Lancaster B Mk III

This page is about the British heavy bomber Lancaster B Mk III. For the other version, see Lancaster B Mk I.

Lancaster B Mk III

Lancaster B Mk I

Lincoln B Mk II

Lancaster B Mk III

Lancaster B Mk I

Lincoln B Mk II

Britain

IV Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
5.0	5.3	6.0

Class:

Bomber

Long Range bomber

Research:27 000

Purchase:185 000

Show in game

Description

The Lancaster B Mk III is a rank IV British heavy bomber with a battle rating of 5.0 (AB), 5.3 (RB), and 6.0 (SB). It has been in the game since the start of the Open Beta Test prior to Update 1.27.

General info

Flight performance

Max speed

at 3 048 m462 km/h

Turn time48 s

Max altitude7 620 m

Engine4 х Rolls-Royce Merlin-28

Type

Cooling systemAir

Take-off weight31 t

Characteristics	Max Speed (km/h at 3,048 m)		Max altitude (metres)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (metres/second)		Take-off run (metres)
	AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
Stock	447	434	7620	49.2	50.4	6.9	6.8	750
Upgraded	476	462		47.0	48.0	10.4	8.6

Details

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

Limits
Wings (km/h)	Gear (km/h)	Flaps (km/h)			Max Static G
		Combat	Take-off	Landing	+	-
608	338	415	381	282	~4	~3

Optimal velocities (km/h)
Ailerons	Rudder	Elevators	Radiator
< 400	< 350	< 350	> 350

Survivability and armour

Crew5 people

Speed of destruction

Structural0 km/h

Gear338 km/h

• 8 mm Steel plates behind the pilot headrests.
• 6.35 mm Steel plate behind the engines.
• No armour glazing
• Critical components located at the front of aircraft (fuel, pilot, engine, controls)
• More fuel tanks located in wings

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB2 376 → 3 264

RB6 503 → 8 935

SB13 156 → 18 076

Total cost of modifications46 700

84 700

Talisman cost1 500

Crew training52 000

Experts185 000

Aces940

Research Aces480 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

110 / 220 / 510 %

166 / 166 / 166 %

Modifications

Flight performance	Survivability	Weaponry
Fuselage repair Research: 2 400 Cost: 4 400 200 Radiator Research: 2 400 Cost: 4 400 200 Airframe Research: 2 600 Cost: 4 700 220 Compressor Research: 2 600 Cost: 4 700 220 Wings repair Research: 3 900 Cost: 7 100 330 Engine Research: 3 900 Cost: 7 100 330 Cover Research: 2 500 Cost: 4 500 210 Engine injection Research: 2 500 Cost: 4 500 210	Protective vest Research: 2 400 Cost: 4 400 200 EFS Research: 2 500 Cost: 4 500 210	bmg303_turret_belt_pack Research: 2 400 Cost: 4 400 200 bmg303_turret_new_gun Research: 2 600 Cost: 4 700 220 AUBC No.1 Mark II Research: 2 600 Cost: 4 700 220 bmg50_turret_belt_pack Research: 3 900 Cost: 7 100 330 bmg50raf_turret_new_gun Research: 2 500 Cost: 4 500 210 AUBC No.1 Mark I Research: 2 500 Cost: 4 500 210 AUBC No.1 Mark IV Research: 2 500 Cost: 4 500 210

Armaments

Suspended armament

List of setups (11)

Setup 114 x M.C. 250 lb Mk.I bomb

Setup 28 x M.C. 250 lb Mk.I bomb
6 x M.C. 500 lb Mk.I bomb

Setup 314 x M.C. 500 lb Mk.I bomb

Setup 42 x M.C. 250 lb Mk.I bomb
1 x M.C. 1000 lb Mk.I bomb
6 x M.C. 500 lb Mk.I bomb

Setup 53 x M.C. 250 lb Mk.I bomb
6 x M.C. 1000 lb Mk.I bomb

Setup 614 x M.C. 1000 lb Mk.I bomb

Setup 76 x M.C. 1000 lb Mk.I bomb
2 x G.P. 250 lb Mk.IV bomb
1 x 4000 lb H.C. Mk.II bomb

Setup 81 x 4000 lb H.C. Mk.II bomb

Setup 96 x G.P. 500 lb Mk.IV bomb
1 x 8000 lb H.C. Mk.II bomb

Setup 101 x 8000 lb H.C. Mk.II bomb

Setup 111 x 12000 lb H.C Mk.I bomb

The Lancaster B Mk III can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

• 14 x 250 lb G.P. Mk.IV bombs (3,500 lb total)
• 6 x 500 lb G.P. Mk.IV bombs + 8 x 250 lb G.P. Mk.IV bombs (5,000 lb total)
• 14 x 500 lb G.P. Mk.IV bombs (7,000 lb total)
• 1 x 1,000 lb G.P. Mk.I bomb + 6 x 500 lb G.P. Mk.IV bombs + 2 x 250 lb G.P. Mk.IV bombs (4,500 lb total)
• 6 x 1,000 lb G.P. Mk.I bombs + 3 x 250 lb G.P. Mk.IV bombs (6,750 lb total)
• 14 x M.C. 1,000 lb Mk.I bombs (14,000 lb total)
• 1 x H.C. 4,000 lb Mk.II bomb + 6 x M.C. 1,000 lb Mk.I bombs + 2 x 250 lb G.P. Mk.IV bombs (10,500 lb total)
• 2 x H.C. 4,000 lb Mk.II bombs (8,000 lb total)

