Canberra Retires after 55 Years Service!!

Just been on the news the last 2 RAF canberras have flown their last mission and will shortly take their last flight at the Farnborough Air Show

news.bbc.co.uk...

1951-2006 is this an unrivalled active service history for a military aircraft? [edit - stupid me forgot the BUFF!!] Apart from the BUFF

The actual airframes being retired were bulit in 1962 or earlier!

www.raf.mod.uk...

RIP and thanks

[edit on 23-6-2006 by Strangerous]

Still soldiers on in some other air forces such as India (106sq). A great plane, almost as good as a UAV, lol.

Yep..
You can see some of em' on Google Earth at 28 Deg 25' 24.98" N , 79 Deg 26' 05.83" E.
Planeman, I presume your Sqdrn knowledge of the Canberras (Lynxes) means that yuo've begun a google review of the IAF?

Originally posted by Daedalus3
Yep..
You can see some of em' on Google Earth at 28 Deg 25' 24.98" N , 79 Deg 26' 05.83" E.
Planeman, I presume your Sqdrn knowledge of the Canberras (Lynxes) means that yuo've begun a google review of the IAF?

Of course. Comparing IAF bases with Pakistan's. No guesses who's have better infrastucture and defenses...

Interesting but largely useless piece of information - for its size, the Canberra has an extremely large RCS (Radar Cross Signature).

Not surprising as stealth was not really a design priority in 1950

The prototype BUFF hadn't even flown when the Canberra entered squadron service.

However if current plans are adhered to the BUFF will pass the Canberra's record by quite a wide margin before it is retire too.

Anyone know what the oldest aircraft still in military service is? The DC-3 flew in 1935, does any air force still operate them?

One of the most beautifull planes ever. Its sad to see that its getting retired.

And another interesting piece of information about Canberras, thats not widely publicised....

Back in the 1960s-early 1970s, the Canberra (WV787) was selected, by the Army Department of the Ministry of Defence, to act as its Biological Warfare spray aircraft.




To the public (and most in the MOD) Canberra WV787 was known for its role as an Icing Tanker aircraft, investigating icing research.

But it had an classified alternative role as a Biological Warfare research aircraft, and flew on a number of clandestine research missions; often spraying massive quantities of bacteria over parts of the UK.



zero lift

Originally posted by waynos
The prototype BUFF hadn't even flown when the Canberra entered squadron service.

However if current plans are adhered to the BUFF will pass the Canberra's record by quite a wide margin before it is retire too.

Anyone know what the oldest aircraft still in military service is? The DC-3 flew in 1935, does any air force still operate them?

Yes, some definately do although mostly evolved varients and newer airframes. North Korea still has some Y-4 chinese copies, apparently still flying. I don't really look out for transports but I have seen quite a number of Dakotas on my google earth travels. And Canaberras - Puru, India. Argentina and US (NASA) too if we look.

[edit on 24-6-2006 by planeman]

Ah Yessssssss...............the Canberra. I remember it well.

In 1976, I was casevaced from Oman and landed at Akrotiri on the fabled isle of Cyprus.

After a short stay in the evil clutches or what purported to be RAF nurses and doctors, I was pronounced sane and given 4 days R&R.

I took the time to wander around the ops side of things and low and behold, 5 loverly 'black' Canberras sitting on the pan.

Naturally, I took loads of photies and suddenly noticed the approaching 'Nah-nah's and saw flashing blue lights.

I was arrested, thrown in a cell in the main guardroom and after 2 very hot and sweaty hours, interviews by an irate senior officer.

Luckily for me, my 1250 (RAF ID Card) identified me but, they did not even know I was on Cyprus, let alone Akrotiri! Usual RAF cockup.

Still, I learnt a very valuable lesson that night: Draught Keo, Uzo and storm drains do not mix!

Originally posted by waynos
The prototype BUFF hadn't even flown when the Canberra entered squadron service.

However if current plans are adhered to the BUFF will pass the Canberra's record by quite a wide margin before it is retire too.

You got me thinking on this one, I'd accepted the BBC's '55 years service' a bit too readily

Depends on wether we're talking type or airframe I suppose:

According to Wiki the last B52 H was delivered to SAC in 1962 and the 'H' still in service -

en.wikipedia.org...

The Canberra PR9's were built '58-62 and first entered service in 1960 (presumably the '58 build). It's reasonable, therefore, to assume (?) that the last to be retired were built in '61-62 and probably entered service in '62-63.

