It’s a very sad moment, me thinks.
I know time moves on but here we are saying goodbye to a Great British (and 1st Generation) jet Bomber. Don’t post saying it’s not a bomber, different wing etc, because this is it. The End!
I’m sure there will be many to see the back of the PR.9’s, including some Marham locals, some techies that struggle to keep em going, and there’s got to be at least one “Nav” who has had enough of being stuck in the nose!
I’m sure I’m not alone on this one, but I can’t help thinking that we will witness the end of a legend. A jet built to carry on where the Mosquito left off. Just think of the intelligence that this a/c in various guises has provided us with. The images of airfields oft found somewhere on an RAF unit from 10,000 feet was usually done with a “Cranberry”.
The day “Bee” took it up for the first time and demonstrated it with verve to the workers, and through to the day the RAF decided to paint its T.4 to commemorate this event (imagine the expense to the modern day RAF that is going through a process of “lean” to optimise efficiency (dare call it penny pinching at your expense!)), and onto modern times where her numbers have dwindled to just three airframes, she is a winner. A true multi role aeroplane. Oh and that’s aeroplane, as in flown by a human being, not a computer.
She was so good, she was exported to many countries, including the vastness that is the USA. They used her in ‘Nam and even though they fitted a tandem canopy and on some variants a daft wing, she was still a beauty.
I know we’ll still see her in civvy guise thanks to the heroic efforts of groups within the UK (you know who you are!), but when the last Canberra leaves Marham for the last time, another fine chapter that demonstrated Britains engineering prowess will die.
Goodbye Military Canberra, we will miss you!
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