and considered the same delta configuration would be suitable for their bomber. The team estimated that an otherwise conventional aircraft, with a swept wing of 45°, would have doubled

4941-437: The upper surfaces, white undersurfaces, and "type D" roundels. (The last 13 Vulcan B.2s, XM645 onwards, were delivered thus from the factory ). In the mid-1970s, Vulcan B.2s received a similar scheme with matte camouflage, light aircraft grey undersides, and "low-visibility" roundels. B.2(MRR)s received a similar scheme in gloss; and the front halves of the radomes were no longer painted black. Beginning in 1979, 10 Vulcans received

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5022-416: The weight requirement. Realising that swept wings increase longitudinal stability, the team deleted the tail ( empennage ) and the supporting fuselage , it thus became a swept-back flying wing with only a rudimentary forward fuselage and a fin ( vertical stabilizer ) at each wingtip. The estimated weight was now only 50% over the requirement; a delta shape resulted from reducing the wingspan and maintaining

5103-449: The wing area by filling in the space between the wingtips, which enabled the specification to be met. Although Alexander Lippisch is generally credited as the pioneer of the delta wing, Chadwick's team had followed its own logical design process. The initial design submission had four large turbojets stacked in pairs buried in the wings on either side of the centreline. Outboard of the engines were two bomb bays . In August 1947, Chadwick

5184-434: The wing transport joints; the intakes and centre fuselage ; the front fuselage, incorporating the pressure cabin ; the nose; the outer wings; the leading edges; the wing trailing edge and rear end of the fuselage; and a single swept tail fin with a single rudder was on the trailing edge. A five-man crew was accommodated within the pressure cabin on two levels; the first pilot and co-pilot sitting on Martin-Baker 3K (3KS on

5265-478: Was a 1952 proposal (announced in June 1953) for a 120-passenger delta-winged airliner based on the Type 698. The Avro 732 was a 1956 proposal for a supersonic development of the Vulcan and would have been powered by 8 de Havilland Gyron Junior engines. Unlike the proposed Avro 721 low-level bomber of 1952 or the Avro 730 supersonic stainless steel canard bomber dating from 1954 (cancelled in 1957 before completion of

5346-534: Was also able to carry the Blue Danube and had been ordered as a fall-back option, in case the V-bomber projects proved unsuccessful. Declassified archives show that 58 Blue Danubes were produced before production shifted in 1958 to the smaller and more capable Red Beard weapon, which could accept the Blue Danube fissile core and also could be carried by much smaller aircraft. It seems unlikely that all 58 Blue Danube weapons were operational at any given time. Blue Danube

5427-472: Was also fitted with six electrically operated three-position (retracted, medium drag, high drag) airbrakes , four in the upper centre section and two in the lower. Originally, four lower airbrakes were used, but the outboard two were deleted before the aircraft entered service. A brake parachute was installed inside the tail cone. The main electrical system on the B.1/B.1A was 112 V DC supplied by four 22.5 kW engine-driven starter-generators . Backup power

5508-418: Was anticipated to be around the 45th aircraft of the 99 then on order. As well as being able to achieve greater heights over targets, operational flexibility was believed to be extended by the provision of in-flight refuelling equipment and tanker aircraft. The increasing sophistication of Soviet air defences required the fitting of electronic countermeasure (ECM) equipment, and vulnerability could be reduced by

5589-466: Was carried in 14 bag tanks, four in the centre fuselage above and to the rear of the nosewheel bay, and five in each outer wing. The tanks were split into four groups of almost equal capacity, each normally feeding its respective engine, though cross-feeding was possible. The centre of gravity was automatically maintained by electric timers, which sequenced the booster pumps on the tanks. B.2 aircraft could be fitted with one or two additional fuel tanks in

5670-405: Was considered too exacting. Six companies submitted technical brochures to this specification, including Avro. Required to tender by the end of April 1947, work began on receipt of Specification B.35/46 at Avro, led by technical director Roy Chadwick and chief designer Stuart Davies ; the type designation was Avro 698 . As was obvious to the design team, conventional aircraft could not satisfy

