https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avro_York
The Avro York was a British transport aircraft developed by Avro during the
Second World War. The design was derived from the famed Avro Lancaster heavy
bomber that was being produced at the time for the Royal Air Force (RAF);
several sections of the York and Lancaster were identical. Due to priority being
placed on the Lancaster instead, production of the York proceeded at a slow pace
until 1944, after which a higher priority was placed upon transport aircraft.
The York saw service in both military and civilian roles with various operators
between 1943 and 1964. In civilian service, the British Overseas Airways
Corporation (BOAC) was the most prolific user of the type. In military service,
large numbers of Yorks were used during the high-profile air-supply missions
air transports of heads of state and government; VIPs who flew on Yorks included
British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, French General Charles de Gaulle,
Indian Governor-General Lord Mountbatten and South African Prime Minister Jan
Smuts.
Production of the York proved difficult to speed up due to shortages of key
materials, Avro was also obligated to place a high priority on the manufacturing
and refinement of the Lancaster. Officials had also judged that there was no
requirement for large numbers of Yorks at that time. By the end of 1943, only
the four prototypes and three production aircraft had been manufactured; however
production was scheduled to rise to three aircraft per month throughout 1944.
Early production Yorks were principally used as a VIP transport aircraft;
notably, the third prototype, LV633, was luxuriously fitted out and became the
personal transport of Winston Churchill.
Role
Transport
Manufacturer
Avro
Designer
Roy Chadwick
First flight
5 July 1942
Introduction
1944
Retired
1964
Status
Two examples on display
Primary users
Royal Air Force
BOAC
British South American Airways
Skyways Ltd
Produced
1943 - 1949
Number built
259 (including prototypes)
Developed from
Avro Lancaster
In a typical passenger configuration, the York could accommodate a 21-seat
three-abreast arrangement split between the fore and aft cabins; the main
entrance door along with cloakrooms and lavatory were set between the two
cabins, a kitchen and baggage hold was located at the rear of the cabin.
Emergency exits were present in the celling of each cabin. Passengers were
subjected to considerably noisy conditions, which was due to the aircraft's
engines. From a pilot's perspective, the York typically proved to be reasonably
pleasant to fly.
In 1945, No. 511 Squadron became the first squadron to be fully equipped with
Yorks; eventually a total of ten squadrons of RAF Transport Command were wholly
or partially equipped with the York. In military service, the York was used on
all of the trunk routes operated by Transport Command, such as the critical
During the Berlin Airlift, RAF Yorks from seven different squadrons flew over
58,000 sorties to provide the city with vital supplies between 1948 and 1949. In
total, in excess of 1,000,000 tons was carried by the York fleet; the type had
bore close to half of the British contribution, alongside other aircraft such as
the Douglas Dakota and Handley Page Hastings. Following the end of the Airlift,
the RAF retired much of their York fleet; around 40 of these were sold onto
civilian operators while many others were scrapped due to the onset of
corrosion. During the 1950s, numerous military contracts were issued to civilian
York operators.
Specifications (Avro York)
General characteristics
Crew: five (two pilots, navigator, wireless operator, cabin steward)
Capacity: 56 passengers
Payload: 20,000 lb (9,100 kg)
Length: 78 ft 6 in (23.9 m)
Wingspan: 102 ft 0 in (31.1 m)
Height: 16 ft 6 in (5 m)
Empty weight: 40,000 lb (18,150 kg)
Loaded weight: 65,000 lb (29,480 kg)
kW) each
Performance
Maximum speed: 298 mph (258 kn, 479 km/h) at 21,000 ft (6,400 m)
Range: 3,000 mi (2,600 nmi, 4,800 km)
Service ceiling: 23,000 ft (7,010 m)
Rate of climb: 820 ft/min (4.2 m/s)
Power/mass: 0.079 hp/lb (130 W/kg)
*
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