I still remember, as a child, the "Flying Wing" (707A/707B's) over Hampshire.. Finally years later working on them at Waddington as an RAF Armourer. Good memories of an awesome aircraft.
The UK should never have left its aeronautical industry to wither on the vine. Current aeronautical technology is just a rediscovery of what the UK was able to do without sophisticated computers. The UK should do what it destined to.
I watch the video before this about the English electric lightning intercepting the U2 at 80,000 ft and that late 80s and it intercepting the Concord but I always thought the Delta dart could have caught the Concord maybe for the Delta Dagger whichever one it was the fastest one these are the interceptor are over and that's too bad the new aircraft don't even get as fast as the old what was a third generation
Those murdererous raping colonizers can go get fucked. The world can only truly be free when the British Central banking system ceases to exist, and nations like Australia Canada and South Africa become their own republic's with their own currency. The only part of my heritage I'm ashamed of are the British ancestors. the rest of them are all from countries that told the UK to go f*** themselves.
I think I am correct in saying just 10 years elapsed between the first flight of a Lancaster and a Vulcan. Astounding ! It must have been a most incredible spectacle when it roared overhead and was witnessed by the public for the first time. Whenever it arrived it stole the show. And that howling sound..... One of Britains great aeronautical achievements. I personally watched many air displays from circa mid 80s right through to XH558 very final flights with VTS and was always mesmerised. So graceful and effortless, almost beautiful, but think of the horror it was designed to deliver..... the possible end of all things !!!!
The test pilot is ww2 pilot Roland Falk and yes he did actually fly and test Vickers and Avro aircraft wearing a pinstripe suit and tie.It was his trademark (no overalls for Rowley).@@TheSupradude26
Thanks for posting this. The Vulcan and XB 70 Valkyrie are two of the most beautiful planes ever built. If I were to choose between the two I might give it to the Vulcan. I went to many airshows. The sights and sounds of the Vulcan are a unforgettable experience. 💪💪♥️🛩️🇬🇧
It was an awesome plane and I'm happy to have seen her last displays live. What I didn't know about the Vulcan is the use of composite materials, processed in the same way they process carbon fibre composites now.
the tail ends of the wing , is about the same thickness as a SUP stand up paddle board or surf board and feels just as light.. they should have never left our sky's
That was a guy getting into the cockpit for the cameras, dude. You think they actually set up cameras, had him read off his part of the script for the cameras, then strap himself in and go and fly the test program for the new plane, all in a days work? That was filmed after the fact when they were making a film about it all. He was not flying the plane that day. You see, there is this form of magic called "video editing". It can do same amazing things. You think the press operators at Avro also came to work in suit and tie? They felt that one had to look sharp if you were on camera, it was a film made to make Avro look good, they didn't want a bunch of blue-collar types making them look bad.
@@justforever96 Your sarcasm is poorly placed. "At the end of the 1955 Farnborough Airshow, the British Prime Minister, Sir Anthony Eden, flew in an Avro Vulcan bomber. Though most pilots were bundled up in military flight suits and helmets, one figure stood out, cutting a dash in his tailored Savile Row business suit, shirt, and tie. It was the Vulcan’s flamboyant pilot, Wing Commander Roland ‘Roly’ Falk, and that was his standard flying garb. Overalls were from the biplane and propeller era. Falk saw the modern jet cockpit as an extension of his office and dressed accordingly. One of the maxims he applied to an aircraft was, “If it looks good, then it will fly well”. This was certainly true of the Avro Vulcan, which Roly also piloted on its maiden flight in 1952."
I lived near Farnborough in the fifties and recall seeing the Avto 707s, also the Fairy Delta aircraft. Then the Vulcan of course. In the 70’s I was in the RAF and worked on the Vulcan doing major servicing and repairs.
Someday someone is going to explain the concept of "video editing" to you. You will be shocked and disappointed, all your certainties destroyed. To let you down more easily when the time comes, i will just caution you that it is _possible_ , just _possible_ that the man speaking into the cameras wearing a suit and tie, was not _actually_ an Avro test pilot in the course of his normal test flight duties, and it is equally conceiveable that he was not actually the man flying the jet overhead doing barrel roles. I will leave it to others to explain how this magic, this "video editing", actually works, lest I distress you too much for one day.
