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Fighter / Attack:
   Bell P-39 Airacobra
   Bell P-63 Kingcobra
   Brewster Buffalo
   Chance-Vought F-4U Corsair
   Curtiss P-40 Warhawk
   Curtiss SB2C Helldiver
   Douglas A-1 Skyraider
   Douglas A-26 Invader
   Douglas SBD Dauntless
   Fairey Firefly
   Focke-Wulf Fw 190
   Grumman F4F Wildcat
   Grumman F6F Hellcat
   Grumman F7F Tigercat
   Grumman F8F Bearcat
   Grumman TBF Avenger
   Hawker Hurricane
   Hawker Sea Fury
   Lockheed P-38 Lightning
   Messerschmitt Bf-109
   Mitsubishi A6M Zero-Sen
   North American P-51 Mustang

   Polikarpov I-16
   Republic P-47 Thunderbolt
   Supermarine Spitfire
   Yakovlev Yak-3
   Yakovlev Yak-9


Trainers:
  
Beechcraft AT-11 Kansan (C-45)
   Beechcraft T-34 Mentor
   Boeing / Stearman PT-17

   Commonwealth CA-25 Winjeel
   Commonwealth CA-1 Wirraway
   DeHavilland DHC-1 Chipmunk
   DeHavilland DH-82 Tiger Moth
   Fairchild PT-19 Cornell
   Hunting / Percival Provost
   Meyers OTW
   Nanchang CJ-6
   Naval Aircraft Factory N3N
   N. Am. BT-9 / BT-14 / Yale
   N. Am. T-6 Texan / SNJ / Harvard
   N. American T-28 Trojan

   Piaggio P149
   Ryan PT-22 Recruit

   Scottish Aviation T1 Bulldog
   Vultee BT-13 Valiant
   Yakovlev Yak-11
   Yakovlev Yak-18
   Yakovlev Yak-52


Bombers:
   Avro Lancaster
   Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress
   Boeing B-29 Superfortress
   Bristol Blenheim / Bolingbroke
   Consolidated B-24 Liberator
   Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer

   Douglas A-3 Skywarrior
   DeHavilland Mosquito
   Fairey Swordfish
   Heinkel He-111 / Casa 2.111

   Lockheed PV-2 Harpoon / Ventura
   Martin B-26 Marauder
   North American B-25 Mitchell


Transports:
   Beechcraft C-45 (AT-11)

   Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter (KC-97)
   Curtiss C-46 Commando
   Douglas C-47 Skytrain / Dakota
   Douglas C-54 Skymaster

   Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar
   Fairchild C-123 Provider
   Grumman C-1 Trader (S-2)
   Lockheed C-60 Lodestar
   Lockheed C-69 Constellation


Utility / Observation / Special Duty:
   Aeronca L-3 Grasshopper
   Aeronca L-16 Grasshopper
   Antonov AN-2 Colt
   Auster AOP 6/9
   Avro 652 Anson
   Avro Shackleton
   British Taylorcraft I-V
   Cessna L-19 / O-1 Bird Dog
   Cessna O-2 Super Skymaster
   Cessna T-50 / UC-78 Bobcat
   Consolidated PBY Catalina

   DeHavilland U-6A / L-20 Beaver
   Fairey Gannet
   Fairey Swordfish
   Fieseler Fi156 Storch
   Grumman S-2 Tracker (C-1)
   Grumman HU-16 Albatross
   Grumman OV-1 Mohawk
   Junkers Ju 52/3m

   Lockheed P2V Neptune
   Max Holste M.H.1521 Broussard
   Messerschmitt Bf 108 Taifun

   Noorduyn UC-64 Norseman
   North American L-17 Navion
   N. Am./ Rockwell OV-10 Bronco
   Piper L-4 Grasshopper
   Stinson L-5 Sentinel
   Taylorcraft L-2 Grasshopper
   Westland Lysander


Jets:
   Aero L-29 Delfin
   Aero L-39 Albatros
   Aermacchi MB-326
   Avro Vulcan
   BAC Strikemaster
   Blackburn (BAC) Buccaneer
   Canadair Tutor
   Cessna A-37 Dragonfly
   DeHavilland Vampire
   DeHavilland Venom
   English Electric Canberra
   English Electric Lightning
   Folland Gnat
   Fouga CM-170 Magister
   Gloster Meteor
   Grumman F9F Panther
   Hawker Hunter
   Hispano HA-200 Saeta
   Hunting Jet Provost
   Lockheed F-104 Starfighter
   Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star
   McDonnell-Douglas A-4 Skyhawk
   McDonnell-Douglas F-4 Phantom
   Messerschmitt Me-262
   Mikoyan MiG-15
   Mikoyan MiG-17
   Mikoyan MiG-21
   N. Am. F-86 Sabre / FJ-4 Fury
   N. Am. F-100 Super Sabre
   N. Am. / Rockwell T-2 Buckeye
   Northrop T-38 Talon / F-5
   PZL / WSK TS-11 Iskra
   Saab J35 Draken
   Soko G-2A Galeb
   Temco Pinto & Super Pinto


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Avro 652 Anson

(Variants/Other Names: AT-20; C.18; C.19; T.20; T.21; T.22; Also see History below)


Avro Anson
(Photo source unknown. Please contact us if you deserve credit.)

