Lancaster Histories did any of these reach squadron service

Thanks Ant for clearing up the four bladed prop thing for me!

Thanks Tony, These SI tests seem to have started in July 1945 and continued into 1946 when my Father was attached to Test Flight 32 MU at St Athan and mainly on Lancs and the odd Halifax3 and consisted of a flight of 20 to 50 minute duration.
He left the RAF in January 1946 so what happened after that I don’t know. All the other duties are clear but not this one.
There may be a simple explanation for this abbreviation but for the life of me I can’t think what.

Regarding Halifax props, there were vibration problems with the earlier three blade props on Merlin Halifaxes. The solution was to fit four blade props, and these were widespread by 1944. This mod was introduced at around the time Merlin Halifaxes were being withdrawn from frontline ops with Bomber Command, so you tend to only see the four prop jobs on aircraft at Training/Conversion Units or in pictures of the build up to D-Day where Merlin Halifaxes were used extensively as glider tugs.

Incidentally, there was a shortage of four blade props when the mod was first introduced, so there were some that flew with a mixture of three and four blade props (four bladers inboard, three bladers outboard, or the other way around).

Later on in the war the radio operator also managed and employed the H2S radar equipment for navigation purposes, and the Monica tail warning radar, which gave indications of enemy fighters astern.

http://www.9sqn.co.uk/history/lancaster/

I wonder if SI was Special Instruments such as radar or jammers? The only others I could think of was standard instrumentation, or structural integrity, though a target aircraft would make me think the first option? Just conjecture on my part.

From this link

http://www.156squadron.com/about_pathfinders2.asp

2. In addition to the normal navigational aids (see also ‘Blue Book Series’, Book 7: British Navigation Systems) the aircraft carry the following special equipment:

a) Four-engined aircraft (Lancaster and Halifax):

Rotterdam (H2S) for location of target and bombing without ground visibility;

Hyperbola navigation instrument (Gee);

Identification Friend-Foe (IFF); acoustic night-fighter warning instrument ‘Monica’;

visual night-fighter warning instrument (Cathode ray oscilloscope) ‘Fish Pond’

provision for bomb-release in the cabin as well as in the navigation room.

b) Twin-engined aircraft (Mosquito)

Hyperbola navigation instrument (Gee);

special equipment according to mission, for example ‘Bumerang’ (Oboe)

the existence of Mosquitos equipped with H2S have not as yet been definitely established. According to latest information, this special equipment does not yet seem to have been installed in the Mosquito.

So they could be testing the IFF, Monica or Fish pond? As you would need a target aircraft.

Missed the following turned 2 pages at once.
FM108
FM111
FM112
FM117
FM136
FM141
FM142
FM145
FM155
FM159
FM160
NX686
NX691
NX729
NX738
NX748
NX686
ME442

Also when he was their his log book shows HurricaneIV KX538 as SI Target

The one from his log book regarding a Halifax 2 JP321 shows this aircraft as having 4 blade props I thought they were always 3.?
Was this a one off for Test or was it more common?

Some must have as the marks range from 1, V11 and X and if any have a story before ending up there

Just a minor point – I cannot see any Mark X (Canadian) Lancasters among those serials. Perhaps he noted something down wrong in his log book?

Sorry, can’t help on the “SI” test, but thought it might be worth noting that both of the No. 35 Squadron aircraft participated in the “Goodwill Tour” to USA in 1946 (with TW870 crashing on its return to the UK as mentioned in the previous post). I have been in contact with one person who actually flew in TW870 whilst with the squadron.

Regards

Pete

Thanks folks for the quick reply. Only question outstanding is what is an S I test?

NX639 sold to France in 1953; NX642 SS (sold for scrap?) 10-54; NX644 SS (CC) 12-54; NX674 617 Squadron, crashed Waddington 15-12-45; NX675 held in 32 & 15MUs SS 12-54; NX696 Near East 2-46, 9MU, CFS scrap 3-50; NX701 Middle East 1946/7, 22MU, SS 9-54; NX783 617 Squadron (KC-G) 12-45 20MU 4-46 SS (BA) 2-58; NX785 617 Squadron 12-45 20MU 5-46 SS(JD) 12-49; PA414 MOD.FE 35 Squadron (TL-Q) 2-46, 7 Squadron (MG-G) 10-46, scrap 10-48; RT670 Swinderby 2-46, 22MU 3-46, SOC 6-52; RT671 ME 17-2-46 ret 11-47 sold for scrap; RT673 39, 5 MUs sold to France 4-53 FCL-04; RT677 held at Swinderby & Pershore SS 10-54; TW870 35 Squadron (TL-R) crashed at Gander 29-8-46.
All taken from Harry Holmes’s “Avro Lancaster The Definitive Record.”

That was quick thanks very much!! My Fathers log book shows it flown three times by him the last being Nov 30th 1945.All were for a SI test. Now to show myself up what is a SI test?

I don’t know about the others, but TW870 had a very varied, if short, career. She went to 35sqn and was damaged in an incident at Gander, Newfoundland in 1946 in which four local civilians were killed. Sold for scrap, she was actually made airworthy on the Canadian civil register and was converted into a semi-Lancastrian fuel freighter. She was finally wrecked in an accident in 1953. There are many details, and even several photos on the link below.

http://www.ganderairporthistoricalsociety.org/_html_4658/lancaster_tragedy.htm