Defensive armament

Turret2 x 12.7 mm M2 Browning machine gun

Ammunition5000 rounds

Fire rate750 shots/min

2 х Turret2 x 7.7 mm Browning machine gun

Ammunition2000 rounds

Fire rate1000 shots/min

The Lancaster B Mk III is defended by:

• 2 x 12.7 mm M2 Browning machine guns, tail turret (2,500 rpg = 5,000 total)
• 2 x 7.7 mm Browning machine guns, nose turret (1,000 rpg = 2,000 total)
• 2 x 7.7 mm Browning machine guns, dorsal turret (1,000 rpg = 2,000 total)

Usage in battles

It is best to fly the Lancaster at a high altitude, at least 4,000 m, to be able to be unhindered by fighter aircraft. Beware, the aircraft has no defensive armament on the underside of the plane allowing an easy kill for experienced pilots. Due to this, and the large bomb load of the plane, it is best to target mini-bases and airfields, as moving tank columns are extremely difficult to hit, and even static targets like pillboxes can be tricky. Its defensive armament is lacking, so it is best to avoid enemy fighters altogether rather than attempting to fend them off. If you do find yourself under attack, weaving the plane left/right and up/down can help you dodge most of the fire, while allowing your turrets to still shoot back.

In real life, the Lancaster was mainly used as a strategic night bomber, used in very large numbers to carpet bomb large industrial areas and cities in Germany, a role which is performed in admirably. Fighters struggled to intercept them in the dark and anti-aircraft guns would find it difficult to target them effectively, especially if they were used in large numbers. However, this role does not really fit War Thunder. You rarely come across night missions, you will probably be playing individually as opposed to in a bomber formation and the map will be swarming with enemy fighters, who will all be licking their lips at the concept of an easy bomber kill. Tie this in with poor defensive armament and not particularly impressive performance and you have a recipe for disaster. Therefore, the Lancaster suffers in War Thunder on Arcade and Realistic air battles and will be an exceptionally easy target in ground Realistic battles. If it has any advantages, it is that it the Lancaster can carry a powerful payload. With the 2 x 4,000 lb bomb load, the plane can be put into a shallow dive to quickly reach and destroy 2 mini-bases (1 bomb for each), before most enemy fighters have climbed to altitude.

Manual Engine Control

MEC elements
Mixer	Pitch	Radiator			Supercharger	Turbocharger
		Oil	Water	Type
Not controllable	Controllable Not auto controlled	Controllable Auto control available	Controllable Auto control available	Separate	Controllable 2 gears	Not controllable

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Great bomb-load of up to 6 tons
• Powerful Merlin engines providing good performance
• 4 engines means that it can maintain flying ability despite damage to some engines
• Tail .50 cal guns are more effective than 7.7mm guns of previous bombers
• Has 2x 7.7mm + 2x 12.7mm MG facing upper rear area, which can be quite lethal to some targets with careful aiming
• H-tail means that if one rudder is shot off, the other one still works

Cons:

• Big target
• Fairly slow
• Engine failures are common
• No armour plates protecting gunners
• Wings are big and thus commonly torn off by gunfire
• No turret coverage for the belly
• 7.7 mm machine gun fire won't do much against German fighters
• When using gunner view, the different calibre turrets make it difficult to hit a target with both bullet streams
• Even when the turrets hit, it doesn't do any damage, most fighters will knock out your engines before you can kill their engines or pilots or at all. Cannot effectively hurt heavily armoured interceptors such as Me 410.

History

In-game description

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.

The immediate success of the Lancaster Mk I (redesignated the BI in 1942) caused it to be pushed ahead in terms of production priorities. In turn, this threatened the supply of Rolls Royce Merlin engines which powered it, so alternative engines needed to be sourced. The BII was powered by Bristol Hercules engines, but this caused a drop in performance and payload. The BIII was powered by Packard Merlin engines, a license built version manufactured in the United States. Internal differences between the BI and BIII were very few; the two models had near identical technical characteristics and armament and externally the BIII had only a larger bomb aimer's bubble window, but the change in designation was necessary since the different engines had different servicing requirements.

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.

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. The maximum ordnance capacity of the Lancaster was 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. 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.

A total of 3,039 BIII bombers were produced. The bomber was finally decommissioned in Great Britain in 1950, and is a serious contender to the claim of being the most capable bomber of the entire war.

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See 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.

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

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