American Reacts to the Avro Vulcan Bomber Explained by Captain Joe | The Spirit of Britain

[@SoGal_YT]

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[@stuartfitch7093]

If you want to understand the link of elgars land of hope and glory and the uk then I suggest a video on the last night of the proms.

[@BlameThande]

@@stuartfitch7093 Great idea!

[@stuartfitch7093]

There's also a documentary video on KZbin about operation black buck.

[@steved6092]

Great upload ... 😃👍

[@andrewbanham8433]

No country in the world had a suitable bomber. The longest distance bomber raid ever until a few years ago .

[@iangreenway5580]

This music is from the song “Land of Hope and Glory” and is one of the most patriotic British pieces of music. I find it very funny that such a piece of British patriotic music is used by Americans at their graduations.

[@ftumschk]

It became a patriotic anthem, but it started out as an orchestral military march by Elgar. King Edward VII liked it, and suggested to Elgar that it would make a good song, so Elgar got someone to write some words to fit the music :)

[@Cheezsoup]

NO it's not, the tune is by Elgar but is called POMP AND CIRCUMSTANCE March No1 . It was only later when words were added to it by AC Benson that it was named 'Land of Hope and Glory' .

[@iangreenway5580]

@@Cheezsoup which is commonly known as “Land of Hope and Glory” en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_of_Hope_and_Glory

[@Cheezsoup]

@@iangreenway5580 Yeah the song is 'land of hope and glory' but the music is 'Pomp and Circumstance March No1' So it's not the music is from the song it is the other way around.

[@paznewis107]

Elgar hated the words and all the singing along...

[@brushhead]

I've seen many grown men cry at Vulcan displays. A sound once heard (and felt) never forgotten.

[@DavetheNord]

Oh yes!

[@MrDazturismo]

Listened to the Vulcan Howl many times.

[@Beautifultruthofficial]

like the Lancaster and spitfire. I too cry... I miss my grandad. (General M.A.Liskutin DFC AFC RAF)

[@etherealhawk]

Sadly, no more Vulcans are flying anymore.

[@CBX-vp7db]

My grandfather was chief technical engineer on the programme. I have all the medals on my mantleplace. Probably , very valuable but would never sell.

[@cogidubnus1953]

Put yourself in the position of an Argentine government unsure just how much further the British Government was now prepared to go. Hearing that the Brits could send a heavy bomber with potentially a very large payload all the way to the Falklands, and knowing that Buenos Aires was roughly equidistant, they might well consider that Mrs Thatcher was trying to make a point...and I expect in her own inimitable way she was...I'm not a huge admirer of Mrs T or the Tories, but there were moments we needed someone of that ilk, and perhaps this was one.

[@russellblinman2560]

I remember seeing a cartoon at the time of a couple of Argentinian soldiers cowering in a foxhole - the comment was "Hey Pedro - just how big IS that aircraft carrier??"

[@tharoz6406]

@Brian Mason This is not what the released documents said. They show that both Thatcher, her government and military advisers were under US pressure and were prepared to negotiate, but the Argentinian leader was totally intransigent.

[@stuartspence3613]

@@tharoz6406 and Thatcher was soon to be up for reelection....hmmm I wonder......

[@ds1868]

The main threat to Argentina was from ballistic missiles from submarines and not an aerial assault. An attack on Argentina was never discounted. If any of the aircraft carriers had been sunk then certainly the airfields in Argentina would have been destroyed.

[@colinfield981]

I recall at the time there was a rumour that RAF was prepared to nuke airfields on Argentine mainland. Didn’t sound likely but maybe it was there to put the wind up them

[@airvermincontrol5033]

When she took off you could literally feel the ground move and your chest vibrate, when she throttled back she was as quiet as a mouse, miss the Vulcan

[@Beautifultruthofficial]

WE SHOULD GET THAT VICTOR IN THE SKY. THE ONE THAT ACCIDENTALLY TOOK OFF IN 09. APPARENTLY, IT'S IN GREAT SHAPE FOR A REFIT. #BLACKBUCK1 #VIRAL

[@Dave-qy1fn]

I can confirm this as being very true . When it was able to go full power Jesus Christ did it shake the ground

[@Snipersight00]

To be honest, the British have many iconic aircraft we keep close to our hearts like the Spitfire, the Mosquito, the Harrier, The English Electric Lightning, the Tornado, Concorde to name just a few.

[@Rafa-pr5fe]

I have a some history in my head,😁 but it seemed to me that the Concorde was a French-British construction, and as for the Tornado, it wasn't a British-German-Italian construction? It seems to me that I read about it somewhere in serious sources about the history of famous aircraft construction.

[@sammygirl5835]

Sopwith Camel, Fairey Swordfish

[@robertwilloughby8050]

The Buccaneer, and despite the fact it was a bit dangerous, the Sea Vixen.Oh and the Lancaster AND the Halifax. (I'm not having the "Halibag" forgotten here, not on my watch!)

[@lorrainemilford6157]

@@Rafa-pr5fe I believe the plans and development info was given to the French prior to the collaboration on the project. I could be wrong.

[@Rafa-pr5fe]

@@lorrainemilford6157 Bravo, finally someone noticed the point and irony of my statement. Unfortunately I must disappoint you my dear friend whoever you are. The Concorde construction initiative was common. To be precise, Britain and France started the projects at about the same time, but quickly realized that, with the USA and USSR developing similar plans, the only chance for their construction was to join efforts. Without going into the history thoroughly, because there is no place for it here. The basic aerodynamic system of the Concorde is derived from France from the Delta wing system. Marcel Dassault,, undoubtedly the most outstanding designer and aviation entrepreneur in France of the 20th century, the creator of the Dassault concern, introduced its for his series Mirage III fighters in the late 1950s. This plane, which was outside of France, among others, the main fighter of the Israeli Air Force, enabling it to achieve total air domination in the Six-Day War of 1967. It turned out that this wing arrangement proved to be much better in the fight against the Soviet MiGs 17, 19 and 21 than the famous series of American "wonderful hundreds" from F-100 to F-106 The system used by Dassault will be developed in the next series of his concern's fighters, the Mirage 5 as the so-called: "duck system". At the same time, it will also be independently introduced by Swedish SAAB in its JAS 37 Viggen, and is currently used by Dassault Rafale, JAS 39 Gripen, and Eurofighter Typhoon, the current basic RAF fighter plane, a joint British-German-Italian-Spanish project similar to the Tornado. In the Concorde project UK was responsible for the propulsion units (including the manner of their arrangement), referring to the design of both the De Havilland Comet and the series of V-type strategic bombers. The UK, together with France, also used its experience in the design of the passenger cabin, the Comet and VC-10 (another British passenger plane, which turned out to be a commercial failure) and the French Sud-Aviation Caravelle project, which turned out to be a success on the market of short and medium-haul passenger aircraft. . British also provided the research and experimental potential, especially Farnoborough Institute, in the final preparation and testing of prototypes. Making the story short. The US completely abandoned the concept of a supersonic passenger plane at the design stage. Instead, they followed the path started with the introduction of the Boeing 707 and the development of wide-body airliners, the most spectacular example of which was the Boeing 747 launched in 1970. The USSR with its TU-144 project practically never went beyond the stage of the experimental machine, and to this day it is not known how much it was own project and how much was based on the theft of some of Concorde's plans by the KGB. France, drawing conclusions from the successes of American concerns, almost before the end of the Concorde introduction project, lost interest in the project. Instead, it focused on the development project (together with West Germany) of Airbus aircraft by introducing the Airbus A-300 and A-310 to the market. This allowed for the situation in which Airbus has become today, together with Boeing, the main producer of large and medium passenger planes for airlines in the world.Only the desperate and erroneous belief of the British that supersonic passenger airliners are the future of aviation allowed the introduction of about 14 Concorde into service with British Airways and Air France. Despite its aerodynamic performance and being known as celebrity planes traveling across the Atlantic faster than others and with luxurious catering (also paying many times higher ticket prices on this route), the project turned out to be the proverbial "day without tomorrow". It also marked the final nail in the coffin of the development of long- and medium-range airliners by the UK aviation industry and the de facto end of this UK aviation manufacturing division. Of the entire British civil airliner industry, only Rolls-Royce remains on the battlefield today, and is today one of the engine suppliers for Airbus. Ironic.

