Avro Lancaster - Engine Start Up Sequence
How do you start the mighty Avro Lancaster Bomber? Take our tour of the Avro Lancaster, as we go through the Pilot and Flight Engineer’s wartime engine starting sequence following the 1944 Air Ministry Pilot’s Notes for the Lancaster Bomber.
UK Aircraft Explored - promoting UK Aviation Heritage.
Textual extracts from Air Ministry Air Publications are Crown Copyright and transcribed with the kind permission of the National Archives, London. All colour diagrams are based on original Air Ministry Air Publications mono illustrations and transcribed into colour by Bryan Atkinson with the permission of the National Archives, London.
Thanks must also be given to the following superb organisations for their kind support when Bryan Atkinson originally developed The Lancaster Explored PC CD-ROM back in 2004, all are listed below and are included once again in this series of videos.
Lancaster B.Mk.I, PA474. The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.
Lancaster B.Mk.I, R5868. Royal Air Force Museum, London.
Lancaster B. Mk.III, DV372. Imperial War Museum.
Lancaster B.Mk.X, KB889. Imperial War Museum, Duxford.
Lancaster B.Mk.VII, NX611. Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre.
The Norman Groom & Jeremy Hall Lancaster Nose Sections.
The Rolls-Royce Heritage Trust.
The National Archives, London.
The material contained in this video is intended for historical, reference and entertainment value only, and is not to be construed as usable for aircraft or component restoration, maintenance, or use.
Consort for Brass - Classical Rousing by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. creativecommon...
Source: incompetech.com...
Artist: incompetech.com/
Пікірлер: 154
Crikey i was confused before one even got started!
@ukaircraftexplored6556
5 ай бұрын
Thanks for watching
Siempre me han gustado los "sospechosos habituales" : B-17, B-24, FW-190, P-38... pero hasta hace relativamente poco tiempo, no me había interesado por los grandes aviones ingleses. Me gusta mucho empezar a conocer estos excelentes modelos con buenas imágenes y locución inglesa.
Deary me, my dad was a Lanc pilot with 49 Sq when he was just 21. I cannot begin to get to grips with that. At 21, in the early Eighties, I was a complete idiot with little vision beyond my next wage packet. I am always staggered by that generation and what they did and went through. I knew my dad loved me , but always had the feeling he thought of me as an aimless fool too..He was correct.
@cncshrops
7 ай бұрын
😢
@felixthecat3n2
7 ай бұрын
Cometh the hour, Cometh the man.. necessity leaves little room for idleness, lack of effort or infantile adults. The war was terrible, but it often brought out the best in people.. Life is much more comfortable now, so we are free to spend far more time moaning about how awful it is..
@phil_orr
7 ай бұрын
@@felixthecat3n2 very well put
@robertcharlessceats3647
6 ай бұрын
Don't knock yourself down. In those days the scenario was you grew up fast as a case of having to. It's so easy to underestimate what we can achieve if the needs must.
@davidfarmer2049
6 ай бұрын
@@robertcharlessceats3647 That's right, you rise to the task expected of you.
This video is excellent…something I never new.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
8 ай бұрын
Thanks, I'm pleased you found it interesting!
Fascinating and excellent. Thank you. My father was in Lancs and we were allowed to scramble over the BBMF one many years ago. I used to hate clumsily attempting to do all my checks off by heart (checklist not allowed) when I had flying lessons with the RAF and was always amazed how slickly quickly and professionally the instructors/pilots did them and the comms when they were in charge. My father experienced in training experienced an engine failure on take off on the runway. It sheared the undercarriage off.
Brilliant photography. Good stuff.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
2 жыл бұрын
Many thanks!
This was amazing. So thorough and complete. I didn't know they used external power supply for the engine start but it makes so much sense given that modern aircraft also use them. I hope to one day be able to see a Lancaster in real life! Thanks for the video!
@ukaircraftexplored6556
2 жыл бұрын
Glad you enjoyed it!