Michael Schnittker I wouldn’t go as far as the most beautiful but a marvel yes and the Brits should be proud. That bird has a rather large beak on the front. But never the less it’s an amazing Aircraft. The most beautiful Bomber from England has always been the Mosquito. The most Amazing fighter Hurricane or lightening.
Sorry Gents I seem have a problem writing a reply so if you don't mind I will stick on here .I was there as a seven year old kid in N.Z. amazing!! still stuck in my mind!!
Excuse me, but, it seems to me that the American B-52 is still flying, protecting you Brits and all the other NATO countries who are still relying on America to do what all of you should have done for yourselves after the end of WW2. When is enough, enough? Of course, I may be mistaken, being a lifetime tax-paying American who has seen his tax dollars go to everywhere in the world for people who just laugh at American gullibility.
Mr. Ken yes the B-52 is a wonderful bomber and the most feared for its proven capabilities and longevity. But I think the B-29 would give a run for its money for what it demonstrated with Japan. Plus it was a key aspect of the Star Wars millennium Falcon. Yes it had teething problems but even Russia had to copy it which gave brith to the Russian Bear.
The Avro Vulcan..Probably the most beautiful plane every built. Definitely in the top 10. Put the Comet and the Lockheed Constellation looking wise as in the civilian aspect aesthetically.✈️
Mike Smith just go and have a chat with the air traffic controllers at Plattsburgh AFB who were on duty when a Vulcan visited them. They never saw the Vulcan coming until it would have been to late for them to take any defensive actions (had we been at war that is). Stealthiness is not just the use of exotic materials that absorb radar energy, sometimes it is the shape of the aircraft (including the smoothness of transition between shapes) like in the Vulcan, and other times it's also size related, like the BAe Hawk which doubles its RCS when the gun pod is added.
You clearly have no idea what intense work goes into designing a stealth aircraft. Just being in a flying wing configuration does not make a plane a stealth plane. and the Vulcan isn't a flying wing, it is a delta-wing.
Commentary by that well known actor John Standing with his distinctive voice. But most don't know that his full title is: Sir John Ronald Leon Standing, 4th Baronet.
Such a beautiful bird! The tiny turbojet engines tucked inside that beautiful wing has such an aerodynamic elegance to it. The U.K aviation industry produced half a dozen or so aeroplanes with this configuration. They all look stunning and slick.
"Tiny turbojet engines"? Have you ever seen an Olympus turbojet dude? Only seem "tiny" compared to a high-bypass turbofan. And looks aren't really what makes a plane successful. All the drawbacks, the difficulty of access, the increased vibration, the fire risk, heat management issues, all unit to say that underwing pods are better. And you can't really say that underwing turbojets aren't elegant and aesthetic looking. Look at the 707 and DC-9. hard to say those are not handsome aircraft.
@@justforever96 Where is this coming from? Did I say that no other plane is beautiful? Underwing podded engines are so common now that it ceases to be anything remarkable. These early British birds stand out in comparison to what we see today. They are tiny. Even for turbojets. They produce 1/3 the power of the Concorde and 1/5 the power of the TU-144.
As an ex Aircraft Mechanic Propulsion in the RAF , worked on these at RAF Scampton . The Engines were either the Olympus 200 or the newer Olympus 300 series , that latter was a bitch to work on as it was a larger engine stuffed into the space as the 200.
Back in the days when testing the prototype meant "Dressing for the Occasion!" I have never seen a 500 Ton Rubber Press Operator in a Suit and Tie! You have to love the British for their sense of formality and fair play. "Jolly good show.... Tea anyone?" As for technical achievements..... World leaders. Look at the Spitfire, Merlin Engine, Whittle Jet Engine, and Radar to mention just a few. Also, Trains..... they just re-produced the Tornado, a coal fired steam locomotive capable of sustained speeds up to 100 MPH to be able to haul tourists and share the main line. Lots of examples of engineering, design, & workmanship. As for the Vulcan.... if you have never seen one fly in person.... you have truly missed a great experience. For several years, the Vulcan came for the annual Abbotsford Air Show in British Columbia Canada. A highlight of the show to see it perform steep and tight maneuvers all within the confines of the airfield. So massive a wing, they called it the "Aluminum Overcast." I saw it several times and was amazed every time.