[@anthonysharp1490]

I worked on the Vulcan as an aircraft mechanic propulsion whilst serving in the RAF, it is, lets say not the easiest to work on as everything is worked from underneath other than going down the intake or going up the exhaust, 1 type of engine an Olympus 200 and then the 300 series , but was also used for the concord Olympus 385 as test bed with it being underslung from the Vulcan. I will never forget the amount of skin lost on an engine change, but will never forget working on an aircraft which I still love.

[@idavroslives]

A 'party trick' of Vulcan pilots at air shows was to immediately do a slow roll over the crowd straight after take off. That great big bird almost upside down at under 500 feet! Impressive, but terrifying.

[@seanbissett-powell5916]

Did you ever see their other party trick ? I think it was banned after a while, but I saw it at Greeham and Mildenhall in the late 70's. They'd take the Vulcan slowly along the flightline and then stand her on the tail, using pure thrust to hold her hovering stationary at about 100 feet above the ground for 10-15 seconds. Seriously ear-splitting, and no other plane at the time could do it.

[@idavroslives]

I remember that!

[@paulqueripel3493]

Over the crowd? I thought that was banned in the UK after the Farnborough 1952 show.

[@seanbissett-powell5916]

@@paulqueripel3493 Well, they weren't directly over the crowd, more in front of it on the other side of the barriers. I live in Farnborough, and the 1952 accident is still talked of here.

[@paulqueripel3493]

@@seanbissett-powell5916 my sister's mother in law left the hill a couple of minutes before the bits crashed into it. I meant that since then, there have been strict rules about manoeuvres at airshows, and I'd be very surprised that they'd have been allowed to perform over a crowd. In front of , yes.

[@bigredmed]

The RAF had a squadron of Vulcans at Offutt AFB in Nebraska and we have one in our museum. Those things have so much power it could tip up on a wing tip and orbit the Tarmac during an airshow.

[@generaladvance5812]

The UK were actually working on making nuclear weapons before ww2 and shared their research with the US which contributed to Project Manhattans completion. The US after the war decided it would rather the UK didn't have nukes so refused to reciprocate. The UK ending up having to finish the research itself in the end.

[@mikdavies5027]

General Advance. The so-called 'special relationship' only applies when it suits the Americans!

[@generaladvance5812]

@@mikdavies5027 I do kind of understand to some extent. The US thought the UK would use nukes to cling onto the empire. Obviously that never happened, and honestly I think the UK managing it themselves makes for a better achievement in the end.

[@mikdavies5027]

@@generaladvance5812 My mother went to school with William Penney, on the Isle of Sheppey. (A very shy but clever man who helped to establish the British nuclear programme!)

[@MultiNacnud]

@@mikdavies5027 Correct,remember the UN vote requesting that the Argentinians leave the Falklands our so called NATO allies the Americans abstained .

[@ferney2936]

@@mikdavies5027 & my dad was his driver on Christmas Island for the 1956 H bomb tests

[@benwheeldon9055]

That sound always gives me goosebumps, I saw one fly twice luckily over the years, the Vulcan howl/roar is so special

[@Beautifultruthofficial]

WE SHOULD GET THAT VICTOR IN THE SKY. THE ONE THAT ACCIDENTALLY TOOK OFF IN 09. APPARENTLY, IT'S IN GREAT SHAPE FOR A REFIT. #BLACKBUCK1 #VIRAL

[@alexboitz8540]

After Garry Powers high level U2 was shot down by the Russians the high level role of the white anti nuclear flash painted vulcans was changed to low level , and the white was replaced by camo.

[@TheNordog]

Filmed by the English Electric Canberra so we of the RAF said many times and NASA still have three of them in service now.

[@langdalepaul]

Best display aircraft ever. It wasn’t just the awesome Vulcan howl. When those 4 Olympus engines racked up to max chat, the sound echoed through your body and shook you to the core, crackling like the flames of hell. Those wingovers you saw in the video were a brilliant display of just how manoeuvrable this aircraft was; much more than a large, heavy strategic bomber should have been capable of. This is why so many of us contributed to get XH558 back into the skies and displaying again. It was so sad when she was finally grounded. Air shows will never be the same again.

[@andrewwalton6236]

I imagine the effect is not dissimilar to the Junkers Stukker and it's Jericho Horn

[@SciFi2525252000]

The red planes are the Red Arrows, the RAF's display Squadron.

[@MegaBadgeman]

Hawk trainers I think.

[@threestepssideways1202]

@@MegaBadgeman Yes. They are based at RAF Scampton, two miles north of where I live. I'm lucky enough to enjoy a display on a more than occasional basis as they do their training.

[@markpstapley]

Think of the British equivalent of the US Thunderbirds, US Blue Angels, or Canadian Snow Birds aerobatic display teams

[@simonwebster1370]

@@markpstapley had the pleasure of seeing the Blue Angels in the 90s at RAF Finningley. What would have made the display better is if there wasn't low clouds 😥

[@apep8896]

@@MegaBadgeman Hawk T1 training planes. yeah.

[@davidanderson5055]

I applaud you for wanting to learn about this. It's a shame that so many Americans are unaware of UK's history.

[@joeysausage3437]

And you know this how? Trust me, you know very little about the US.

[@TheDagda1000]

Trust ME, "Joey", we are inundated and swamped with information about the US. Sadly, very little information about other countries seems to reach the average US citizen. It seems that, to the average American, the "World" starts at the state of Maine in the east, and Hawaii in the west. The rest of the real world is a mystery. There are so many US-based KZbinrs who are honest enough to say they didn't know such-and-such a fact about the UK. Such a pity you're not one of the honest ones.