@jefftheaussie2225
6 ай бұрын
G for George is in the War Memorial in Canberra. What a wonderful thing and you can walk around under it. I always marvel at how small it really is compared to how much it could carry. Walk under a B52, which you can do in Darwin, and marvel at how big it is. Half the other aircraft in that museum fit under its wings.
Thank you also. My half-cousin John Bratton was flight engineer on a Lancaster of 101 Squadron, based at Ludford Magna and he survived a full tour. He wrote a lot of this out for me. The document is one of my prized possessions. It mentions priming with "Ki-gas" but it's not mentioned here. I remember Ki-gas as a cold-weather starting aid for motrobike and cars in the 60s.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
8 ай бұрын
The Ki=Gas priming is mentioned at 5.20 on the video. Thanks for sharing and for watching
Thank you for this careful presentation. It is a long time since I last saw my uncle, a Flight Engineer, who lost his life in the final months of the war. As a young boy, I asked what the Flight Engineer did but none of my family really knew. You have put in the missing pieces of my private puzzle.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
Жыл бұрын
You are very welcome, glad to have helped
Once you get #3 running it's not that bad. I still think it's amazing this was all single pilot operation; he only had the engineer on the prat perch next to him helping him along, and that man had other jobs too.
A very interesting video - thank you for showing us! I can just imagine my father starting his engines like this during his second tour of operations with 61 Sqn.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
2 жыл бұрын
Glad you enjoyed it
My uncle was a navigator in a Lancaster that got shot down over Holland, after a bombing run on Germany, with all lives lost. It's hard to imagine what those guys and girls went through, hero's one and all.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
5 ай бұрын
Very true
Thanks for the video. My now deceased uncle was a Lancaster pilot with 460 squadron (Binbrook). There was very little said about it when I was a kid. Sad, really; I would have loved to have learned more from him.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
5 ай бұрын
Yes, would have been interesting
Brilliantly explained.....
@ukaircraftexplored6556
5 ай бұрын
Thank you 🙂
Hearing those engines start up I felt my heart speed up. I can only imagine how those youngsters felt that flew these fantastic birds
@ukaircraftexplored6556
Жыл бұрын
Glad you liked it. Thanks
@spanishpeaches2930
7 ай бұрын
My dad was a Lanc pilot at the tender age of 21...i shake my head at what he and his crew did. Cave Canem.
The Avro Lancaster was a truly lovely warbird that carried out most of the bombing in the European theater. Forget those shiny B-17 or B25 it was this fine Gentleman. The Avro Lancaster the truly MVP of the WW2. I had the pleasure of seeing one in a museum and is magnificent and so beautiful. What a lovely death machine!
@jefftheaussie2225
6 ай бұрын
It could carry a lot more too.
@wilburfinnigan2142
6 ай бұрын
FYI if you get past the lies, hype and British Bullcrap the B17 dropped more tons of bombs in the European theater, Than the Lanc actual info per the RAF figures/USAAF figures, Judt the Facts of history, and oooh yeah you "forgot" about the B24 the other Heavy, the B26 , A 20 and A26 also were medium attack bombers also !! ! Just the facts !!!
@wilburfinnigan2142
6 ай бұрын
@@jefftheaussie2225 Key word is COULD but did not, average bomb load of all Lancs throughout the war was just over 6,000# !!!!
@jefftheaussie2225
6 ай бұрын
@@wilburfinnigan2142 What do you mean could but did not? It could and did carry up to 10 ton. It was way ahead of the rest in capacity. The Grand Slam bombs that were used to smash the German U Boat pens weighed 10,000 kg. The bomb bay is huge in what is not a very big plane if you walk around under one.
@strenggeheim6672
5 ай бұрын
Die ist einfach nur unsagbar hässlich, genau wie die B-25. Die B-17 war schon schöner anzusehen.