Anyone able to get more detail on the last 2 PR9's in service ie when built?

I make it a dead heat as we currently stand with the BUFF sure to take the record (not including transports) assuming the PR9 is a distinct aircraft rather than a mere variant

[edit on 26-6-2006 by Strangerous]

Strangerous
You ought to find this website very interesting.


See www.csd.uwo.ca...

Thanks - that's a very interesting site.

Wasn't aware of the B-57 'D' variant - looks like they pushed the development a bit too far with that one

The 55 year record is perfectly valid in respect of the Canberra having served the RAF from 1951 to 2006, when the B-52's type record is calculated it will run from 1955 to whenever, if ever, it is retired.

In terms of individual airframes however, which is a separate matter, the remaining Canberra PR.9's are from a single batch delivered to the RAF between September 1958 and December 1960 (not 1962) by Shorts who produced them, making the last airframes no older than 48 years and no newer than 46 years.

Still, the Canberra was considered very 'sexy' by some in it's heyday but to be honest, I never thought it was.

Having said that, there is still that something about RAF jet aircraft of the 50s and 60s era.

The Canberra, the Vampyre, the Venom, the Gloster Meteor and Javelin and later the Hawker Hunter and the Buccaneer spring readily to mind and of course, we had proabably the best fighter in the world, the English Electric Lightning.

I have seen two variants of the B 57 aircraft ...flown by the US Air Force.

One of the was a standard B 57 type with bomb bays rigged with electronic equipment mounted in the bays on the inside of the doors. This configuration was used by a traveling group of troubleshooters to check the proficeincy of the fighter interceptor group of then F102 interceptors stationed at Keflavik, Iceland. In short these were chase planes recording how the interceptors and the pilots performed.
I also remember this particular batch of two B 57s because the start up ,just after they closed thier bomb bay doors ,was with some kind of cartridge not air from a air start up cart as was done in the F4 Phantom. As I recall it was a smokey way to start a aircraft.

The second and most unusual type of B57 I have seen is a extensively modified plane. Very large oversized wings and oversized engine and tail surfaces. By large wings I mean length and surface area. THe wings seemed to actually droop when the plane was sitting on the ramp. This configuration I saw in Yakota Air Force Base in Japan.
It belonged to a Reconisance outfit and was obviousely a high altitude aircraft.
It seemed that back in those days we were spying all over the orient and the previous B47 aircraft modified for this role had the tail shot out of it over Korea somewhere. This extensively modified B57 is what replaced it.
Years later when I did my stint in the Air Force I was to learn from guys who had served in this squadron that these guys wore the Astronaut suits just like the U2 and blackbird pilots.
I have seen two very unusual flights of this airplane and they stood out in my mind because they were so unusual.
First off this plane actually had what appeared to be four engines. The two main oversized engines blended into the wings and two smaller outboard pylon type jet engines the type of which were mounted on the outboard wings of the later C123 propellor transports.
I saw this airplane take off and it amazingly took of in a very short takeoff run. Not much runway needed to get this plane off. But yet it could move out and gain altitude rather rapidly if needed.

The second time I was standing at the base theater,a teenager waiting for the ticket booth to open for the afternoon matinee. This B57 sailed overhead rather strangely. I say strangely because I swear that I could ride my bicycle faster than this plane was flying. I had never seen a plane fly this slowly. It had a different engine sound too ..than most jets I had ever heard. More of a hollow low sounding whine than the higher pitched whine of the F105s or F4s of which I had heard so many. It was up about 200 to 300 feet in altitude but it looked so huge because of the slowness at which it moved.
Then suddenly it turned to the right as it moved past the theater...the left wing came up the right wing down to what looked like the middle of the street. I could see the right wing flopping and flailing at the wingtip as it gasped for air support on its underside. The right wing was actually struggling for air. I stood frozen in my tracks ..unable to move while witnessing this spectacle..all the time aware that it was going to slip and slide sideways into the street and crash..killing us all in a huge fireball.
The pilot gunned the engine and the plane seemed to suddenly turn on a dime and came around a short distance turning again and it was down on the runway to a safe landing. It was a amazing performance...truely amazing. I have never seen anything like it before or since in a plane this large. I will remember this to the end of my days as it was so unusual.

These accounts for your reading pleasure..Gentlemen.
It was a truely amazing aircraft perfromance.

Thanks,
Orangetom