St Edward's Rhubarb - 2018

9 / 60

the crowds and was amazed by the number
of people, just as I am by those who routinely
come out to watch the BBMF. It is rather
amusing that although the crew have a hand-
held GPS on board, we do look for landmarks,
often a bouncy castle at a village fete!
Why do you think the Dambusters Raid
still interests people 75 years on?
It was such a daring raid on an unfamiliar
heavily fortified target, at low level (60 ft.
above the dams) which was
not routine, at night and with a
revolutionary bomb. It was the
first demonstration of precision
bombing done by a small team in
the days of 1000 bomber raids
on the Continent. It was a huge
morale boost and gave out a
message of what the Allied forces
were capable of. I guess it can be
compared to the Black Buck raids
during the Falklands conflict where
the RAF demonstrated their
capability. The Vulcan bombers
could have made it to Buenos Aires and this
message was part of the strategy.
How long will the Lancaster continue to fly?
I would say indefinitely. It is possible that air
safety standards may move forward such that
they would stop the aircraft being flown in air
displays, but mechanically it could keep flying.
Parts are still available for the Merlin engines
and the blueprints for the aircraft still exist.
PA474 has flown 6,000 hours in her life and
has to fly 104 hours a year to keep her flying.
The BBMF display season normally runs
from the beginning of May to the end of
September each year, with pre-season
work-up flying for the crews taking place
in April. For dates check their website:
battle-of-britain-memorial-flight/displays/.
Follow Seb on Twitter @Seb_Lanc99
or the BBMF @RAFBBMF
on a British Airways flight to visit family in
France. The Captain let me sit on the flight
deck as often happened in the days before
terrorist threats in aviation and this rapidly
changed my mind about my career choice!
Were you in the CCF at school?
At Merchant Taylors School, I initially joined
the Army section but then transferred to
RAF section. I then joined the University
Air Squadron while studying Engineering at
Southampton. Both the CCF and ATC are
amazing youth organisations for providing
fantastic opportunities and giving a good
grounding in life and discipline. Just after the
first Gulf War I was attracted to the glamour
and honour of fast jets having seen the Boys
from Bahrain video (now on YouTube), and
decided to train as a military pilot.
Tell us about the Lancaster…
The Avro Lancaster is the most famous
heavy bomber of the Second World War.
PA474 (which I fly) is one of only two
Lancaster aircraft remaining in an airworthy
condition out of the 7,377 that were built.
She rolled off the production line in May
1945 therefore never saw action in Europe.
She was prepared for use in the conflict in
the Far East against the Japanese as part of
the ‘Tiger Force’ however hostilities ended
before she was deployed. She was fitted with
larger radiators in readiness for the climate
in the Far East which is now a benefit as
there is no issue with overheating if forced
to wait in a queue at airshows, which often
causes problems for the Spitfire!
My qualifying flight on the Lancaster was
in May 2015. When flying the Lancaster, the
Captain is at the controls for take-off and
landing and the Co-Pilot will fly the aircraft
in between as this is how training is done.
Unfortunately I was Co-Pilot (Captain under
training) when there was an engine fire and
the aircraft was grounded for the season in
2015, but my favourite memory was leading
the formation of the two remaining airworthy
Lancasters down Derwent Reservoir in 2014
alongside the Canadian plane known as VeRA
on her UK tour. I currently have 150 hours
of flying recorded in the aircraft.(Guy Gibson’s
log book shows that by 25th May 1943 he
had recorded 644.25 hours of day and night
operational flying – Ed)
Guy Gibson's log book
Dakota over Teddies, 2013
7 ST EDWARD’S r hubarb
F E AT U R E S
Flying the Lancaster is a huge
responsibility as you don’t want to be
the one who puts a dent in a very special
aircraft! It is obviously also a huge privilege
to honour the actions of childhood heroes
but the greatest privilege is being able to talk
to the veterans. These brave men will often
speak to us as the crews of the BBMF when
they have never spoken of their experiences
to their own families.
And the Dakota?
The Dakota C-47 is the most
famous military transport aircraft.
ZA947, named ‘Kwicherbichen’
by her crews, was involved in
para-dropping operations on the
eve of D-Day and subsequently in
re-supply and casualty evacuation
missions into and out of forward
airfields in the combat areas. She
was issued to the BBMF in 1993
and is an important training asset
used for initial training of aircrew
for the BBMF multi-engine aircraft and also
to keep the Lancaster pilots up to date each
year. The Dakota is a more straightforward
aircraft to fly compared to the four-engined
Lancaster which requires two pilots.
I flew the Dakota over Teddies in 2013
for the 150th Anniversary celebrations. At
250 ft. above the school grounds I could see
Plaque on PA474 fuselage
which the crew touch
before each flight
Scan the code to experience the
Lancaster flight down Derwent
Water from the cockpit
a1166d4d8a