Are there any Lysanders still flying?
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Are there any Lysanders still flying?
As twilight approached on a sultry, summer’s eve four days ago the Aircraft Restoration Company’s John Romain started up the Bristol Mercury engine in Westland Lysander Mk. the Lysander then served with No. 612, 225 and 4 Squadrons.
What was the height of the Westland Lysander?
Technical Information:
| Wing Span | 15.2 m (50 ft) |
|---|---|
| Height | 3.5 m (11 ft 6 in) |
| Weight, Empty | 2,118 kg (4,670 lb) |
| Weight, Gross | 2,766 kg (6,100 lb) |
| Cruising Speed | 274 km/h (170 mph) |
How many Lysanders were shot down?
Westland Lysander In daylight service in France 1940 Lysanders were lost at an alarming rate. Their slow speed resulted in very low survive-ability in contested air space. Of the 178 Lysanders sent to France 118 were destroyed, and the type was soon retired from this role.
What was the Lysander used for?
The Lysander was originally designed for Army Co-operation duties including artillery spotting and reconnaissance. However, its lasting fame is not in this role, but as a Special Duties aircraft ferrying Allied agents in and out of enemy occupied Europe.
What made the Westland Lysander so special?
Arthur Davenport and Teddy Petter, designers at Westland, asked RAF pilots what they needed. The critical requirements were excellent downward visibility, good low-speed handling, and short takeoff and landing performance. In August 1941 the Lysander found its ultimate mission, with the formation of 138 Squadron (Special Duties).
Why didn’t the Lysander fly over France in WW2?
The skies over France and Belgium in May and June 1940 were simply too dangerous for the large and slow army cooperation aircraft (the very similar Henschel Hs 126 would suffer in a very similar way). Four Lysander squadrons moved to France during the phoney war period (Nos. 2, 4, 13 and 26).
What was the first Lysander in the RAF?
Westland Lysander. The Westland Lysander was the first custom-designed army cooperation aircraft to be built for the RAF since the Armstrong Whitworth Atlas of the late 1920s. That had been replaced by a number of aircraft based on the Hawker Hart, amongst them the Hawker Hector.
How many Lysander aircraft were made?
Of the (probably) 1,670 aircraft built, some 964 were Mk III aircraft, which first appeared in August 1940. The Lysander is most famous for its work with the Special Operations Executive.