Editing Avro Manchester (section)

==Operational history==
[[File:Avro Manchester.jpg|thumb|right|Avro Manchester Mk IA]]
On 5 August 1940, the first production Avro Manchester, ''L7276'', was delivered to [[MOD Boscombe Down|RAF Boscombe Down]] in advance of service acceptance trials.<ref name = "Bowyer 29"/> In November 1940, the Manchester officially entered service with the newly reformed [[No. 207 Squadron RAF|No. 207 Squadron]] of [[RAF Bomber Command]]. The type passed all acceptance tests by 21 December 1940, and 207 Squadron had at least eight Manchesters on strength by the end of 1940.<ref>Bowyer 1974, pp. 29–31.</ref> The Manchester's first operational mission was conducted on 24–25 February 1941 in a raid on the [[France|French]] port of [[Brest, France|Brest]].<ref>Jackson 1990, p. 355.</ref><ref name="thetford raf">Thetford 1957</ref> On 13 March 1941, ''L7319'' became the first Manchester to be shot down by enemy fire.<ref name = "Bowyer 31">Bowyer 1974, p. 31.</ref>

On 13 April 1941, all Manchesters were temporarily grounded due to a higher than expected number of engine [[Bearing (mechanical)|bearing]] failures; on 16 June 1941, a second grounding of the type was ordered due to more engine troubles.<ref name = "Bowyer 32">Bowyer 1974, p. 32.</ref> The unserviceability of the Vulture engine forced squadrons to make use of obsolete bombers such as the Hampden in its place. Upon the restart of operations in August 1941, additional failings were encountered; excessive tail flutter, hydraulic failures and faulty [[Propeller (aeronautics)#Feathering|propeller feathering controls]].<ref name = "Bowyer 33">Bowyer 1974, p. 33.</ref> Production of the Manchester was halted in November 1941, by which point a total of 202 aircraft had been constructed. A total of eight bomber squadrons were equipped with the type, it also served in two further squadrons and  also saw use by [[RAF Coastal Command]].<ref name="thetford raf"/>

[[File:Inside 207 Squadron Avro Manchester WWII IWM CH 3884.jpg|thumb|left|Interior view of a Manchester MK I]]
While modifications were made by Avro to address some of the technical issues experienced, unit strength suffered and Bomber Command was frequently unable to raise significant numbers of aircraft to participate in large bombing missions; on 7 November 1941, all of the RAFs serviceable bombers had been dispatched to bomb [[Berlin]], out of a force of over 400 bombers, only 15 were Manchesters.<ref name = "Bowyer 34">Bowyer 1974, p. 34.</ref> On 3 March 1942, out of a force of nearly 200 bombers sent against a [[Renault]] factory near [[Paris]], 25 were Manchesters;<ref name = "Bowyer 35">Bowyer 1974, p. 35.</ref> while during the [[Bombing of Cologne in World War II#First 1,000 bomber raid|first 1,000 bomber raid]] on [[Cologne]] on 30 May 1942, 35 Manchesters were amongst the 1,047 bombers sent to attack the city.<ref name = "Bowyer 38">Bowyer 1974, p. 38.</ref> Flying Officer [[Leslie Thomas Manser|Leslie Manser]] was posthumously awarded the [[Victoria Cross]] for his actions while piloting Manchester ''L7301'' of [[No. 50 Squadron RAF|50 Squadron]] during the Cologne bombing mission.<ref>Bowyer 1974, pp. 38, 41.</ref>

The '''Mk III''' Manchester ([[United Kingdom military aircraft serials|serial number]] ''BT308'') which first flew on 9 January 1941, was essentially the first Lancaster, featuring a longer wing fitted with four Rolls-Royce Merlins in new unitized, [[power-egg]] nacelles – originally developed by Rolls-Royce for the Merlin-powered [[Bristol Beaufighter|Beaufighter II]] – although initially retaining the three fins and twin outboard rudders (the central fin had no movable control surface) of the Manchester I. ''BT308'' received the "Lancaster" name immediately after its first flight. The second prototype Lancaster ''DG595'' featured the twin, enlarged fins and rudders of the Manchester IA. Manchester production continued until November of that year but some aircraft that were still in production were instead completed as Lancasters.

The 193 operational Manchesters flew 1,269 sorties with Bomber Command, dropping 1,826&nbsp;tons (1,657&nbsp;tonnes) of bombs and lost 78 aircraft in action, flying its last operation against [[Bremen]] on 25 June 1942.<ref name="jackson avro">Jackson 1990, p. 356.</ref><ref name = "Bowyer 43">Bowyer 1974, p. 43.</ref> A further 45 were non-operational losses of which 30 involved engine failure. The Manchester was withdrawn from operations in mid-1942 in favour of more capable aircraft. Its final role in RAF service was as instructional trainers for converting crews to the RAF's new Lancaster bombers; the Manchester and Lancaster shared nearly identical crew positions and fuselages.<ref name = "Bowyer 43"/> The type persisted in use for training purposes into 1943 before being completely retired.<ref name = "lake 89"/>