No one ever called the Vulcan "Aluminum Overcast". That was the B-29, and the B-36 was "Magnesium Overcast". anyone calling the Vulcan that was straight ripping off the American nickname.
Bob Lindley does not get the credit he deserves. He had a hand in the Avro Canuck and Arrow and the space shuttle as well. Roy Chadwick may have given the go ahead for the design, but it was Mr Lindley who came up with the idea for the Vulcan.
This film is inspiring and sad. The inspiration comes with the Vulcan itself... It simply looked great and did a great job during the cold war. Vulcan crews should rightly feel proud to have flown these fine aircraft, knowing they helped deter Russia from encroaching on western Europe. But it's sad to know our political masters have allowed our aircraft industry to decline so much. Films like this are like time capsules, which describe and reflect the technology, attitudes and ethos of a distant age.
All those witnesses of the first flights say the same thing verbatim: "It stopped traffic in Cheshire because nobody had seen anything like it again". And that means only one thing - THEY ARE LYING.
@@deezynar B 36 was not a delta wing aircraft , you are thinking of the B 58 which did not fly until 4 years after the Vulcan. The B 58 was introduced in 1960 and retired in 1970, not only a short but also a very uninspiring career.
Six years, same as the B-52, which actually flew a few months earlier. And not all that amazing really, the B-36 is impressive as the ultimate example of wartime technology, the sheer size and complexity of it. The Vulcan is a subsonic jet bomber, not a quantuum leap beyond it. The B-58 was only ten years afterwards.
Well... I hope they fixed the issue where someone in the co-pilot's seat could insert poison gas into the the aircraft's O2 system. Sorry... flashback to Thunderball :) When I saw that movie as a youngster in the early 60's, I thought the plane was a prop. No way was there an aircraft that wild and cool looking in real life. All we had, was the B-52. It looked like a 50's stationwagon. And then later... the Concord. Man... England really knew how to design great aircraft. The Vulcan was one of, if not THE, greatest looking bomber ever.
It is sort of sad that none are still flying, but also, it is perfectly understandable, since the operating costs of the engines alone are those of running four (4) Hawker Hunters, or more than quite a lot of countries have an air force budget in total.
Just imagine the old Chap gardening at 8 mins sees the Vulcam fly overhead was born into a world of horsedrawn vehicles and the steam train.Talk about rapid progress brought on by 2 World Wars.
@Derek Todd.. Yes. look for Avro Delta Formation. It's about halfway through straight after take off. Tony Blackman performing a loop is out there somewhere.
The B-52 has an advantage over the V-bombers and the XB-70 Valkyrie: its engines are mounted in pods. As newer engines were developed, it was relatively easy to create an adapter pod. With new engines, it was worth to update the electronic equipment as well. But the Vulcan has its engines inside. Any new powerplant would have to be the same size, and the retrofit would be very expensive.
Vincit Veritas by the 1980s the Vulcan had lost its main role of a strategic bomber to the Polaris armed submarines, which were hardervto destroy than the bombers even if they were dispersed.
Alex Lopez it wasn't so much the engines that killed off the Vulcan, but equipment in hard to reach places that had reached the end of its design life. The Vulcan's longevity was the problem. The designers had expected the airframes to be retired long before the 1980s.
It is quite hilarious that the film director (2006 ??) has casually inter-mixed the Mk.1 and Mk.2 variants. Perhaps this happened during the 1950-60's. [Aussie in BC]
Top of the range..Wonder how politicians that kill time,money,dedication,ideas,enthusiasm,skill,craftsmanship etc..at the stroke of a pen,sleep at night..
I have the Original Side Slip Indicator Taken from XH558 and Presented to me by Chief Engineer Andrew Edmundson during her re-build at Bruntingthope if anyone is interested in buying it
So far as I know Chris it's a slip & Bank indicator, I can send you a picture but not for a few months cus I just left UK for the winter. For me it's priceless as it was a personal gift from the engineer (Andy Edmunson) who was charged with the rebuild to put XH558 back in the air on the Vulcan to the Sky Project... He presented it to me personally for my contribution to the rebuild....My story is so deep but finally he betrayed me..Make an offer if your interested, /Regards Toby
Then keep it. Because you will regret selling it. I love history and as an aviation maintenance engineer it would be cool but I dont have a story behind it.