5751-467: Was delivered in 1965 and the type served until 1984. Whilst in service, the B.2 was continuously updated with modifications, including rapid engine starting, bomb-bay fuel tanks, wing strengthening to give the fatigue life to enable the aircraft to fly at low level (a tactic introduced in the mid-1960s), upgraded navigation equipment, terrain-following radar , standardisation on a common weapon ( WE.177 ) and improved ECM equipment. Nine B.2s were modified for

5832-571: Was first delivered to the RAF in 1956; deliveries of the improved Vulcan B.2 started in 1960. The B.2 featured more powerful engines, a larger wing, an improved electrical system, and electronic countermeasures , and many were modified to accept the Blue Steel missile. As a part of the V-force , the Vulcan was the backbone of the United Kingdom's airborne nuclear deterrent during much of the Cold War . Although

5913-429: Was first investigated on Avro 707A WD480. This modification was too late to be incorporated on the two prototype 698s and the first three B.1 aircraft before their first flights. (The B.1s were quickly retrofitted). Painted gloss white, the 698 prototype VX770, with its pure delta wing, flew for the first time on 30 August 1952 piloted by Roly Falk flying solo. VX770, fitted with only the first pilot's ejection seat and

5994-488: Was killed in the crash of the Avro Tudor 2 prototype , and was succeeded by Sir William Farren. Reductions in wing thickness made incorporating the split bomb bays and stacked engines impossible, thus the engines were placed side by side in pairs on either side of a single bomb bay, with the fuselage growing somewhat. The wingtip fins gave way to a single fin on the aircraft's centreline. Rival manufacturer Handley Page received

6075-547: Was made in the mid-1960s. In the mid-1970s, nine Vulcans were adapted for maritime radar reconnaissance operations, redesignated as B.2 (MRR). In the final years of service, six Vulcans were converted to the K.2 tanker configuration for aerial refuelling . After retirement by the RAF, one example, B.2 XH558 , named The Spirit of Great Britain , was restored for use in display flights and air shows, whilst two other B.2s, XL426 and XM655 , have been kept in taxiable condition for ground runs and demonstrations. B.2 XH558 flew for

6156-440: Was more representative of a production aircraft, being fitted with an in-flight refuelling probe and a bulged ECM tail cone. Some subsequent B.2s were initially lacking probes and ECM tail cones, but these were retrofitted. The first 10 B.2s outwardly showed their B.1 ancestry, retaining narrow engine air intakes. Anticipating even more powerful engines, the air intakes were deepened on the 11th (XH557) and subsequent aircraft. Many of

6237-493: Was operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF) from 1956 until 1984. Aircraft manufacturer A.V. Roe and Company ( Avro ) designed the Vulcan in response to Specification B.35/46 . Of the three V bombers produced, the Vulcan was considered the most technically advanced, hence the riskiest option. Several reduced-scale aircraft, designated Avro 707s , were produced to test and refine the delta-wing design principles. The Vulcan B.1

6318-453: Was provided by four 24 V 40 Ah batteries connected in series providing 96 V. Secondary electrical systems were 28 V DC, single-phase 115 V AC at 1600 Hz, and three-phase 115 V AC at 400 Hz, driven by transformers and inverters from the main system. The 28 V DC system was backed up by a single 24 V battery. Blue Danube (nuclear weapon) Blue Danube was the first operational British nuclear weapon . It also went by

6399-410: Was quickly imposed. Despite its radical and unusual shape, the airframe was built along traditional lines. Except for the most highly stressed parts, the whole structure was manufactured from standard grades of light alloy. The airframe was broken down into a number of major assemblies: The centre section, a rectangular box containing the bomb bay and engine bays bounded by the front and rear spars and

6480-513: Was retired in 1962. Bomb storage facilities for the weapon were built at RAF Barnham in Suffolk and RAF Faldingworth in Lincolnshire . These sites were built specifically to store bomb components in small buildings called 'hutches' with the high explosive elements of the weapons stored in dedicated storage areas. The storage facilities were probably closed in 1963 and put up for sale in 1966,

6561-441: Was specified. The maximum weight when fully loaded should not exceed 100,000 lb (45,000 kg). Alternatively, the aircraft was to be capable of carrying a conventional bomb load of 20,000 lb (9,100 kg). The similar OR.230 required a "long-range bomber" with a 2,000 nautical miles (2,300 mi; 3,700 km) radius of action with a maximum weight of 200,000 lb (91,000 kg) when fully loaded; this requirement

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