This was something I started on for the 100th Anniversary of the RAAF Group Build. The backstory is rather long so I'll break it in two ... with the profiles accompanying Part Two
____________________________
Avro Adelaide - The Lancaster Down UnderAs far back as 1942, Canberra had been in serious discussions with London about producing the Avro Type 683
Lancaster heavy bomber in Australia - both to supply the RAF and for domestic RAAF use. The
Lancaster would be, by far, the largest airframe ever built in Australia. But, even ignoring that, the challenges were extreme. Many key components which could not be produced in Australia would need to be imported from the UK - travelling by sea through U-Boat infested waters.
Compounding problems was that the Aircraft Construction Branch of the Department of Supply and Development was already being overwhelmed by its workload. [1] By 1943, the Beaufort Division of the Department of Aircraft Production (DAP) was to switch over to building an Australian version of the
Lancaster Mk.III. But the RAAF was calling for more Bristol
Beaufort bomber to be built by the DAP, not less. Thus, it quickly became apparent that private industry would be needed to tackle
Lancaster production Down Under. As a result, in mid-1943, A.V. Roe Australia (aka Avro Australia) was established with a small administrative office in Canberra. While the exact characteristics of Australian-made
Lancaster were being worked out by officialdom (in Canberra and in the British Ministry of Aircraft Production), Avro Australia began arrangements for production facilities.
At the time, airframe production in Australia centred around the Fisherman's Bend area outside of Melbourne. There was simply no space left for another large aircraft assembly facility in that area. The industrial areas of all other major Australian cities were also completely taken up with war work. As a result, Canberra was keen to create factory space in underbuilt areas which still had access to infrastructure. A survey of potential sites narrowed planner's attention to a small harbour town on Spencer Gulf in South Australia named Port Pirie. As the name suggests, there were existing port facilities as well as rail connections and a surfeit of flat land surrounding the local aerodrome.
Setting Up in South Australia - A.V. Roe Australia ArrivesIn early 1944, Avro Australia established its headquarters in Adelaide. [2] By then, it had been agreed that the
Lancaster production plant would be situated 140 miles north at Port Pirie. This location was chosen to avoid disrupting established war work in Adelaide. But there were also a range of related inducements. Financial incentives were provided by both Canberra and the State government of South Australia. The town council of Port Pirie provided by the necessary land free of charge. [3] The large assembly plant was built with funding from Adelaide matched by private investment from the local firm, Broken Hill Associated Smelters Pty Ltd (BHAS). [4]
Lest all this sounds too grand, it should be noted that maximum advantage was to be taken of the arid local climate to perform much of the final assembly work out in the open air under canvas. The existing aerodrome was due south of the Town of Port Pirie. The proffered factory land was adjacent to the aerodrome's western boundary. The first product of this new facility was the unpacking of pre-fabricated house kits for assembly on the new workers' housing plot to the north of the factory. [5] Improvements were also made to Wandearah Road to allow heavy lorry access to the plant from both the quays on Port Pirie Creek and the Trans-Australia Railway sidings. By October 1944, worker housing was complete and the factory ready to begin
Lancaster production. However, by this time, '
Lancaster' had become something of a misnomer.
Potential, Perils, and Problems at Port PirieWhile the
Lancaster was the best of the RAF's nocturnal heavy bombers, its diurnal performance - a required operating environment for the RAAF - left something to be desired. Ironically, delays had provided the opportunity to introduce some improvements in future Australian-built
Lancasters. In the search for more power, availability issues quickly eliminated various marks of Rolls-Royce
Griffon as well as the Bristol
Centaurus CE 1SM radial. However, experience with the RAF's Vickers
Warwick bomber suggested another 18-cylinder radial - the American Pratt & Whitney R-2800.
An equally serious problem was that production of British-built Frazer-Nash turrets for the
Lancaster was insufficient to also fill Australian needs. Several alternative armament schemes were investigated before settling on a mix of imported American turrets and domestically-produced Australian systems. The Frazer-Nash FN-50 'mid-upper' was to be replaced by a US Martin 250CE-5 dorsal turret. The tail FN-20 would be replaced by a Consolidated A6A tail turret. The Frazer-Nash FN-5 had no direct American analogue and that nose position was to be completely redesigned and fitted with a compact flexible gun mount devised by the tiny Thebarton firm of Scott Bonnar & Co. As on British-built
Lancaster the belly position would be occupied by an aerodynamic blister for the H2S targeting radar antenna.
As with the original
Lancaster, the enormous, 64" diameter main tyres were by Dunlop - in this case, Dunlop Rubber Australia Ltd. of Melbourne. The self-centring tailwheel tyres were to made at the Somerton, Melbourne plant of B.F. Goodrich. In both cases, the tyres were to be shipped (already mounted to their split rims) by sea to Port Pirie. And so they would in the case of the Dunlop main tyres. But the B.F. Goodrich order would ultimately be cancelled as production plans shifted and changed.
Design Changes and a New NameAs plans (and supply chains) firmed up, the Port Pirie bomber began to deviate more both from the British original and the initial Australian scheme. Although not all that noticeable, the planned Consolidated A6A tail turret was replaced by the MPC 250CH-6. [6] The RAAF decided that the H2S radar set with its bulbous blister was unnecessary for its anticipated daytime bombing role. As a result, the search was on for a ventral gun system. The lowest-drag system was chosen - the US GE Model 2CGD50 remotely-controlled barbettes and their 2CFR55B1 Central Fire Control system (as mounted on USAAF B-29 bombers). Supply problems arose again and the upper barbette was deleted in favour of retaining the manned Martin 250CE-5 dorsal turret.
With the decision to install a belly armament, the fixed
Lancaster tailwheel had to go to ensure a clear arc of defensive fire. An entirely new and fully retractable tailwheel strut was developed and produced by Horwood Bagshaw Ltd. of Adelaide. With B.F. Goodrich otherwise engaged with war work, Olympic Tyre & Rubber Co. (of West Footscray, Melbourne) produced the ribbed tyre for this new tailwheel design. Such were the on-going list of equipment changes introduced, that it was decided to rename the planned
Lancaster B.Mk.30.
After considering the aboriginal word 'Alcheringa' - 'Dreamtime' in the Arandic language - it was decided to stick with the RAF Bomber Command practice of naming bombers for major cities. There could only be one choice for a South Australian-made bomber and, thus, the alliterative Avro
Adelaide was agreed upon. Despite seemingly endless supply problems and shortages, the new
Adelaide B.1 seemed on time. The first Australian-built heavy bombers aimed to be in operational service before 'X-Day' - 01 November 1945, the scheduled date for Operation
Olympic - the Allied invasion of Kyushu in the Japanese home islands.
(To be continued ...)
_______________________________________
[1] The Branch's Department of Aircraft Production (DAP) was primarily focused on its Beaufort Division - which was to locally produce Bristol Type 153s fitted with CAC-built R-1830 engines.
[2] Thereafter, the Canberra offices became the corporate interface with RAAF HQ and government officials.
[3] Dominated by the Broken Hills lead smelter. the Town of Port Pirie was desirous of diversifying beyond being a one-industry town.
[4] This was not a first for Broken Hill Associated Smelters - BHAS had been a partial funder in the establishment of the Commonwealth Aircraft Company back in 1936.
[5] Once finished, this 'Curtinville' housing estate was connected to the Town of Port Pirie proper via a southward extension of Senate Road.
[6] As the name suggests, Detroit-based Motor Products Corporation had supplied parts to the automotive industry before the war.