Starting one of these aircraft was not a jump in the seat, flick a switch and off you go proposition. So many steps, and obviously several people involved to get it going to the point of taxi. I can only imagine how many people must have been involved to get an entire squadron of these aircraft into the air for a mission. Impressive.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
5 ай бұрын
Thanks for watching
Fascinating. Many folks, myself included, do not have the slightest idea the meticulous process involved in starting a 4-engine bomber's engines. Or, I might add, as you alluded to, just what additional system each engine powers in addition to providing the power to fly the aircraft. Excellent.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
5 ай бұрын
Thank you very much!
Awesome, thanks! You’ve started with the two most beautiful British aircraft.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
3 жыл бұрын
Yes, two very special aircraft - along with many other British Gems. Many thanks for watching!
Really interesting, thank you.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
Жыл бұрын
Glad you enjoyed it!
Absolutely first-class many thanks
@ukaircraftexplored6556
2 жыл бұрын
Many thanks!
My telco engineering supervisor Frank McGee had been a RCAF Pathfinder Lanc squadron pilot. I asked him what happened if the single pilot of a Lank was killed or disabled. He said something to the effect that one of the other guys would be taught enough to have a chance of getting the crate back on the ground. I wonder if he was kidding me.
Thanks for your work 🙂
@ukaircraftexplored6556
5 ай бұрын
Thanks for watching
Very interesting, thanks
Outstanding - thank you...
@ukaircraftexplored6556
5 ай бұрын
Glad you enjoyed it
Excellent! Fascinating! please let us see more. Regards Mark Chancellor-Maddison, Durban, South Africa
Another great Video Bryan, brings back memories
@ukaircraftexplored6556
3 жыл бұрын
Thanks Dave, glad you enjoyed it
That was brilliant! Thanks a million!! The Lanc appears to have a more complex startup procedure than the B17 from what I've seen!!
@ukaircraftexplored6556
Жыл бұрын
You're very welcome!
@wilburfinnigan2142
6 ай бұрын
Everything the Brits did was complicated and drawn out....Get er done boys !!!
They never seem to have to do all that in war films! Albeit that it would be water off a duck's back to a frequent pilot of these aircraft it nonetheless seems a most involved procedure in first hearing it explained. Look forward to the next in the series. Keep up the good effort. 👍
@ukaircraftexplored6556
3 жыл бұрын
Thanks for watching - Radiator Shutters - Automatic!
Good video. Liked the engine startup animation.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
2 жыл бұрын
So pleased you enjoyed it!
Thanks Bryan. Great stuff
@ukaircraftexplored6556
3 жыл бұрын
Glad you enjoyed it
How captivated I am by this airplane.
Fascinating stuff have been lucky enough to have experienced a taxi ride in Just Jane thanks for sharing new subscriber here 👍👏🇬🇧
@ukaircraftexplored6556
3 жыл бұрын
Yes, must have been a great experience. Thanks and welcome to my Channel.
I love that there is a ground/flight switch; I know this isn't remotely accurate, but I just like to imagine a Lanc rolling down the runway with the pilot heaving on the yoke and the plane stubbornly refusing to unstick itself from the tarmac, before the flight engineer suddenly yells "Cripes skipper! I forgot to switch us to flight!" and upon flicking the switch the plane takes off like its Star Wars.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
10 ай бұрын
Thanks for watching
Fascinatinng and excellent.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
5 ай бұрын
Thank you
So many people involved, paying full attention. When I worked at Southend airport, the Carvairs had a pin fitted so that the wheels could not be retracted whilst on the ground. The ground crew forgot to remove them, so the pilot could not retract them during his flight. The aircraft had to land to have them removed.The Pilot was not a happy man.
Wow amazing
@ukaircraftexplored6556
2 жыл бұрын
Thank you! Cheers!
great work Bryan, like it so mutch !
@ukaircraftexplored6556
3 жыл бұрын
Thanks. Glad you enjoy it!
Wow! Amazing!
@ukaircraftexplored6556
3 жыл бұрын
Thank you! Cheers!
Very interesting.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
2 жыл бұрын
Thanks
Now I know what to do I might just go out and steal one!