[@RB-747]

This bombing campaign was so ridiculously long range that there were almost no other aircraft that could have been used - a bombing campaign was almost unanticipatable!

[@edmundscycles1]

Even the B-52 would need to refuel 3 times for that range .

[@Beautifultruthofficial]

WE SHOULD GET THAT VICTOR IN THE SKY. THE ONE THAT ACCIDENTALLY TOOK OFF IN 09. APPARENTLY, IT'S IN GREAT SHAPE FOR A REFIT. #BLACKBUCK1 #VIRAL

[@ChrisPbiker]

If you hear the "howl", other than in a slow low-level air show, you're probably safe, it's already over the next country!🤣

[@keithchapman109]

The music is by Elgar, "Land of Hope and Glory" very British!

[@tammywehner3269]

we just know it as "pomp and circumstance", traditional at our high-school graduations.

[@chrislawley6801]

Great to hear the colonies of the US are playing this 🤣

[@EricIrl]

@@tammywehner3269 Elgar didn't write "Land of Hope and Glory". It's a much older piece of music. He included his version of it in his Pomp and Circumstance piece. The RAF is very much smaller now than at the peak of the Cold War. I would say it has less than 1/10 of the Front Line Aircraft it had in 1970. The Vulcan was originally designed to drop an atom bomb on its target from an altitude of around 50,000 feet. At that height, the camouflage was not that important. So, initially, the V-Bombers were painted in a Gloss White finish in order to protect the aircraft from the intense bright flash when the atom bomb detonated. It was called Anti-Flash White. The RAF markings and serials were also painted in lighter shades than normal. After Gary Powers was shot down at around 70,000 feet by a Soviet SAM missile, high level bombing was deemed unworkable so the V Force switched to low level. That was when camouflage was first applied. The camouflage scheme changed a bit over the next twenty years. The scheme worn by the last airworthy Vulcan, which you see in many of the video clips, was the last scheme worn by the Vulcans and included what was called "wrap around" camouflage where the top surface markings were extended around the underside of the aircraft too. The French also had their own independent nuclear strike capability ("Force de Frappe". They used the supersonic Dassault Mirage IV as their nuclear strike bomber. It is a very impressive aeroplane - like the Vulcan it was a delta wing design but it could fly over twice as fast. In 1982 the Vulcans were in the process of being retired so the RAF struggled to find a handful of aircraft capable of carrying out the Black Buck raids. The Valiants had been retired in 1964 and all the remaining Victors had been converted into air to air tankers. The Vulcan was the only aircraft capable of bombing The Falklands from Ascension Islands. Britain's main bomber/ground attack aircraft in 1982 were the Tornado (just introduced), the Jaguar, the Buccaneer and the Harrier GR3. The Tornado and Buccaneer had much shorter ranges than the Vulcan. The Jaguar had no air to air refueling capability. The Harrier GR3 had the shortest range of them all and a limited bomb load - but a small number were based on two aircraft carriers which were being used in the Royal Navy Task Force. The music being played at the 13 minute mark is the theme from the 1981 film, "Chariots of Fire". It was written by Vangelis. The famous barrel roll was not performed on "the inaugural flight". Chief test pilot Roly Falk carried out the manoeuver at the 1958 Farnborough Air Show (which is where the film footage was shot). The main reason why the last airworthy Vulcan was finally grounded was not because of the civil aviiation regulator in the UK (the CAA) withdrawing permission. This last Vulcan required technical support from both Rolls Royce (for the engines) and Marshalls of Cambridge (for the airframe) to keep it in the air. Those two companies withdrew their support in 2015. The Vulcan is indeed delta winged. If you look at the various marks of Vulcan (prototype, B1 and B2) you will see that the wing evolved over the production life. The prototype had a simple straight leading edge. Production Vulcans had a more sophisticated "S" shape to their wing leading edges. The red aircraft formating with the Vulcan are BAe Hawk T1s as flown by the RAF's official display team, The Red Arrows. The "Arrows" are similar in concept to the US Air Force's "Thunderbirds" and the US Navy's "Blue Angels" Those aren't contrails coming out of the back of the Hawks. They are deliberately generated smoke trails. The smoke is generated by injecting diesel fuel into the hot exhaust. Dye is added to give red white and blue colours. The Vulcan's only real action was during the Falkland's War. They were part of the nuclear deterrent during the Cold War and the fact that it wasn't used in anger for its intended original atomic bomb mission shows it kind of achieved its aim.

[@halcroj]

Pomp and Circumstance No 1 is played every year at the Last Night of the Proms. The BBC Promenade Concerts are a summer festival of concerts, mostly classical but not exclusively so. The second half of the last night is very light hearted has a fairly traditional repertoir of which this is one. When the tune comes up, firstly it's quiet and the audience hums along, when it's repeated loudly, everyone sings. There are various examples of the last night of the proms on KZbin. The Proms are so called because while the audience around the Royal Albert Hall sit in seats raised - like bleachers but much more comfortable, in the centre of the hall, a flat area, there's no seating and the audience stands, rather like Shakespeare's groundlings in the Globe Theatre. Standing tickets can't be booked and are very cheap. For popular concerts, people are always eager to be at the Hall first in the queue for places in the standing area, and once past the box office, there's a dash across to floor to get to the front of the arena and get the best positions. There are three verses to Land of Hope and Glory but most people only know the first one: Land of Hope and Glory, Mother of the Free, How shall we extol thee, who are born of thee? Wider still, and wider, shall thy bounds be set; God, who made thee mighty, make thee mightier yet! God, who made thee mighty, make thee mightier yet!

[@Motor_Mike]

Music Composed by Edward Elgar and lyrics by Arthur Benson at request of King of England......

[@dudders5734]

My father who was in the army was posted to Cyprus in the early seventies. I was 12 years old and watched Vulcan bombers take off from RAF Akrotiri. The noise was so loud I could feel it in my bones. I also watched Lightning jets. Happy days.

[@charlestaylor3027]

It was the longest bombing mission ever at the time.

[@phillee2814]

And still is from a single fixed base. Longer missions have already pre-positioned forward tanker support.

[@charlestaylor3027]

@@phillee2814 Victor tankers left from Ascension to be in position for Vulcan refuelling

[@phillee2814]

@@charlestaylor3027 They ALL flew from Ascension Island's single runway. That was the single fixed base they were all deployed to, left from, and returned to. And all had a single crew. The only addition was an air-to-air refuelling instructor (not a Vulcan qualified pilot), to help with juggling the insanely complex and constantly changing fueling plan. Ascension to The Falkland Islands and back, fifteen hours and forty-five minutes airborne. Check with Martin Withers if you like.

[@politikilter6446]

The only bomber with a longer range, that would have been available, was the American B52. Unfortunately America did not want to get involved... for political reasons.

[@spearhafoc]

Three aviation sounds that are stuck in my memory - the sound of a Spitfire flying overhead, the sound of a Wasp helicopter (you could hear it five minutes before you saw it) and the magnificent sound of a Vulcan bomber, And the Vulcan looked so beautiful in flight as well.

