Avro Vulcan B.2
With the beginning of the atomic age and the Cold War, the United Kingdom needed a bomber force capable of both carrying the enormous nuclear weapons of the age, and the ability to penetrate the air defenses of the Soviet Union. The Royal Air Force’s then primary bomber, the Avro Lincoln, could barely do the former and would never survive the latter, so the RAF issued a specification for a jet bomber. Avro, Handley-Page, and Vickers all responded with designs, all of which were good enough that the RAF accepted all three. This would become the famous “V-Force,” with the Handley-Page Victor, the Vickers Valiant, and the Avro Vulcan.
Initially designed by Roy Chadwick, who designed all of Avro’s wartime bombers, the Vulcan was to be the most radical, using delta wing technology. The delta wing offered the most lift and least drag, extending range and fuel efficiency, while also providing the most volume for nuclear weapons and for future developments. So radical was the Vulcan design that Avro built fighter-size test aircraft, the Avro 707, to prove that the delta wing was feasible.
The first Vulcan took to the air in 1952, and exceeded the RAF’s requirements—it was a “pilot’s airplane”: reliable, fast, and responsive enough to be capable of aerobatics. An unplanned benefit, one not realized until later, was that the Vulcan’s design was actually quite stealthy, with a radar cross-section much lower than its contemporaries. Combined with an advanced and robust ECM system, the Vulcan was to prove itself quite capable of penetrating air defenses, despite its lack of defensive armament. Buffeting caused the wing to be redesigned from the prototype Vulcan B.1 to the definitive Vulcan B.2, with a “kinked” delta. This delayed entry of the Vulcan into RAF Bomber Command until 1956, making it the last of the V-bombers to enter service.
As it had aerial refueling capability, the Vulcan had global reach, and RAF bomber units were regularly deployed outside of England, to bases in Cyprus and Singapore. If the Vulcan had a weakness, it was not in the design itself: the intention was to equip the Vulcan with the American Skybolt air-launched ballistic missile, but Skybolt was cancelled in 1962, leaving the Vulcan to be equipped with Yellow Sun freefall nuclear bombs, and later the Blue Steel standoff weapon—both would have still required a lengthy penetration of the Soviet Union. To train crews in doing so, Vulcans regularly participated in exercises with the USAF’s Strategic Air Command in Big Voice bombing competitions (and later Red Flag), and Operation Skyshield, simulated attacks on American cities from bases in England.
As the UK switched its nuclear deterrent force to Polaris submarine-launched ballistic missiles, the Vulcans were also switched to the tactical nuclear role in 1970, and became the sole aerial portion of Britain’s nuclear force as the Valiant was retired and the Victor converted to role of tanker. Since tactical nuclear bombs could also be carried by much smaller aircraft such as the Buccaneer and Jaguar, the Vulcan was somewhat overqualified for this role. With the RAF adapting the Panavia Tornado GR.1 in 1979, the Vulcan force began to be retired—and ironically, would see its only combat action in the twilight of its career, in the 1982 Falklands War.
As the Argentinian-occupied Falkland Islands lay 4000 miles from the nearest British base at Ascension Island, only the Vulcan possessed the range to reach Port Stanley’s airport, which posed a threat to the Royal Navy task force bearing down on the island. Compounding the problems facing the British was that the RAF and the Fleet Air Arm lacked a “Wild Weasel” suppression of enemy air defense (SEAD) aircraft. Five Vulcans were deployed to Ascension, hastily modified with American AGM-45 Shrikes mounted on the old Skybolt pylons. Supported by Victor tankers, which were required to refuel the Vulcans five times, and codenamed Black Buck, these Vulcans were able to do significant damage to the Port Stanley airfield, as well as degrade the Argentinian surface-to-air missile sites; no Vulcans were lost in the raids, though one aircraft was forced to land in Brazil and was interned for the remainder of the war.
Black Buck was the Vulcan’s swan song, and the type was completely replaced by the Tornado by 1984; it was the last strategic bomber operated by the RAF. Of 136 aircraft produced, about 18 survive in museums, with one aircraft preserved in flyable condition.
XM605 was delivered to the RAF's 9 Squadron at RAF Honington, UK, in 1963; it would remain with the squadron until 1968 with regular deployments to Akrotiri, Cyprus. It was then transferred to 44 Squadron at RAF Waddington, possibly until 1981 (though photographic records show that XM605 also served with 101 and 50 Squadron). With the drawdown of the Vulcan force, XM605 was donated to the USAF as a gift, and was flown to the Castle Air Museum.
There are a surprising number of Vulcans in North America--four of them, three of which are in the US. Since I missed the one at the SAC Museum (which was in storage when I visited in 2020), XM605 at Castle was the first Vulcan I had seen since I was a kid at the 1979 Ramstein airshow. It was a huge aircraft as a seven year old staring up at it; as an adult, it's still plenty huge. XM605 retains its 1980s-era RAF tactical camouflage, which has faded after 40 years in the California sun. In the foreground is my friend Darren, which gives some perspective how big the Vulcan is; Darren, being a big James Bond fan, was naturally interested in the Vulcan, as it was used in "Thunderball."
