British Lancaster bomber WWII DVD.
This DVD is a collection of eight films from World War II about the amazing British RAF Avro Lancaster bomber. The RAF Lancaster bomber was an amazingly big and strong four-engine bomber design and used very effectively by the British to bomb Germany into submission by night. By the war's end, Lancaster bombers were dropping the biggest bombs of the war. These bombs were called the "Earthquaker" because of their massive weight and resulting damage. They were mammoth bombs weighing 22,000 lbs. These were the bombs that sunk the mighty battleship Tirpitz.
Film #1 - Sky Giant - This is a great and rare film created by the British Government that describes the Lancaster plane and the people who built and flew her. RAF Lancaster bombers flew missions to Germany night after night with many daring raids in WW2. Runtime is about 10 minutes.
Film #2 - Night and Day - This is a collection of newsreels and stories of how the British RAF fought night and D-Day to beat the Germans: Mosquitos and Lancaster raids, RAF Blasts Germany, RAF Blasts Factories, Hamburg Bombed, Ike inspects RAF, Lancaster Breakthrough, Open Warfare on France, RAF Blasts German Army, Dresden Blasted, Rhine Barrier Blasted, Ruhr Industry Destroyed, 8th AF and RAF Report. Runtime is about 38 minutes.
Film #3 - Bombs and Supplies - This film is an extraordinary collection covering the bombs and supplies that the Avro Lancaster loaded in her bomb bay. Plus, the Lancaster is used as a tow plane for the Horsa Glider. Runtime is about 11 minutes.
Film #4 - Death of the Tirpitz - This film shows the story of the mighty Tirpitz from her launching to her destruction by the RAF. Using the "Earthquake Bombs" in multiple attempts, the RAF Lancasters finally sink the Tirpitz. Runtime is about 6 minutes.
Film #5 - Brits on the Rhine - This film shows both the British ground troops and the RAF taking the Rhine River. Churchill had said that the war would end shortly once the Allies crossed the Rhine River. It is the combined air-ground story: tanks, troops, artillery, Lancasters, and Typhoon fighter bombers are all in this film. Runtime is about 10 minutes.
Film #6 - Dover - This film is a shortened version of the great "Battle of Britain". Runtime is about 10 minutes.
Film #7 - A Message from Malta - This is a story about the battle for Malta. The British along with the population of Malta held out for over a year in great defiance to the German Luftwaffe and Hitler. With only a few RAF planes to fight back and very limited supplies, the Island held. Hitler was furious and bombed the island almost daily, but the British and the islanders held on. Runtime is about 11 minutes.
Film #8 - Sea Port - This film is about British coastal concrete pillboxes of WW2 that were built offshore to defend the mainland against enemy aircraft. They were completely surrounded by water and were self-reliant with food, water, sleeping quarters, generators, etc. Runtime is about 7 minutes.
Run time for the British Lancaster DVD is about 103 minutes. Format is NTSC DVD and region-free.
The British Avro Lancaster was a large four-engine heavy bomber used by the RAF during World War 2. First flown in January 1941, the Lancaster was introduced into the RAF in February 1942. During World War 2, 7,377 Lancasters were built in Great Britain as well as Canada. The Lancaster was retired in April 1964.
The WWII Lancaster bomber used four Rolls-Royce Merlin engines which enabled a maximum speed of 282 mph (cruise speed was 200 mph). The Lancaster plane range was 2530 miles and the service ceiling was 21,400 feet. It could carry a bomb load of 14,000 pounds.
The Lancaster bomber crew consisted of seven: pilot, flight engineer, navigator, bombardier/nose gunner, radio operator, upper gunner and rear gunner. One interesting fact about the Lancaster (as well as other British and German bombers of the period) was that there was no co-pilot and no flight controls for the right seat. Instead, the flight engineer sat in the right seat and accessed engine control panels to his right and behind him.
One shortcoming of the Lancaster was the relatively small escape hatch - only 22 inches by 26.5 inches - that was difficult to exit during bail-out situations when wearing a parachute. Consequently, only 15 percent of Lancaster crews were able to bail out versus 50 percent of crews on American bombers.
The 33 foot expansive size of their bomb bays enabled Lancaster bombers to carry very large bombs. These bombs included 12,000 lb blockbusters, 22,000 lb earthquake bombs as well as the Upkeep "bouncing bomb" used in the attack on the German Ruhr valley dams.
You may also be interested in the following WWII RAF Lancaster DVDs:
Flying the Avro Lancaster DVD - Classic Cockpits
