Can we please stop hotlinking pics?

I like the trailer too.

God bless fore deck monkeys!

My brother in-law is digitizing a bunch of his Dad's WW2 pictures. Any idea what these aircraft are? I'm guessing Dakotas but they could be Ansons. Dishford Aerodrome North Yorkshire RCAF Bomber Command.

Note the clipped wings. Pretty common field modification.

Last one and I hope someone can help identify the two aircraft. It looks to have been taken from the cockpit of a Lancaster. The note on the back of the photo says the planes had search lights mounted in their nose. Any idea why?

Wayslow said:

My brother in-law is digitizing a bunch of his Dad's WW2 pictures. Any idea what these aircraft are? I'm guessing Dakotas but they could be Ansons. Dishford Aerodrome North Yorkshire RCAF Bomber Command.

Ansons. The top of the DC-3 is round. The Avro has a flat(er) top.

Wayslow said:

Last one and I hope someone can help identify the two aircraft. It looks to have been taken from the cockpit of a Lancaster. The note on the back of the photo says the planes had search lights mounted in their nose. Any idea why?

A-20 Turbinlight.

Appleseed said:

Wayslow said:

Last one and I hope someone can help identify the two aircraft. It looks to have been taken from the cockpit of a Lancaster. The note on the back of the photo says the planes had search lights mounted in their nose. Any idea why?

A-20 Turbinlight.

 

I love this place.

Yeah, I couldn't have come up with the name, but I had heard about A-20s modified that way.  They were supposed to be spotters for night fighters, but it didn't really work out.

Car interior designers on acid. It might be a '59 Imperial.

Wayslow said:

Note the clipped wings. Pretty common field modification.

A test flight was arranged by the Air Fighting Development Unit at RAF Duxford, comparing a standard wing Spitfire Mk V with the new modified version at various heights up to 25,000 feet. It was discovered that the clipped Spitfire wing made the aircraft 5mph faster at 10,000 feet and slightly faster at 25,000 feet, but with better acceleration across the board. In a dive, the clipped wing aircraft could pull away from the standard version and in a dogfight, the improved roll rate meant it could shake off the pursuing unmodified Spitfire. Climb performance wasn’t affected much and there was no noticeable change to the take-off and landing performance.

The British also used large lights, called Leigh lights on their sub-hunters to supplement the airborne radars.  Since German subs pretty much always ran on the surface at night to recharge their batteries they could be spotted on radar, but the radar was ineffective at short range, so they needed a very bright light to pick up the sub when they got close (about 1/2 mile away).  The larger light, mounted on Liberators, was 90 million candelas (!).

I believe they also found with these lights that when turned on during the day, it would effectively make the plane invisible at longer ranges (kind of blows out it's silhouette).

In reply to aircooled :

I read that the wingtips were wood framed with an aluminum skin and are held on by two bolts. Lots of squadrons removed the tips and installed a fairing in its place.

Picture is unrelated but is another one my BIL found.

Love the headlights.

Duke said:

I just assumed I'd be in a Bruce Springsteen lyric the rest of my life. "Huhhoo, hes working haaarddd..."

Henry Rollins

All Toyota/Lexus. 4.87, 150mph 1/8 mile.