Lancaster B Mk I

Lancaster B Mk I

Stirling B Mk III

Lancaster B Mk III

Lancaster B Mk I

Stirling B Mk III

Lancaster B Mk III

Britain

IV Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
5.0	5.3	5.7

Class:

Bomber

Long Range bomber

Research:46 000

Purchase:155 000

Show in game

This page is about the aircraft Lancaster B Mk I. For other uses, see Lancaster (Disambiguation)

Description

The Lancaster B Mk I in the garage

The Lancaster B Mk I is a Rank IV British bomber with a battle rating of 5.0 (AB), 5.3 (RB), and 5.7 (SB). This aircraft was introduced in Update 1.43.

The Avro Lancaster B Mk. I is a long-range heavy bomber optimised for destroying stationary targets like pillboxes, bases, and airfields with bombs from high altitude.

General info

Flight Performance

Characteristics
Stock
Max Speed (km/h at 3,048 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
422	414	7800	43.9	44.3	3.2	4.9	750
Upgraded
Max Speed (km/h at 3,048 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
480	451	7800	40.3	42.0	16.8	8.6	750

Details

Features
Combat flap	Take-off flap	Landing flap	Air brakes	Arrestor gear
✓	✓	✓	X	X

Limits
Wing-break speed (km/h)	Gear limit (km/h)	Combat flap (km/h)	Max Static G
			+	-
0	338	???	~1	~1

Optimal velocities
Ailerons (km/h)	Rudder (km/h)	Elevators (km/h)	Radiator (km/h)
< 250	< 250	< 250	> 270

Compressor (RB/SB)
Setting 1
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
1,900 m	4,500 hp	3,690 hp
Setting 2
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
4,000 m	4,520 hp	6,418 hp

Survivability and armour

• 8 mm Steel plate on each pilot's head rest.
• 6.35 mm Steel plate behind each engine.
• No armour glazing
• Critical components located in the wings of aircraft (fuel, engine, controls)

Armaments

Suspended armament

The Lancaster B Mk I can be outfitted with the following ordinance"

• 14 x G.P. 250 lb Mk.IV bombs
• 6 x G.P. 500 lb Mk.IV bombs + 8 x G.P. 250 lb Mk.IV bombs
• 14 x G.P. 500 lb Mk.IV bombs
• 6 x G.P. 500 lb Mk.IV bombs + 2 x G.P. 250 lb Mk.IV bombs + 1 x G.P. 1000 lb Mk.I bomb
• 3 x G.P. 250 lb Mk.IV bombs + 6 x G.P. 1000 lb Mk.I bombs
• 14 x M.C. 1000 lb Mk.I bombs
• 1 x H.C. 4000 lb Mk.II bomb + 6 x M.C. 1000 lb Mk.I bombs + 2 x G.P. 250 lb Mk.IV bombs
• 2 x H.C. 4000 lb Mk.II bombs

Defensive armament

The Lancaster B Mk I is defended by:

• 2 x 7.7 mm Browning machine gun, nose turret (1,000 RPG = 2,000 total)
• 2 x 7.7 mm Browning machine gun, dorsal turret (1,000 RPG = 2,000 total)
• 4 x 7.7 mm Browning machine gun, tail turret (2,500 RPG = 10,000 total)

Usage in the battles

The Lancaster carries the heaviest bombload of any bomber before the American Boeing B-29 Superfortress, at a fantastic 14,000 lb (6,363 kg), and the heaviest of any British bomber in the game. It can quickly end games if left to go about its business. The Lancaster also has relatively good performance and agility for a four-engined heavy bomber, significantly better than both the American B-17 and B-24 bombers.

Unfortunately, the Lancaster is extremely vulnerable if intercepted by enemy fighters. Its defensive armament consists only of .303 in Browning machine guns; while they have a high rate-of-fire, they are not very lethal to enemy fighters outside of a lucky fire set by the incendiary bullets. In addition, the Lancaster has no ventral turret covering attacks from below due to the H2S radar (a useless feature in the game). The aircraft itself is not very durable as well, and is extremely vulnerable to 20 mm and larger cannon.

Manual Engine Control

MEC elements
Mixer	Pitch	Radiator			Supercharger	Turbocharger
		Oil	Water	Type
Not controllable	Controllable	Not controllable	Controllable	Combined	Controllable	Controllable

Modules

Tier	Flight performance		Survivability	Weaponry
I	Fuselage Repair	Radiator
II		Compressor	Airframe
III	Wings Repair	Engine
IV		Engine Injection	Cover

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Massive bombload.
• Powerful Merlin engines providing good performance.
• Excellent handling and maneuverability.

Cons:

• Very low durability.
• Pathetic defensive armament.
• Easily damaged elevators and tail controls.

History

With RAF Bomber Command’s focus being centred on the strategic bombing campaign against German industry, the RAF desperately required a force of heavy bombers to increase the capability provided by their medium bomber fleet. A twin engine Avro Manchester bomber was converted to be powered by four engines and first flown in January 1941. This and subsequent prototypes were deemed to be so successful that the first production variant of the new bomber, now named the Lancaster, was flown in October 1941.

Powered by four Rolls Royce Merlin XX engines rated at 1280 hp, (later upgraded to Merlin 22 or 24s) the Lancaster B.I was capable of reaching speeds of up to 275 mph. With a standard fuel load it could carry 10,000 lbs of bombs over 1000 miles. The maximum ordinance capacity of the Lancaster was one of the highest of any heavy bomber in World War II: 14,000 lb (6,356 kg). Besides standard bombs, the aircraft could carry an 8,000 lb (3,632 kg) “blockbuster” or two 4,000 lb (1,816 kg) high-explosive “cookie” bombs. Special modifications of the bomber could carry even larger bombs, such as the 22,000 lb ‘Grand Slam’ bomb. For defence, the Lancaster had eight 0.303 inch Colt-Browning Mk.II machine guns located in three turrets: two guns were located in the nose, two in the dorsal turret, and four in the tail turret. This defensive armament was considerably lighter than that of the Lancaster’s US counterparts; it relied on darkness for protection rather than firepower. However, even though on paper the Lancaster was an impressive strategic asset, it still had its weaknesses: whereas the Halifax and Stirling could both claim a crew survival rate of 25% in the event of destruction, the Lancaster could only claim a survival rate of 15% for its crews. 58% of all RAF Lancasters were destroyed in combat; a higher loss percentage than any other British aircraft during the entire war.

The Lancaster was first used operationally in March 1942 by No. 44 Squadron. It soon became the backbone of RAF Bomber Command’s offensive against the heart of Germany, but was also used against targets all across occupied Europe. The majority of Lancaster operations took place at night due to RAF Bomber Command’s policy of night bombing whilst the bombers of the United States Army Air Force tackled targets by day. The Lancaster became legendary on the night of May 17th 1943 when bombers of No 617 Squadron breached the Mohne and Eder dams in Germany with Barnes Wallis’ genius ‘bouncing bomb’. Lancasters of Nos 9 and 617 Squadrons also sank the German battleship ‘Tirpitz’ with 12,000 lb ‘Tallboy’ bombs, also designed by Wallis.

Over 3400 Lancaster B.Is were manufactured between November 1941 and March 1946, making it the most numerous of the Avro Lancaster variants. In addition to RAF operations, the Lancaster was also used by the RAAF and RCAF.

Media

An excellent addition to the article will be video guides, as well as screenshots from the game and photos.

Read also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example,

• reference to the series of the aircraft;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

Sources

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• page on aircraft encyclopedia;
• other literature.