History: The Avro Anson was originally designed as a light, four-passenger civil transport and mail aircraft. The first three were built to civil specifications, and first flew in 1935 for Imperial Airways. However, its promise was recognized by the British Air Ministry and, in 1936, the Avro 652A entered service with both the RAF and the RAAF (Royal Australian Air Force) Coastal Commands, where it was the first low-wing monoplane, and the first operational aircraft with retractable (manually) landing gear.

Named after 18th Century Royal Navy Admiral, George Anson, the Avro Anson Mk I was used initially as a coastal patrol reconnaissance aircraft, with a manually-operated, enclosed gun turret mounting a single .303 machine gun, two internally-carried 100-lb bombs, and external racks that could carry eight 20-lb bombs, flares or smoke generators. The Anson was woefully under-gunned for its task, as was embarrassingly demonstrated when one accidentally bombed a Royal Navy submarine (H.M.S. "Snapper") with 100-lb bombs that merely broke four light bulbs on the undersea craft.

Thus, as quickly as possible, the Anson was replaced as a patrol craft by the Lockheed Hudson and reassigned as a training aircraft, a role for which it proved to be ideally suited, and in which it performed for nearly 3 decades. Initially intended to be the standard twin-engine pilot trainer for the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP), the Anson II was also used for training radio operators, navigators, and bombardiers. When Canada began manufacturing the complete aircraft at their own Federal Aircraft LTD site, the turret was dropped from their variant.   
The Anson Mk II was the first variant to be completely built in Canada, differing from the Mk I in its Jacobs engines, hydraulically powered flaps and landing gear, and a molded plywood nose. Fifty of the Canadian-manufactured Mk IIs were supplied to the U. S. Army as the AT-20 crew trainer.

Subsequent Ansons manufactured in Canada under the BCATP were fitted either with Jacobs L-6MB (Mk III) or Wright Whirlwind R-975-E3 (Mk IV) radial engines. Canada also manufactured an Anson (Mk V) that used plywood completely in its fuselage, which proved useful in Canadian magnetic surveying after the war. A single gunnery training sample (Mk VI) was built in 1943. Mark numbers VII, VIII and IX were set aside for future Canadian varieties that never materialized, while Britain resumed manufacturing with the Anson Mk X, which was a Mk I with a stronger cabin floor, intended for freight and passenger use, while Marks XI and XII saw the raising of the cabin roof for passenger comfort (both marks), and the addition of all metal wings (MK XII, series 2), with both marks also being produced in ambulance variations. Marks XIII, XIV, XV and XVI were assigned but never produced, while MK XVII was never allotted.

A civilian variety of the Anson, Avro Nineteen, built on a MK XI airframe, was produced in limited quantities for British internal routes, while its RAF version was designated Anson C.19. A police patrol and survey variant, the Anson C.18 was developed for both the Royal Afghan Air Force and for the Indian government where it was to be used for civilian crew training. A bomber trainer version, Anson T.20, was developed for use in Southern Rhodesia, and a similar T.21 was produced, differing primarily in the removal of a transparent nose and bomb racks, while the final variant, the T.22, was built as a radio trainer.

With an active service life that extended from 1935 to 1952, more than 11,000 Ansons were built and one was still flying for the RAF in 1968.
Despite its obvious limitations as a weapon, the Anson's maneuverability, surprising durability and skilled crews sometimes turned the slow, lightly armed craft into a formidable opponent. During the evacuation of British and French forces from Dunkirk, for instance, one of a group of Ansons pressed into service to protect the beleaguered troops was attacked by 10 Messerschmitts, shooting down two and damaging a third before the "dogfight" ended. Not bad for an obsolete and vastly outclassed weapon.

Nicknames: Faithful Annie; Limping Annie; Aggie; The Flying Greenhouse.

Specifications (Mk I):
        Engine: Two 350-hp Armstrong-Siddeley Cheetah IX radial piston engines.
        Weight: Empty 5,375 lbs., Max Takeoff 8,000 lbs.
        Wing Span: 56ft. 5in.
        Length: 42ft. 3in.
        Height: 13ft. 1in.
        Performance:
            Maximum Speed at 7,000 ft: 188mph
            Ceiling: 19,000 ft.
            Range: 790 miles
        Armament:
            One 7.7-mm (0.303-inch) forward firing machine gun in port side of nose, another one in dorsal turret, plus up to 360 pounds of bombs.

Number Built: ~11,000

Number Still Airworthy: Approximately 5

Links:
Alberta Aviation Museum -- Anson page
Avro Anson Data Page (Australia)
British Columbia Aviation Museum -- Anson Restoration
Canadian Warplane Heritage -- Anson IV page
Duxford (Imperial War Museum) -- Anson info
Fighting the U-Boats (Anson History)
Royal Canadian Air Force -- Anson history

 

 


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All text and photos Copyright 2016 The Doublestar Group, unless otherwise noted.
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