Avro Vulcan B.2
With the beginning of the atomic age and the Cold War, the United Kingdom needed a bomber force capable of both carrying the enormous nuclear weapons of the age, and the ability to penetrate the air defenses of the Soviet Union. The Royal Air Force’s then primary bomber, the Avro Lincoln, could barely do the former and would never survive the latter, so the RAF issued a specification for a jet bomber. Avro, Handley-Page, and Vickers all responded with designs, all of which were good enough that the RAF accepted all three. This would become the famous “V-Force,” with the Handley-Page Victor, the Vickers Valiant, and the Avro Vulcan.
Initially designed by Roy Chadwick, who designed all of Avro’s wartime bombers, the Vulcan was to be the most radical, using delta wing technology. The delta wing offered the most lift and least drag, extending range and fuel efficiency, while also providing the most volume for nuclear weapons and for future developments. So radical was the Vulcan design that Avro built fighter-size test aircraft, the Avro 707, to prove that the delta wing was feasible.
The first Vulcan took to the air in 1952, and exceeded the RAF’s requirements—it was a “pilot’s airplane”: reliable, fast, and responsive enough to be capable of aerobatics. An unplanned benefit, one not realized until later, was that the Vulcan’s design was actually quite stealthy, with a radar cross-section much lower than its contemporaries. Combined with an advanced and robust ECM system, the Vulcan was to prove itself quite capable of penetrating air defenses, despite its lack of defensive armament. Buffeting caused the wing to be redesigned from the prototype Vulcan B.1 to the definitive Vulcan B.2, with a “kinked” delta. This delayed entry of the Vulcan into RAF Bomber Command until 1956, making it the last of the V-bombers to enter service.
As it had aerial refueling capability, the Vulcan had global reach, and RAF bomber units were regularly deployed outside of England, to bases in Cyprus and Singapore. If the Vulcan had a weakness, it was not in the design itself: the intention was to equip the Vulcan with the American Skybolt air-launched ballistic missile, but Skybolt was cancelled in 1962, leaving the Vulcan to be equipped with Yellow Sun freefall nuclear bombs, and later the Blue Steel standoff weapon—both would have still required a lengthy penetration of the Soviet Union. To train crews in doing so, Vulcans regularly participated in exercises with the USAF’s Strategic Air Command in Big Voice bombing competitions (and later Red Flag), and Operation Skyshield, simulated attacks on American cities from bases in England.
As the UK switched its nuclear deterrent force to Polaris submarine-launched ballistic missiles, the Vulcans were also switched to the tactical nuclear role in 1970, and became the sole aerial portion of Britain’s nuclear force as the Valiant was retired and the Victor converted to role of tanker. Since tactical nuclear bombs could also be carried by much smaller aircraft such as the Buccaneer and Jaguar, the Vulcan was somewhat overqualified for this role. With the RAF adapting the Panavia Tornado GR.1 in 1979, the Vulcan force began to be retired—and ironically, would see its only combat action in the twilight of its career, in the 1982 Falklands War.
As the Argentinian-occupied Falkland Islands lay 4000 miles from the nearest British base at Ascension Island, only the Vulcan possessed the range to reach Port Stanley’s airport, which posed a threat to the Royal Navy task force bearing down on the island. Compounding the problems facing the British was that the RAF and the Fleet Air Arm lacked a “Wild Weasel” suppression of enemy air defense (SEAD) aircraft. Five Vulcans were deployed to Ascension, hastily modified with American AGM-45 Shrikes mounted on the old Skybolt pylons. Supported by Victor tankers, which were required to refuel the Vulcans five times, and codenamed Black Buck, these Vulcans were able to do significant damage to the Port Stanley airfield, as well as degrade the Argentinian surface-to-air missile sites; no Vulcans were lost in the raids, though one aircraft was forced to land in Brazil and was interned for the remainder of the war.
Black Buck was the Vulcan’s swan song, and the type was completely replaced by the Tornado by 1984; it was the last strategic bomber operated by the RAF. Of 136 aircraft produced, about 18 survive in museums, with one aircraft preserved in flyable condition.
XM605 was delivered to the RAF's 9 Squadron at RAF Honington, UK, in 1963; it would remain with the squadron until 1968 with regular deployments to Akrotiri, Cyprus. It was then transferred to 44 Squadron at RAF Waddington, possibly until 1981 (though photographic records show that XM605 also served with 101 and 50 Squadron). With the drawdown of the Vulcan force, XM605 was donated to the USAF as a gift, and was flown to the Castle Air Museum.
There are a surprising number of Vulcans in North America--four of them, three of which are in the US. Since I missed the one at the SAC Museum (which was in storage when I visited in 2020), XM605 at Castle was the first Vulcan I had seen since I was a kid at the 1979 Ramstein airshow. It was a huge aircraft as a seven year old staring up at it; as an adult, it's still plenty huge. XM605 retains its 1980s-era RAF tactical camouflage, which has faded after 40 years in the California sun. In the foreground is my friend Darren, which gives some perspective how big the Vulcan is; Darren, being a big James Bond fan, was naturally interested in the Vulcan, as it was used in "Thunderball."