@ukaircraftexplored6556
5 ай бұрын
Thanks for watching
Wow
It just goes to show, the guys they selected to fly these Beautiful Machines, were way ahead of the game. What may be interesting is one of the checks they did, for Tyre Creep is also done on certain Types of Railway wheels. Some of the older design, have a Steel Tyre, pressed onto a wheel. They mark them in exactly the same way as shown here, to indicate Tyre slip.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
2 жыл бұрын
Thanks for sharing
@philgiglio7922
Жыл бұрын
NASA did the same with the space shuttle. Lot of torque on the tires on landing. Is it possible for a tire to 'leave' the rim after touchdown?
@jefftheaussie2225
6 ай бұрын
I wondered what the tyre creep was but realise now. When a tyre is a bit low on pressure it can move on the rim and shear the valve stem off. It is a big problem on dirt bikes which use very low pressure. A rim lock is used to combat this. A driving tyre will move forward on the rim and one under braking will move the other way.
Excellent! I have read this procedure many times as described in 'Lancaster At War 1' but it's great to see it visually and in such amazing detail. Bravo - as you might say - "an aiming point photo"! Can we expect takeoff, landing, emergency drills etc?
@ukaircraftexplored6556
3 жыл бұрын
Thanks for watching. I have a great deal of content and I'll be covering everything on the Lancaster, including the emergency procedures and much more.
Excellent clear video, but - will there be a follow up video for if one needs to start up a Lancaster 1,2 or 4-9? :)
Wait a minute. The movies taught me that the procedure is flip a couple switches on your left while looking over your sunglasses, move the lever I can’t see, and then flip three more switches above your head while your upper lip is slightly raised. That’s for every single aircraft in the world. I’ve been lied to?
@glynluff2595
6 ай бұрын
Ohh you were watch the Dambusters like whenI was a lad!
Single pilot in a complex multi. They were a different breed.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
Жыл бұрын
They certainly were
@jefftheaussie2225
6 ай бұрын
Yes, tell people there wasn’t a co-pilot in a Lancaster and they give you a funny look. The flight engineer must have been a very important person there.
Great video. Fascinating. Lucky enough to be let on board the one in Perth Australia. It was so small inside ! Got another sub here.
@ukaircraftexplored6556
Жыл бұрын
Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for subscribing!
@philgiglio7922
Жыл бұрын
They are all far smaller inside than people think. You wear a fighter or a bomber like a coat
Great video! I'm 82 years old and I LOVE all these old "birds" These airplanes today just don't have enough "monkey motion" for my liking. (You know, propellers and such.)
@ukaircraftexplored6556
5 ай бұрын
Thanks for watching
I never knew the Lancaster had only one yoke as I have never seen the flight deck ,or cockpit photos...
@ukaircraftexplored6556
3 жыл бұрын
Thanks for watching - much more to come!
@davegoldsmith4020
3 жыл бұрын
Normally only one, but it could be fitted with another that plugged into the right hand side of the column. it was sometimes fitted for training on PA474 during the 70's but not sure they still do. A fold out seat on the right hand side of the flight deck but no rudder pedals.
@garethonthetube
2 жыл бұрын
That's what surprises Americans. Boeings etc. in WW2 had 2 pilots.
I just wouldn't get into the darn thing ..hiding in the woods innit !! 😉👍 .. no I'm joking.. my Uncle Arthur did well over 12 missions in one of these as a Wireless Operator/Air Gunner.. mostly on bombing raids over Bremen, Germany. The flak was ''Very heavy''
So basically in WWII movies when the hero runs for a plane and instantly flies away is because the writers think that it’s just like a normal modern car. Not even the cars at that time were like today. And I imagine an English in a german plane was even more difficult or almost impossible. And I’m not even talking about Japanese.
YES i did ! although i bet in WW2, the Crews had a faster way of getting this bird in the air when needed
@ukaircraftexplored6556
Жыл бұрын
Thanks
@jefftheaussie2225
6 ай бұрын
All those checks would have had to be done though, too late when they are half in the air and they realise something important has been forgotten. No old game pilots.
