Avro Manchester catapult trials

Read the forum code of contact

Member for

16 years 2 months

Posts: 823

Can anyone provide links to sources, or better still post copies, of close-up photos, drawings or official reports relating to the catapult system used with the Avro Manchester. Anything that shows details of the rails, trolleys, attachment mechanisms etc. would be most useful. Basically anything other than the overview photos in magazines as this is for a detailed CGI project.

Thanks

Original post

Member for

10 years 5 months

Posts: 262

Can anyone provide links to sources, or better still post copies, of close-up photos, drawings or official reports relating to the catapult system used with the Avro Manchester. Anything that shows details of the rails, trolleys, attachment mechanisms etc. would be most useful. Basically anything other than the overview photos in magazines as this is for a detailed CGI project.

Thanks

I seem to remember seeing something to do with this at LAHC, East Kirkby, but I could be wrong.

Member for

18 years 3 months

Posts: 1,216

The book 'Forever Farnborough' by Peter J Cooper ISBN 0-9519899-3-6 has a picture of Manchester L7246 on the loading table of what is described as the Direct Control Take-off System otherwise known as the frictionless take-off system.
It says in the caption 'in the event the proposed launch system for heavy bombers proved to be both impracticable and unnecessary'.

Since originally posting I have read further and the system is described as a Track and trolley system for the purpose of enabling large multi engined aircraft to be launched without the need for expensive runways, it was nearly a mile in length and could only be moved by dismantling. The Manchester was launched at a AUW of 38'000lbs in July 1941.

I meant to say that in the original post the description says catapult system which does not seem to be the case, just a track system.

Richard

Member for

17 years 5 months

Posts: 8,980

I seem to remember an old Airfix magazine or book covered it.

Member for

20 years 8 months

Posts: 8,505

Seeing this thread prompts me to ask if RAF Harwell was also involved as I know they were involved in the rubber runway trials. To have conducted trial of both in the same place would have made sense as both were aimed at the idea of building aircraft with no need for silly heavy things like undercarriage.

Member for

15 years 4 months

Posts: 957

The catapult system did not remove the need for undercarriages, the aircraft was still carried on its wheels during the launch and still had to land.

Member for

10 years 5 months

Posts: 262

Can anyone provide links to sources, or better still post copies, of close-up photos, drawings or official reports relating to the catapult system used with the Avro Manchester. Anything that shows details of the rails, trolleys, attachment mechanisms etc. would be most useful. Basically anything other than the overview photos in magazines as this is for a detailed CGI project.

Thanks

I have found a scanned copy of an article from an engineering magazine about the restoration of the catapult at Harwell. If this is useful, please pm me your email address and I will senda copy to you.

Member for

20 years 8 months

Posts: 8,505

The catapult system did not remove the need for undercarriages, the aircraft was still carried on its wheels during the launch and still had to land.
Ah now I understand. I thought perhaps the two experiments were possibly linked, obviously not. That's something learnt.

Member for

14 years 10 months

Posts: 249

Maybe the purpose of the trial was to see if they could actually make the thing fly - something it was never very good at during its service career!