[@polarisukyc1204]

Don’t forget the hawker blue note!

[@keithchapman109]

The red planes are the Red Arrows a display team rather like your Blue Angels, I think they are Hawk trainers.

[@MegaBadgeman]

I think you're right there.

[@decam5329]

British Aerospace Hawk T1. Standard British jet trainer since 1979. The US Navy use a carrier version called the Goshawk.

[@MegaBadgeman]

@@decam5329 I remember building the Airfix kit. And the Gnat.

[@decam5329]

@@MegaBadgeman yea 😁, I've the same memory 😃👍🏻.

[@white-dragon4424]

Red Arrows (RAF) are more akin to the USAF Thunderbirds.

[@recreationalcombat]

I saw one of these fly at an airshow. Its flew in silently from behind the crowd and climbed steeply just over the crowd thus producing the howl. was amazing

[@swifty7236]

Also the reason "Pomp and Circumstance" or rather the lyrical version "Land of Hope and Glory" is played at US College Graduations is because the composer Edward Elgar received an honorary degree from Yale who played it at the ceremony. After Yale used the tune, Princeton used it. So did the University of Chicago, and Columbia. I think it spiralled from that and has now become a tradition at US college graduations

[@ellisonsimon]

Land of hope and glory, mother of the free, how shall we extol thee, who are born of thee….. One of the most stirring and patriotic anthems for the English.

[@musicbruv]

Camo on top of the aircraft makes it harder to spot from above as it blends in the the green and browns of the ground.

[@alanelesstravelled8218]

Originally the V force were painted in all over anti-flash white (nuclear bomber). They were then painted in a camouflage pattern topside and light grey on the under surfaces (high level bombing). The Vulcans were then painted in an all over camouflage when they changed to low level bombing.

[@kevincasey5035]

A Lane Less Travelled .....and when we say low level bombing we mean low level bombing. Not the 300 ft approach to Port Stanley more like under 100 ft or less. Had a friend who went to Red Flag in Nevada with Bucs. Told a story of a Vulcan flying at sub 100ft being "shot down" by a Yank only to reveal it was covering up two Bucs underneath. The Bucs always needed repainting on return to Blighty.

[@alanelesstravelled8218]

@@kevincasey5035 I remember the BBC showing a live firing exercise on Salisbury Plain. A Vulcan flew in at tree top level, dropping a stick of retard bombs on the target.

[@alansmith2197]

I can recommend you looking into another special aircraft we had at that time - the English Electric Lightening. I was an airframe technician working on these aircraft back in the early 1970s. Way ahead of its time!

[@charlestaylor3027]

The Avro Lancaster was going to be the carrier of the atom bomb to Japan if the B-29 hadn't been ready.

[@garryatkinson815]

The Vulcan entered service about 10 years after Hiroshima

[@StephenButlerOne]

@@garryatkinson815 he said Lancaster

[@baylessnow]

Actually it was going to be Lancaster Bombers as the Lancaster could carry the A bombs without any modification to the long large bomb bay, unlike the Strato Fortress, which had two bomb bays, one behind the other. Fuel capacity and distance/range was the problem for the Lancs' so the British even invented mid air refueling to get around the problem but as we know, the Lancasters were never used. American patriotism put payed to that.

[@garryatkinson815]

@@StephenButlerOne oops,best put my glasses on!!

[@charlestaylor3027]

@@baylessnow kzbin.info/www/bejne/a4m7aqOqeLOjn80 The Lancaster did require modification and the pilots were specially trained.

[@rcormie]

Hi Sarah, lovely to watch this again. The reason the Vulcan was sent to the Falklands was that the UK at scrapped their large proper aircraft carriers in the late 1970 and opted for smaller ships which flew the harrier jump jets. These were vertical take off and land and therefore did not need a large Aircraft carrier. The Ark Royal being one of the last great aircraft carriers the Royal Navy had. Of course if these large aircraft carriers had remained in service, the other RAF bomber was the Blackburn Buccaneer. Had it been able to get to the Falkland’s, the war would have been over in days.

[@shanenolan8252]

I remember one of the Sean Connery bond movies thunderball was about a stolen Vulcan bomber with a nuclear payload aboard.

[@johnp8131]

With the non-existant access door?

[@shanenolan8252]

@@johnp8131 yes . Great movie

[@johnp8131]

@@shanenolan8252 I always made us laugh. It would have been far easier to have direct access from the bomb bay to the cockpit rather than climbing up and down ladders.

[@shanenolan8252]

@@johnp8131 yes . Remember the underwater battle at the end ?

[@johnp8131]

@@shanenolan8252 I do, my dad took me to see it for my Birthday when it came out!

[@georgebarnes8163]

there was not a single Black Buck mission, there was a total of seven missions with different targets.

[@Beautifultruthofficial]

WE SHOULD GET THAT VICTOR IN THE SKY. THE ONE THAT ACCIDENTALLY TOOK OFF IN 09. APPARENTLY, IT'S IN GREAT SHAPE FOR A REFIT. #BLACKBUCK1 #VIRAL

[@archiebald4717]

Only ten years between the WWII Lancaster bomber and the Vulcan. Incredible!

[@MegaBadgeman]

One Lancaster had two engines replaced with jet ones and was used to test them.

[@EricIrl]

@@MegaBadgeman Not even ten years.

[@funfairclipsuk_]

Guys you are forgetting the bigger and more efficient bomber in ww2 the Lincoln by avro

[@EricIrl]

@@funfairclipsuk_ The Lincoln actually missed World War 2. It arrived in service too late to see any action. They were used during the Malayan crisis of the early- mid 1950s. The Lincoln was an improved development of the Lancaster. It was originally called the Lancaster X. It was viewed as an interim design pending the arrival of the V bombers.

[@siwc]

The camo pattern (and later the plain hemp colour) was to camouflage the aircraft while it was on the ground at its airbase. The hemp colour was to blend in with the concrete hard standings. They were still easy to spot when parked by the enemy because of the shadow they’d cast.

[@johnnylingo4686]

The Vulcan was designed for a European cold war. Distance was with Europe and Russia in mind.

[@adrianking8538]

Growing up in the eighties all I can remember was the deafening roar off the Vulcan, no other plane has the sound it is so unique

[@iangreenway5580]

NNNNOOOOOO! The Cold War involved all of NATO. I spent 5 years of my life as a British soldier in Germany in the 80’s as a deterrent against USSR aggression. In 1986 when I was first station in West Germany I was one of over 50,000 British troops serving there.

[@tomhirons7475]

forlorn hope, my father was a csm royal marine 42 commando

[@white-dragon4424]

The way Hollywood acts you'd think we were on the Soviet's side!

[@vinnyganzano1930]

Life in Germany for British soldiers was pretty good, I went from Germany to Belfast, not so good.