Were the starting procedures generally the same for the Mosquito as well? Thank you for posting this and Happy New Year
I remember Cyril a friend of my father who was in the RAF during the war talking about standing in the pay parade when a head came bouncing down the hanger. Apparently, a mechanic had tried to turn a prop of a Lancaster Merlin Engine which kicked, taking his head clean off at the neck.
great video,something ive always wondered about ,what does he ground/flight switch actually do, is it a power switch over
@ukaircraftexplored6556
3 жыл бұрын
Thanks for watching. To start an aircraft using just the onboard accumulators (batteries) would put a lot of drain on them. So, when starting, the Ground Trolley 'Acc' was used. The Trolley Accumulator is an external battery. The Ground/Flight Switch is set to GROUND to isolate the on board accumulator and start the aircraft using the external Accumulator electrical supply. When the switch is set to FLIGHT, the Trolley Acc would be removed and the aircraft would then be running from its own battery Accumulator. I hope this helps
@pontymike56
3 жыл бұрын
@@ukaircraftexplored6556 thanks thought that might be the case
You make great detailed videos of every part of an aircraft. :) May you will make a series about the Westland Whirlwind and the Westland Lysander as well in the future? :)
@ukaircraftexplored6556
3 жыл бұрын
Thanks for the idea!
There is a Lancaster Bomber just up the road from where I live. All 4 engines run (I have seen that twice) but it is not airworthy or anywhere near a runway. Pretty impressive
Very interesting, my dad was a wireless operator/gunner on Wellingtons, it must have been at the back of your mind when following this procedure that it may be your last time.
too bad we did not a real startup Thanks for your time
@ukaircraftexplored6556
5 ай бұрын
Thanks for watching
Well I don't think you're going to steal one of those without being noticed
@ukaircraftexplored6556
5 ай бұрын
Very true
Just the question I asked myself waking up every morning: "What would be the engine start up sequence of UK aircraft?" 🙂
Good luck trying to steal one of these without this video.
Merlins x4 music 🎶🎵👌
@ukaircraftexplored6556
Жыл бұрын
It sure is!
What are the big red buttons or lights bottom right ?
@ukaircraftexplored6556
Жыл бұрын
They are the Feathering Buttons. Thanks for watching
Is there any explaination why engines must be start in that order?
@andrewwaller5913
6 ай бұрын
Generator is powered by number 3 so started first. Sequence usually 3421
@laurentsamson8927
6 ай бұрын
@@andrewwaller5913 that's a good reason :) Thank for the answer.
The attrition rate was ....ghastly. 30% survival. If you did two flights you knew you weren't coming back the third time.
Is this the one where, when the Flt Eng try’s to start #3, it catches on fire. Then the rest of the crew and bystanders, throw their pints of beer on the person playing #3 engine?
Most people have no idea how horribly complicated these aircraft are and how complicated they are to operate! It's not like getting in your car, starting up and being on your way!
@ukaircraftexplored6556
5 ай бұрын
True
A far cry to 'kick the tires and light the fires
@ukaircraftexplored6556
Жыл бұрын
It certainly was!
Who else is here to learn about the airplane while waiting for the MSFS 2020 release?
@ukaircraftexplored6556
2 жыл бұрын
Not me, I'm too busy creating these videos! Thanks for watching
@Ravasssz
2 жыл бұрын
@@ukaircraftexplored6556 And I would like to thank you for creating these and all the other videos on this channel! One of the most informative and straight forward videos on YT! Thank you again, Sir! We appriciate the effort you put into this!
Hello Sir. Are you a relative of Rowan Atkinston by any means? If that's the case , i'll never boarded this bloody Lancaster.. (poor french attempt at humour...)
@ukaircraftexplored6556
5 ай бұрын
No relation to Mr Bean! Thanks for watching
At first glance, its rather confusing ,
Seems simple enough... 🤣