All too common story, get the punters and suckers to pay for it telling them later how unforeseen circumstances forced a change of mind and it wasn't really ours and the real owner wants it back now that all the work has been done..
That is why I am concerning, that Canadian developed and made, one of the >>> CF-105 Avro "ARROW" >>>,(RF 202 or 206), has successfully escaped from being cut to the pieces by Canadian torches, and being untouched somehow ended up in Britain, because it was the same AV Ro. Company, which made the BOTH airplanes: CF-105 Avro ARROW (Arctic interceptor) & then Avro VULCAN (Arctic bomber) !!!!!
The Comet's major issues were structural, not related to the engines or their placement. 3 Comets were lost in 12 months in '53/'54 and the investigations eventually revealed that square window corners developed up to eight times the load stress as the rest of the fuselage skin and the aircraft had been designed to be glued and riveted but was built riveted only. Once improvements were made (consider the timeline of large jet development) the Comet airframe went on to have a long but chequered career: en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawker_Siddeley_Nimrod
Comet never had any problems with the engines. They thought it was possibly engine fires for the first year or so until they finally found that it was problems with metal fatigue in the fuselage. The Comet and Vulcan both had the drawback of buried engines, which is difficulty of access for maintenance, risk from fire, increased vibration and noise, heat management problems, etc. But not "problems" the way you seem to be suggesting.
I like the film says 'the first time any delta wing aircraft had flown in Britain" and people just hear "the first delta wing aircraft ever flown". They wouldn't specify "in Britain" if it was the first delta in the world. The Avro 707 was not the first delta. the Saab Draken was not the first delta. Like, google is a thing. Wikipedia is a thing. Literally two minutes can solves these questions for anyone who really wants to know.
Those was built during the cold war for deep penetration into the Sovie tunion, I think they carried two high yield hydrogen bombs.the Russians didn't stand a chance against French British, and American bombers"what a nightmarish scenario🤔🙄
The modern B-52 can launch nuclear cruise missiles this aircraft should be able to do the same it was carrying two large missiles or it can carry anti-ship missiles
It did. The last years of the V-Force was as missile carriers with nuclear missiles. But is it worth paying for that as well as gorund based and sea based missiles? UK goverment didn't think so. They really only outfitted them that way because they had already paid for the planes and they needed SOMETHING for them to do. The US keep B-52s in service because they have money to pour down the drain, not because we really need them.
We used to wake up, half an hour before we went to sleep, lick run-way clean wit' tongue, then work; twenty-seven hours a day, ten days a week, down at Avro factory......AND, we used to have t'pay manager f't apprenticeship!.... Tell that t'kids t'day, and they'll not believe ya."....
A test pilot wearing a suit and tie it just don't look right I mean how come you don't have a flat suit I seen RAF pilots were flight suits in world war II I mean why don't he have a flat suit why the hell is he wearing a suit and tie it's just looks ridiculous
I will say the Vulcan looks really impressive, but over its entire active life span of 30ish years, its credited for putting some potholes in a runway and taking out a couple radar structures? Damn, talk about a massively immense waste of time and money lol. No wonder even as a moderate aviation fan I hadnt ever even heard of it until the other day..
It successfully infiltrated US airspace not once, but twice under the noses of the prowling ADF. War game scenario with a simulated nuclear payload, uncle sam got his delivery both times.
None of it is "fake", it is representational. They didn't have gopros and the camera technology we have today back then, they had to film things in a controlled environment. No one actually expected the scenes being shown on the screen to be ACTUAL footage of the subject, it was like a "dramatic reproduction". As for the rest, the people making the documentary in 2006 have to pick and chose from the footage that exists. Would you rather they just showed a blank screen when talking about something that they didn't have footage for, is that better in your mind than choosing something that looks similar to what is being discussed? They can't go out and take new footage, the planes are all out of service. Deal with it.
No German technology, the Delta wing developed in Britain had nothing from a non existent German drawing, and Britain made working axial flow engines from 1942
Gorazd Psenner the Metro-Vick F.2 axial-flow compressor turbo-jet was indvelopment since 1941 and was being flight tested in 1942. A long time before we ever got hold of any German axial-flow jet engines. Swept and deltawings were being theorised as needed for high speed flight in the 1930s, but only the Germans had flown one before tge end of WW2.