[@nirfz]

May i add, the Cold War not just involved all of NATO, but also all of the Warsaw Pact nations as well as to some extend the neutral nations of europe. (I know of at least one neutral nation that changed it's national defense doctrin after the cold war ended, as the threat and impacting scenarios became totaly different.)

[@iangreenway5580]

@@nirfz yes but the USSR (which included all of the Warsaw Packet countries) where the enemy so we don’t count them. 😂🤣😂

[@johnnystrat]

The Vulcan had that rare ability to put goose bumps on top of goose bumps. That unearthly howl - awesome and unforgettable.

[@BlameThande]

12:20 The Black Buck raid by the Vulcan on the Falklands was the longest-range bombing run in history, so no, it certainly wasn't routine! I don't think there's any bomber in the world that could have done that distance in one go. The point was the Argentines had captured the Falklands and South Georgia islands, so the nearest airfield was almost seven thousand miles away at Ascension - not a scenario anyone had ever planned for!

[@emilyjarvis9324]

I got to see the Vulcan in 2013 before it stopped flying at an airshow. Beautiful aircraft, I even got photos stood in front of it. I've also been inside the Concorde as well at Manchester airport. We went camping in Doncaster, England and they used the fields next to us to fly and practice with the Vulcan before it went out of service. Amazing to watch and the sound is amazing

[@raymartin7172]

I was lying on my grandmother's lawn one sunny afternoon in1960? When I heard a howl. Seconds later a Vulcan flew, low, overhead. Awestruck.. We didn't see many military aircraft in Northumberland then. I've been in love with the aeroplane ever since. Looked up into the bomb bay of one at Duxford a year or two ago.

[@ferney2936]

A summer day in 1967, I'm sitting in the grass beside the runway at RAF St Athan with my best mate Paul when a whole squadron of these come in & do 'circuits & bumps' i.e, they touch down with their main undercarriage, then pour on full power & shoot up again into the sky and the next one takes their place seconds later....after 6 or 7 of these we weren't at all sure that we'd physically survive the shock. We were only 10 years old. Now , of course, I realise that the experience was a privilege that no one can ever have again. From today's perspective it seems strange that boys were allowed to roam freely around the runways but it was so. There was no security either. Truly, the past is another country

[@peter-h8s2z]

Our original V Bombers were painted white with muted markings. This was to reflect the flash from an atomic bomb explosion if they dropped one. The cockpit also had curtians to protect the crews eyes from the same flash. After the Cold War calmed down they were given camo like most of the RAF aircraft as they were not expected to drop nuclear weapons by this time.

[@paulmurgatroyd6372]

After the cold war seemed to be cooling, there was a move more towards ICBM's rather than long range bombers. It's easier to sneak a submarine close to an enemy country than it is to fly bombers there. After the Vulcan, there really wasn't a call in the UK for bombers that could fly further than they had needed to during the cold war.

[@anoldfogeysfun]

Sorry for the year long wait for this comment, SC - but I only just watched your Spitfire Part 1, which showed this video at the end of it --- As you will have seen while watching this video yourself? Our older piston engine Bombers from WW2 were basically developed for that era, which was why the Air Ministry put out the plan for a new breed of Bombers with new abilities . . . travel further, higher ceiling, etc, but none with guns this time. This also decreased the weight of armour and guns being required to make them faster as well. So the 3 types of V Bombers literally took over the reins from all of the other bombers that we once had. (Only one of the V Bomber still having propellers). And the Air Ministry stipulated that any new Bomber should be able to carry either a nuclear bomb, or that of a conventional bomb load. So those 3 "V's" became our last Bombers until they all finally went out of service. Now you have the nuclear subs with the same nuclear options (but which can carry far more) - so no new Bombers have been designed since they came into service. The nearest we have are the transport or refuelling planes to use . . . As for being in the Cold War alongside the US with our own Bombers - we were your main stepping stone between the US and Russia for you - I don't think any of the other NATO countries had any nuclear Bombers to use. So we were not only protecting ourselves back then, but also keeping the door open for yours to land and refuel away from continental Europe, who were also much closer to Russia . . . Luckily for us here, we still have our Nuclear Subs with their deterrent, too, though - more so the way Putin and his lackey keep on saying that they'll wipe the UK off the map in minutes for supporting Ukraine. It's just a shame that they think we'll just sit there and take that - and don't realise that we'll return the favour back by hitting Moscow and a few other cities of theirs in response to that . . . !!!! (Commy countries all have one-track minds and do not think they can lose - or that anyone would want stand up to them - likely why they still have tyrants in charge and their own people have so little choice in anything.)

[@SciFi2525252000]

The Cold War was between NATO and the Warsaw Pact, not just between the US and USSR!

[@Doug1885]

What on earth do they teach the kids in U.S. schools…..”We did it all by ourselves” obviously

[@090giver090]

It was indeed mainly between US and USSR, but both countries has their own little gang to follow.

[@Doug1885]

@@090giver090 …..🙄

[@kylereese4822]

It could be put into service again if the need arose(I'd take a chance if i had no other choice) due to it being maintained(the old bird has still got it what it takes)....:):)

[@090giver090]

@@Doug1885 yeah, you know... Like two jocks who rival each other in highschool. Each of them having a band of minions who do a little chores for them here and there. ) NATO members (especially lesser ones) had not much to say on strategic level (that's what made deGaul to throw a tantrum and formally leave the organisation in 1966) and Warsaw pact members were straight up soviet puppet states with single purpose to act on Moscow's directives.

[@shadybacon3451]

The Vulcan was such a stunning and graceful aircraft to see flying, so glad I had the chance to see it. Deceptively quiet until it throttled up the engines, that famous Vulcan howl frequently set off car alarms at shows.

[@25dimensionsfrancis42]

The Russians eventually devoloped ground to air missile that made high altitude attacks redundant and the Vulcan practiced low level attacks hence the camouflage.

[@paznewis107]

Cammo on top, viewed from above, sky tone underneath viewed from the ground

[@timboskydog01]

U2 spy plane shot down so they went low level.

[@shaggybaggums]

"I don't think I recall seeing a plane that looked like that before." See? It works.

[@TheDrummingWarrior]

The camo on the Vulcan was put on after Soviets shot down Gary powers in his u2 (think I got the name right) so tactic went from flying high above the reach of missiles (hence the white anti flash paint) to flying low to avoid detection

[@shanedrewbattersby6291]

Yes the low altitude paint sceme. The green and grey of the camoflage are meant to blend in the the waters of the north sea. The same colours where used on RAF Spitfires and Hurricanes. By 1982 the RAFs bomber force consisted entrierly of the V-bombers the Victors where used in the 1st Gulf War in the early 1990s. And where decommisioned in 1993.

[@KingCharles3]

The RAF has no larger bomber planes anymore as submarines do the work of V-bombers and fighter jets do the rest

[@wbertie2604]

As soon as the Vulcan entered service it was known that by 1960 it would be too vulnerable to use in a high-altitude role. The first thought was to use ground-based ballistic missiles, and a lot of the research into that was used by the USA for its silos. In the end submarines were used. Vulcans were then swapped to a low altitude nuclear role in the 1960s as that would be a bit more survivable, except would blind pilots. The Victor and Valiant wing designs precluded this low altitude role, although a redesigned Victor was considered.

