Avro Shackleton

The Avro Shackleton was a British long-range maritime patrol aircraft for use by the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm (FAA) and several other air forces. It was developed by Avro from the Avro Lincoln bomber, itself being a development of the famous wartime Avro Lancaster bomber. The type is named after the polar explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton.

Entering service with the RAF in 1951, the Shackleton was used primarily in the anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and maritime patrol aircraft (MPA) roles; it also became used as a search and rescue (SAR) platform and for performing several other secondary roles such as being a troop-transport. Later in 1951, the RAF would buy 12 Avro Shackleton AEWs for airborne early warning (AEW) duties, performing in this capacity until the type's final retirement in 1991.

Variants

• Avro 696 Shackleton prototypes: 3 prototype Type 696s were ordered in May 1947 to meet specification R 5/46: VW126 initially flew on 9 March 1949, VW131, first flown on 2 September 1949 and VW135 first flown on 29 March 1950.

Maritime Patrol Variants

• Avro 696 Shackleton MR.1: the first production model for the RAF with dorsal turret with two 20 mm cannon, 29-built. First production aircraft flew on 28 March 1950 and the variant entered service with 120 Squadron at RAF Kinloss in March 1951.
• Avro 696 Shackleton MR.1A: Variant powered by four Griffon 57A V12 piston engines, in service from April 1951, 47-built and all surviving MR.1s converted.
• Avro 696 Shackleton MR.2: The Mark 2 had a longer nose and the radome was moved to the ventral position. Lookout position in tail. Dorsal turret and two more 20 mm cannons in nose. Twin retractable tailwheels. One aircraft, WB833, originally ordered as a MR 1 was built as a MR 2 prototype and first flew on 17 June 1952. The last ten MR.1s on the production line were completed as MR.2s and orders for 80 new-build aircraft were placed; the last 21 were completed as MR.3s and the total number of MR.2s built was 69. The first aircraft entered service with 42 Squadron at RAF St Eval in January 1953.
• Avro 696 Shackleton MR.2-Phase 1: aircraft were later modified, in parallel with phased modifications to the Mk.3: MR.Mk.2 Phase 1 or MR.Mk.2C, as per Mk.3 Phase 1. Also received the sonics plotting table from the Mk.3
• Avro 696 Shackleton MR.2-Phase 2: the Shackleton MR.Mk.2 Phase 2 was as per Mk.3 Phase 2.
• Avro 696 Shackleton MR.2-Phase 3: the MR.Mk.2 Phase 3 was as per Mk.3 Phase 3, except that the Viper engines were not fitted.

Airborne Early Warning Variants

• Avro 696 Shackleton AEW.2: In 1951, 12 Avro Shackleton MR.2 airframes converted on the production line at Woodford and Bitteswell as Airborne Early Warning aircraft, the first AEW.2 flew on 30 September 1951 and the type entered service with 8 Squadron on 1 January 1952. The type would remain in service until 1st of July 1991.

Trainer variants

• Avro 696 Shackleton T.2: 10 Avro Shackleton MR.2 Phase 3 were modified in 1967 as T.2s at Langar to replace the T.4s with the Maritime Operational Training Units as radar trainers, with master and slave radar positions for training installed.
• Avro 696 Shackleton T.4: 17 Avro Shackleton MR.1A airframes converted on the production line to navigation trainers between 1956 and 1961 with the removal of mid-upper turret, addition of radar and radio positions for trainees.

Projected designs

• Avro 717/719 Shackleton MR.4: Project for a re-engined MR.Mk.1 using Napier Nomad engines, 1 prototype was created by replacing 2 Griffon with 2 Nomads on a Shackleton prototype, the Avro 719 would have replaced all four Griffons with Nomads.
• Avro 696 Shackleton MR.5: Project for a Nomad-powered variant of the Avro Shackleton MR.2, known as Avro Shackleton MR.5, the project was proposed to several countries

Users

• Australia
  • Royal Australian Navy
    • Fleet Air Arm
• Brazil
  • Brazilian Navy
• British Empire
  • Royal Navy
    • Fleet Air Arm
• Canada
  • Royal Canadian Navy
    • Naval Air Corps
• Republic of China
  • Republic of China Navy
    • Republic of China Naval Aviation Command
• Italy
  • Regia Aeronautica
• West Japan
  • Republic of Japan Navy
• Netherlands
  • Royal Netherlands Navy
    • Dutch Naval Aviation Service
• New Zealand
  • Royal New Zealand Air Force
• Portugal
  • Portuguese Air Force
• South Africa
  • South African Air Force
• Ukraine
  • Ukrainian Navy

Specifications

• General characteristics
  • Crew: 10
  • Length: 87 ft 4 in (26.62 m)
  • Wingspan: 120 ft (37 m)
  • Height: 17 ft 6 in (5.33 m)
  • Wing area: 1,421 sq ft (132.0 m²)
  • Airfoil: root: NACA 23018 modified; tip: NACA 23012
  • Empty weight: 51,400 lb (23,315 kg)
  • Max takeoff weight: 86,000 lb (39,009 kg)
  • Fuel capacity: 4,258 imp gal (5,114 US gal; 19,360 L)
  • Powerplant: 4 × Rolls-Royce Griffon 57 V-12 liquid-cooled piston engines, 1,960 hp (1,460 kW) each
  • Propellers: 6-bladed de Havilland Propellers, 13 ft 4 in (4.06 m) diameter contra-rotating fully feathering constant-speed propellers
• Performance
  • Maximum speed: 260 kn (300 mph, 480 km/h)
  • Range: 1,950 nmi (2,240 mi, 3,610 km)
  • Endurance: 14 hours 36 minutes
  • Service ceiling: 20,200 ft (6,200 m)
  • Wing loading: 61 lb/sq ft (300 kg/m²)
  • Power/mass: 0.091 hp/lb (0.150 kW/kg)
• Armament
  • Guns: 2 x 20mm HS.404 Hispano Mark 5 cannon in the Nose and Dorsal and 2 x 12.7mm Machine Gun in the Tail - (MR.1/1A) None (MR.2) & 2 × 20 mm Hispano Mark V cannon in the nose (MR.3)
  • Payload: 10,000-14,000ib (Depending on Variant)
    • 20-28 500ib G.P. Mark 4 free-fall bombs or 10-14 1000ib G.P. Mark 1 free-fall Bombs or 3 18" Mark 30 Dealer-B or 18" Mark 30-Mod.1 Dealer-B ASW Torpedo or 9 Mark 54 Depth Charges or 2 11kt 1200ib M.C. Bomb AS
• Avionics
  • ASV radar
  • Sonobuoys
  • ESM (Orange Harvest)
  • Submarine detection equipment (various)
  • Navigation avionics
  • Blue Silk Doppler
  • Tacan
  • Radio compass
  • Zero reader
  • GPI MK4
  • GM7 vompass