AVRO Lancasters and Leeds

[Si]

This is the last Lancaster built by Avro at Yeadon (serial TX273 - this tallies with LS16's post earlier) leaving the aerodrome in October 1945. It's possibly the last ever Lanc (the 7377th) as it has the highest serial number, but another Lanc built by Armstrong Whitworth was delivered to the RAF five months later, so there is some confusion.My aunt was also at Avro, working on Lancasters' undercarriage. As well as the roof-dwelling papier-mache cows, Yeadon Tarn was drained to deceive the Luftwaffe.    

[Si]

Although relating to the Halifax bomber (the Lancaster's less glamorous relation) I thought this might be of interest.Several years ago, an old gentleman used to come round work in Leeds selling chocolates. We got talking, and it turned out that he had been a pilot in Bomber Command, and had survived two tours (almost unheard of, as, apart from German U-boat crews, our bomber crews had the worst mortality rate of any other group.)He gave me this copy of an Operations Record sheet from one of his sorties. I hope it's legible. Click on the image to enlarge it. Apparently, the crew got a right b********g about the pigeons!    

[LS16]

Found this site on a Yeadon built "Lanc"http://www.lancaster-lm658.co.uk/origins.htmI have also found a few more photos I intend to scan over the next few days.

[LS16]

Found this photo at http://www.28dayslater.co.uk/forums/sho ... hp?t=11270 (credit to the original poster "Ordnance") which would go some way to showing the way in which the factory was camouflaged.    

[LS16]

Hmm .. didn't realise I need to use IE not Firefox for attachments!

[LS16]

Another shot of the inside of the AVRO factory at Yeadon.

[LS16]

ME455 involved in the repatriation of POWs at the end of the war.

[LS16]

At least one went on to civilian service. Interesting to see the bomb-aimers bubble still in place!

[LS1]

Uno Hoo wrote: stutterdog wrote: Trojan wrote: LS16 wrote: Cnosni, I'd heard that too although I have yet to come across and proof it's certainly a possibility.It was certainly a prolific manufacturing site judging by the figures.The plane my relative died in was from Newton Heath in Manchester.I've been looking at this in some depth recently this was my father's "project" but he passed away suddenly 8 weeks ago.     It's true though. My mam worked there, although on the Ansen not the Lancaster. She had a table lamp made of Lancaster bits (I've posted this before somewhere on here) but I don't know what happened to it."According to Squadron Leader Tony Iveson in his book "Lancaster - the Biography" the last ever batch of Lancaster III bombers was built at Avro's satelite factory at Yeadon after the end of the war. The first of the batch was built in September, 1945 and the last delivered in October 1945. "http://www.secretleeds.com/forum/Messag ... ighLight=1 Did A.V. Roe also make bus bodies for Leeds? I seem to remember seeing the name on some old back loaders in the 50's? No. The buses were built by Chas H. Roe, Crossgates, Leeds. I don't know of any connection to A V Roe. It's like Esso - Standard Oil, S.O., sounds like "Esso". Same with AV Roe , "Avro" if you say it out loud you'll see what I mean, as in AV Roe said out loud sounds like "AVRO"!!

[LS16]

So, back to my first picture and post in this thread: That looks like Appleyards filling station on Eastgate roundabout in the background and presumably Quarry Hill on the right of the picture, if that's the case how did the plane get there?Lancs are not small and the viaduct must restrict access to this area. I seriously doubt that, in the time of war, there was time to dismantle and transport by road so where did it land?