[@mikeandtriciajohnson7241]

@@wbertie2604 Both the Valiant and the Victor were put into low altitude camouflage and used at low level. In the case of the Valiant it caused premature fatigue of the wing main spar and the aircraft was taken out of service, only one survives currently at the Cosford branch of the RAF museum. The Victor had a greater bomb load than the Vulcan but to preserve it's fatigue life it was converted to be an air to air tanker and for strategic reconnaissance using it's radar in mapping mode. Interestingly all 3 V bombers had a variation of the H2S radar carried by wartime Lancasters.

[@wbertie2604]

@@mikeandtriciajohnson7241 Yes, the wing design of the Vulcan was much better for low-level operations. As I mentioned before, there was an attempt to redesign the Victor for low-level operations, with a sort of podded engine. I can't really scan the pages of my books and post them here. However, it didn't offer sufficient advantages over the Vulcan that was already available for the job for no significant extra cost apart from some paint and a few small equipment changes. There were some other slightly bizzare designs from the period too for the low-level strategic nuclear pop-up role, but Vulcan fulfilled that with Blue Streak until it was retired from the deterrent role in 1970. I don't think any of the odd designs (some with the bomb/missile on top of the fuselage) would have made it into service by 1970 anyway.

[@donaldcrawford5577]

Great, however, the V Bombers together with allied airforces stopped a Nuclear war happening. What price can that cost for a safe world? Not forgetting satellites forever spying on the whole planet.

[@funfairclipsuk_]

The raf has no bombers anymore,plane-wise we have to use the new Boeing p8a Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft

[@Scoobydcs]

The vulcan and victor still look like spaceships even though theyre 70 years old!

[@dashcam26]

And the Valiant....

[@comfeycushion7944]

The Victor has to be the most sinister looking aircraft,i have happy memories of watching them do circuits and bumps at Marham in the late 60s when my dad was stationed there

[@jpgale]

Pomp and circumstance march no 5 is the US graduation song (really hard for me not to sign land of hope and glory at the top of my lungs at a graduation) technically Land of hope and glory is a different tune based on pomp and circumstance as an extra note was added to make land of hope and glory which Elgar hated (or so I was taught in school). This is the tune that the majority of brits feel should be the national anthem if not god save the queen/king. It is the English victory song at the commonwealth games. Land of hope and glory is as patriotic as Rule Britannia. It is not the only British tune the US has repurposed, I am led to believe that the tune to God save the queen/king is used and of course the US national anthem is set to a british drinking song.

[@donaldcrawford5577]

What or who, is just hearsay, Every time brits hear it, it makes us stop and think of Englands green and pleasant land. A unique tune. Elgar, our best composer.

[@miathemalinoisgsdx1320]

Filled up a little bit watching it fly with the red arrows at the end of the vid. I went to watch its final UK flypast tour at its penultimate waypoint (Newark) before it landed for its final resting place at Doncaster airport. It was a couple of minutes late so it did 4 or 5 loops around our location. So many people in tears.

[@bigglesace1626]

The original role was high altitude bomber, beyond the range of surface to air missiles. As defences improved (think Gary Powers and U2 shot down, circa 1963?) the role changed to low level attack, hence the later camo colours.

[@EricIrl]

Gary Powers was shot down in 1960.

[@bigglesace1626]

@@EricIrl Thanks for the correction. Maybe I was confusing the year with the Cuban missile crisis... or maybe I'm just confused🤭.

[@billattercliffe8655]

The music is "Land of Hope and Glory", Britains's second national anthem. Like so many other things, appropriated by the U.S.

[@alanhargreaves1278]

Using the Vulcan showed the Argentinians a nuclear capable bomber could reach them, they being a non-nuclear armed country. The red planes are the red arrows display team

[@Rschaltegger]

The only thing is a) SSBN`s were deemed the sole nuclear deterrent for the UK b) were retired right before the Falkland wars. Operation Black Buck was a single event. Not a campaign and it barely reached Stanley

[@sirderam1]

There was never any intention of Britain using nuclear weapons against Argentina. It would have been utterly disproportionate.

[@wembleyford]

Nuclear bomber??? We did have polaris submarines patroling the Atlantic. The RAF was, frankly, irrelevant in the Falklands war - all the significant aerial combat was done by the navy.

[@barryhumphries4514]

The point was, that the RAF could have attacked mainland Argentina at extreme range if necessary. They were the longest range bombing missions in history at the time. There were no longer range aircraft in the UK inventory at that time or even now. Submarines have taken over in that regard.

[@Rschaltegger]

@@barryhumphries4514 no. Did you not listen? There was no need and more important it barly got to the falklands

[@Nutty31313]

The camouflage was for low altitude to camouflage into the ground from above. It was common for many aircraft during and just after WW2, including most British aircraft.

[@shanenolan8252]

Falklands is a fascinating story in full . I remember it on TV I was very young but I remember the news and daily updates on the BBC

[@vinnyganzano1930]

I was 16 when Argentina invaded, two years later I left school and joined the army.

[@AlanEvans789]

@@vinnyganzano1930 I was 17 at the time, and then joined the RAF at the end of 83.

[@grinningpinhead3961]

I'm a bit of a vulcan fan (obviously) and ive been in them three times in museums and it amazed me each time. The cockpit is incredibly small for such a big bird because they were originally designed for just one pilot before deciding put in another seat. And when you sit in there you soon get a sense of what it must have been like rushing up the two sets of ladders and squeezing through the 19cm gap between the seats with all your flight gear on then getting airbourne without smashing your head into something. And all in less than four minutes! But even with everything cold and shut down you can still sense the power. Push the throttles forward and when you look round to see the massive wing over your shoulder it's easy to imagine that howl resonating through the plane.

[@paulrallyfan417]

It was the longest bombing raid in history at the time - 16,000 mile round trip.

[@markkeyworth]

And all over water.

[@timgosling6189]

'Only' 4000 miles each way. I know, I did it often enough!

[@mickenoss]

One of the Vulcans nicknames was the Camoflage Concorde. It used the same engines and same wing geometry (shortened obv) as the Concorde we all know and love. I imagine the camoflage came in handy as they were known to fly at very low altitudes for prolonged stints.

[@boli2746]

We only had one choice, we did it; and proved we could do it again.

[@RWBHere]

The camouflage on the Vulcan you saw was designed to blend in with European landscape from above and with grey or blue sky from below. It could be changed to desert colours when necessary, and the white would blend with icy terrain. Numerous other aircraft around the world used similar colour schemes.

