Everything about The Avro Shackleton totally explained
The
Avro Shackleton was a
British long-range
maritime patrol aircraft for use by the
Royal Air Force. It was developed by
Avro from the
Avro Lincoln bomber with a new fuselage. It was originally used primarily in the
anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and
maritime patrol aircraft (MPA) roles, and was later adapted for
airborne early warning (AEW),
search and rescue (SAR) and other roles from 1951 until 1990. It also served in the
South African Air Force from 1957 to 1984. The type is named after the polar explorer Sir
Ernest Shackleton.
Design and development
The aircraft was designed by
Roy Chadwick as the
Avro Type 696. It was based on the
Avro Lincoln a derivative of the successful wartime
Avro Lancaster bomber, one of Chadwick's earlier designs which was the then current ASW aircraft. The design took the Lincoln's wings and landing gear and mated them with a new fuselage, and was initially referred-to during development as the
Lincoln ASR.3. The engines were
Rolls-Royce Griffons with 13 feet (4 m)
contra-rotating propellors, creating a distinctive engine noise and adding high-tone deafness to the hazards of the pilots. The first test flight was in March 1949 and front-line aircraft were delivered to
Coastal Command in April 1951 and had their operational debut during the
Suez Crisis. In the ASW role, the Shackleton carried both types of
sonobuoy,
ESM, an
Autolycus (
diesel fume detection system) and for a short time an unreliable
magnetic anomaly detector (MAD) system. Weapons were nine bombs, or three
torpedoes or
depth-charges, and 20 mm cannon.
The
MR.2 was improved with feedback from operations and is considered by aficionados to be the definitive type. The
radome was moved from the nose to a
ventral position, to improve all-round coverage and minimise the risk of bird-strikes. Both the nose and tail sections were lengthened, the tail planes were redesigned and the weak undercarriage was strengthened.
The
MR.3 was another redesign in response to crew complaints. A new
tricycle undercarriage was introduced, the fuselage was increased in all main dimensions and had new wings with better ailerons and tip tanks. As a sop to the crews on fifteen hour flights the sound deadening was improved and a proper
galley and sleeping space were included. Total take-off weight had risen by over 30,000 lb (13,600 kg) (Ph. III) and assistance from
Armstrong Siddeley Viper Mk.203
turbojets was needed on take-off (
JATO). This extra strain told on the airframe and the flight life of the Mk. IIIs was sufficiently reduced that they were outlived by the Mk. IIs.
Operational history
All marks suffered from using the Griffon engines — thirsty for fuel and oil, noisy and temperamental with high-maintenance needs. In 1961 MR.2's engines needed top overhauls every 400 hours and went through a spate of ejecting spark plugs from their cylinderheads. It wasn't unusual to see an engine changed every day in a unit of 6 aircraft. They were constantly on the cusp of being replaced, but even the potentially beneficial
Napier Nomad re-engine didn't quite happen.
The need to replace the Shackleton was first raised in the early 1960s. The arrival of the
Hawker-Siddeley Nimrod in 1969 was the end for the Shackleton in most roles but it continued as the main SAR aircraft until 1972. The intention to retire the aircraft was then thwarted by the need for AEW coverage in the North Sea and northern Atlantic following the retirement of the
Fairey Gannet. With a new design not due until the late 1970s the existing AN/APS-20 radar was installed in Mk. IIs as an interim measure, the
AEW.2, from 1972. The disastrous Nimrod AEW replacement programme dragged on and on and the eventual successor to the Shackleton didn't arrive until the RAF finally abandoned the Nimrod AEW and purchased the
E-3 Sentry in 1991.
A total of 185 Shackletons were built from 1951 to 1958: around twelve are still believed to be intact, with one still flying. One of the South African aircraft was lost in the 1960s when it flew into the side of the Stetynsberg, a mountain near Worcester in the Cape Province, during very bad weather at night.
Although the joke has been applied to several aircraft, the Shackleton has been described as "a hundred thousand rivets flying in loose formation"
Variants
Shackleton GR.1 » The first production model for the RAF, later redesignated Shackleton MR.1.
;Shackleton MR.1A » Version powered by four Griffon 57A V12 piston engines, equipped with a chin mount radome. In service from April 1951.
Shackleton MR.2 » Version with longer nose and radome moved to the ventral position.
;Shackleton MR.2C » Number of Shackleton MR.2s, fitted with the navigation and offensive equipment of the Shackleton MR.3.
Shackleton MR.3 » Maritime reconnaissance, anti-shipping aircraft. The tail wheel was replaced by a tricycle undercarriage configuration. Fitted with wingtip tanks. Eight exported to South Africa.
;Shackleton MR.3 Phase 2 » Similar to Shackleton MR.3 but fitted with two Viper turbojet engines for assisted take off.
Shackleton MR.4 » Project of new maritime reconnaissance version, none built.
;Shackleton AEW.2 » Airborne early warning aircraft. MR.2s converted to take ex-Fairey Gannet airborne early warning radar.
Shackleton T.4 » Navigation trainer conversion.
Operators
:
:
Royal Air Force (Coastal Command)
Specifications
Further Information
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