[@ScrapyardGuitar]

Flash white as it was known was the original colour scheme of the Vulcan and was used on all Vulcans at the time when the RAF was responsible for the UKs nuclear deterrent, it was thought that the white paint scheme would go some way to protecting the crew and avionics from the atomic flash of an exploding "A" or "H" bomb in the event that the aircraft was used in a nuclear attack. When the Royal Navy took over the task of providing the nuclear deterrent, the role of the Vulcan changed from the high altitude nuclear delivery system for which it was envisioned to one of low level conventional bombing, this was when the paint scheme was altered to the more familiar camo and grey. The crews who had originally been trained in high level bombing had to be re-trained for the new role, which included learning to fly the aircraft at very low altitude. As a child in the 60s living not far from RAF Lindholm and RAF Finningley, I can still remember the Vulcans heading out to practice low level flying along the Don Valley.

[@Ikit1Claw]

Vulcan was last strategic bomber operated by RAF, but there were other long range strategic bombers such as Handley Page Victor, and Vickers Valiant. Now, RAF has no strategic bombers.

[@BlameThande]

Mostly because there's no point in them when enemy countermeasures have got so much better and missiles will always get through (mostly) as a nuclear delivery system.

[@sandemike]

They should not have cancelled TSR2.

[@Knight6831]

and the Tornado GR.1/GR.4 filled the Vulcan's role

[@wbertie2604]

@@sandemike The TSR2 was designed to attack airfields and SAM sites to allow the V-bomber force to get through as it was known that the V-bomber force would be vulnerable. The intended in-service date for the TSR2 was 1963-4. Even that left a 3 to 4 year gap during which the V-force would not have been effective. In 1963 Polaris was approved. The in-service date for the TSR2 was by then 1970 which was the year the entire V-force was to be stood down. So they TSR2 in 1963 no longer had a mission. It was going to be expensive to continue without foreign orders (Australia opted for the F-111 and there were no others) so MacMillan was going to announce cancellation before the 1964 election but was persuaded to wait, so it actually fell to the Wilson government to do so. It decided that a fast strike bomber and reconnaissance aircraft might still have some usefulness, but absent those foreign orders, the Wilson government opted for a modified F-111 as a cheaper option. That had too many issues in the end, so instead the UK joined the pan-European project that became Tornado. Ultimately, it was a combination of slow progress (it was an advanced design) and the Polaris decision that ended TSR2. Some of the research did get used, though.

[@2000globetrotter]

The Vulcan was originally painted white because it was a high altitude long range bomber but later, it's role was changed to low level operation hence the change to camouflage on the top. The red planes belong to the Red Arrows, the world famous RAF aerobatic flying team. There are some great KZbin videos on them

[@craniusdominus8234]

13:43 The music referenced here is Chariots of Fire by Vangelis, which was actually written for a 1981 Academy Award winning movie, also called Chariots of Fire.

[@nicklatheron8795]

I remember seeing a Vulcan bomber on a training run near Warcop Ranges in about 1980 that must have been flying at less than 100ft above the ground, Very impressive!

[@johnboy9386]

It was also used in a James Bond movie, "Thunderball"

[@landhopper4296]

I remember seeing the Vulcan flying around, and it could (or looked to be) travel(ling) so slowly it looked like it would stall. It never did but I used to worry for the pilots during those impossible low speed manoeuvres it would do. In its day it must have seemed like a UFO. One evening my wife pointed it out flying up the Thames Valley and asked me what it was. “It’s the most sinister thing I’ve ever seen” is what she said and she did have a point. It was visually other-worldly, the howling and thundering from those jets was chilling, and the Vulcan or B52 airborne when I was a child could have signalled the end of the world.

[@jasonsmith666]

Always have an emotional response when I see that plane. It's such a beautiful object but also thy flew over my house as a child, filling me with cold war anxiety.

[@NigelJudson]

There's a Vulcan on static display at a museum about a mile away from where I live. Last time I was there I got to go inside the cockpit. Couldn't believe how cramped it all was considering the size of the aircraft.

[@catherinewilkins2760]

Loved the Avro Vulcan, beautiful bird, loved her howl and wall of sound. Sadly missed. That tune is Land of hope and Glory. I think they were Hunter aircraft, that is the Red arrows, RAF display team.

[@wasp6594]

No, they are Hawk aircraft and still flown by the Red Arrows today in air displays.

[@sandemike]

They were B.A.C. Hawks.

[@7373robin]

Red Arrows are BAE Systems Hawk T1 powered by Rolls Royce engines. Best of British.

[@sandemike]

@@7373robin When I was an Airman at C.F.S. Little Rissington they flew Folland Gnats.

[@colinfield981]

No, Hawks. Red Arrows never used Hunters

[@JBofBrisbane]

The cammo livery came about when the mission strategy changed to low altitude interdiction after the Soviet Union developed high altitude SAMs. Before that, the V bombers were painted in anti-flash white, to reflect the radiant heat from a nuclear blast.

[@fossy4321]

I was told by a man I worked with who designed the low altitude ground viewing radar for the Vulcan that they had to change from the high altitude attack because the spies - Kim Philby etc - took those plans to Moscow when they defected.

[@nickshale6926]

The music at 2:31 is ‘Land of Hope and Glory’ by the English composer Edward Elgar. Where ‘God Save the Queen’ is the British national anthem, Elgar’s ‘Land of Hope and Glory’ is regarded an the unofficial English national anthem.

[@nickshale6926]

@Mister Jorrox some would disagree.

[@vinnyganzano1930]

Unless it's the Rugby when it's Swing Low Sweet Chariot or the Football when it's Vindaloo🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@Gromit801]

The howl has to be personally heard to be believed. It was the longest ranged bomber the RAF had, from the UK, it could hit anywhere it was originally meant to hit. It was actually being retired when the Falklands happened, the Tornado was to take over all tactical duties, and the RN handled the nuclear strike ability. The red planes are The Red Arrows, the RAF demonstration team, like the USAF Thunderbirds or USN Blue Angels. Book recommendation : Vulcan 609

[@gazza7uk646]

They are the RAF display team, world class the Red Arrows,they do many shows in the US

[@vinnyganzano1930]

Well someone has to show the Americans how it's done😉🇬🇧

[@pieeaterwigan1]

Great Video. I'm sure there is lots about the US air force us (as Brits) don't know either, so don't be too hard on yourself. I've seen a Vulcan flying a few times, and it stirs up so much patriotic emotion in people. My son has actually sat in the cockpit of one, which is in an airfield in Cumbria. When you stand next to it, it's massive!

[@stevemoppett2759]

I think you'd also find the Avro Lancaster interesting, particularly in reference to the Dambusters raid.

[@craigpreedy8855]

I was 6 years old when I saw the Vulcan at a local air show. I was facing the airfield when this “howl” came from behind. I jumped so much I burnt my arm on my fathers cigarette! Loudest noise I’d ever heard. I’m 53 now, never forgotten that day. Red Arrows, Lancaster Bomber, Spitfire, Hurricane and dancing helicopters!

[@davidbaker1326]

Red arrows spray diesel fuel to make the trails. They have red, white and blue diesel which they use dyes to make. Probably worth a video on them as lots of history also.

[@smithy2389]

Not diesel anymore it’s a eco friendly spray.

[@Pippins666]

In 1969 I went to the Biggin Hill Air Show, in Kent. The absolute highlight was a Vulcan that flew in, touched down briefly, then took off again, only 50 yards from the crowd. The earth shattering roar as the throttles were opened fully to lift off of the remaining runway was mind blowing - 54 years ago, but I remember it as if it was yesterday. Then in Oct 2015 the last remaining Vulcan did a tour of Britain, I think she toured the main WW2 airfields. Her southwest turning point was at RNAS Yeovilton (Fleet Air Arm) , in Somerset. A huge crowd gathered to watch her as she made the turn overhead - a memorable 30 seconds - a classic plane indeed.

[@DropdudeJohn]

Dr Strangelove is worth checking out to see the American nuclear bomber force in action as well, Slim Pickens does a great rodeo bomb delivery demo.

[@andycoombes]

"Must Watch" movie.

[@vinnyganzano1930]

@@andycoombes : Must and have several times mein fuhrer 😉

[@smitbar11]

Major Kong lol kzbin.info/www/bejne/q5bYkqiBgM-DkKs&ab_channel=asaonanie

[@brendanukveteran2360]

I appreciate your homesty and desire to learn FACTS...one of the reasons I love and really respect your sort of American...respect and solidarity in the name of truth and honesty...Heart emoji missing

[@michaelarthur1479]

No other plane has managed to perform a successful bombing run at such a distance supplied from a single ops base in history. No other aircraft was capable or at this moment (I believe is)

[@pnonnymouse4840]

No sure but I think that some B1 B2 american missions to attack Afghanistan were launched from the U.S. but its all still classified. B52 missions were launched from the UK.

[@derekowens1817]

@@pnonnymouse4840 certainly B2 missions flew directly from the continental US to Afghanistan, perhaps they were after the record? D

[@duncancallum]

@@derekowens1817 That is why they did it for sure .

[@scarecrow108productions7]

Good question there at 6:33 For one...the Vulcans were originally painted in RAF's anti-flash white colors, mainly to protect it from a nuclear blast at high altitude. But when the threat of Soviet-made high-altitude SAMs were there, the tactics have changed. Instead of being a high altitude bomber that it was meant to be, it became a low-flying Tactical strategic bomber, now painted with sea grey and dark green disruptive camo on the upper surfaces, mainly to blend with the environment like forests and etc.

[@adrianpashley8941]

The red arrows are the Royal Air Forces aerobatics display team. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Arrows

[@aardvaark11]

I grew up with this aircraft as my father was a corporal airframes/engine technician working with these beauties. Ironically in 1986 i was doing my aircrew training at RAF Finningley the no.2 gate guard, a Vulcan, sat in the back garden of my house. Each morning i opened my curtains reminding me of the history and responsibility to keep it's high standards of the RAF. I was so privileged.

[@alanelesstravelled8218]

The Vulcan's only act of aggression were the Black Buck missions.

[@PeteCourtier]

My neighbour was an Air Electronics Officer (AEO) on Vulcans. He was slated for one of the later Black Buck missions but his aircraft was U/S so didn’t fly. Interesting chap who also flew Shackletons.

[@shoutinghorse]

During its peak in the 1960's the Vulcan squadron was based at RAF Finningley near Doncaster South Yorkshire as it had one of the longest runways in the world at that time. RAF Finningley closed in the mid 90's and is now The Robin Hood/Doncaster Sheffield international Airport. Making it the longest named airport in the world.

[@jjsmallpiece9234]

All the money the Americans spend on the USAF and they are still only the 2nd best air force in the world.

[@lindsaymcdonald6875]

The reason the Avro Vulcan was used for the bombing raid during the Falklands war was expressed in the video you covered of the nuclear attack on America, radar, plain and simple. You saw how effective it was then. To see and hear the Vulcan truly is breathtaking, I've traveled hundreds of mile for just a five minute flight and every time I see it I'm amazed by it. You guys have the iconic B-52 and F-14 and we have the Vulcan and the Harrier jump jet.

[@iansheridan3633]

The UK scrapped its flush deck carrier fleet in the late '70s so planes such as the Phantom and Buccaneers were unavailable to use in the Falklands along with a specialised AEW.

[@2old4gamez]

The Vulcan howl was the soundtrack of my childhood. I lived a fair distance away from their air bases but close enough to be under their flightpath. It still gives me goosebumps when I hear it. A beautiful girl, so sad she'll never fly again. You should really track down some videos of The Vulcan at airshows and play them really, really loud, the undisputed loudest plane on earth.

[@bromyardcoachouse4876]

There were 10 missions against the Falklands and Argentina by Vulcans.

[@russellblinman2560]

? Evidence please. as far as I'm aware there were only 5 "Op Black Buck" missions. www.tangmere-museum.org.uk/artefact-month/raf-vulcan-black-buck-missions-thirty-years-ago

[@russcattell955i]

@@russellblinman2560 1 mission is impressive, 5 outstanding.

[@nickbrough8335]

The RAF until the 1990s was pretty large, even when it was much much smaller than on the 70s. Today, its a pale shadow of what it was even as recently as 2005. There are a lot of great 60s RAF made videos. I recall one covers a V bomber deployment from the UK to South Africa as a proof of capability using early UK (ex-V bomber) tankers to refuel over North Africa with the tankers taking off to rendezvous from a civilian airport in North Africa as well.

[@zanwar2185]

Obviously they didn’t have a more advanced long-range bomber like the Vulcan otherwise they would’ve used it.

[@charleskett6438]

Not everyone has a war complex that enjoys spending billions on building new bombers.

[@fluffybadger9832]

ICBMs had largely taken over the role of long range bombers by then.

[@highpath4776]

Did anyone ?

[@vaudevillian7]

Generally the camo on top of aircraft is designed to blend with the ground (as that's mostly what it will be contrasted against if seen by another aircraft in flight) and the underside to blend with the sky (for similar reasons, as that's what you can see from the ground or lower altitudes usually). There's some exceptions but that's the general rule.

[@charlestaylor3027]

Showing a nuclear bomber could hit the Falklands showed it could hit Argentina too.

[@chrisredding6673]

Errr ... No. The international rules of war forbid the use of nuclear weapons against an enemy which does not have them. There was never any question of using them against Argentina.

[@charlestaylor3027]

@@chrisredding6673 that's nonsense the only time nuclear weapons were used was against a country that didn't have them.

[@Oxley016]

@@chrisredding6673 I didn't know they dropped a nuke on Stanley?

[@baylessnow]

@@chrisredding6673 He said nuclear bomber (the plane) not nuclear bomb.

[@donkmeister]

@@chrisredding6673 Which international rules of war forbid the use of nuclear weapons against an enemy without them? Which convention? I've not come across such a rule so would be interested to know where you saw it.

[@neillane1342]

That tribute at the end with "Land of hope and glory" brought a patriotic tear to my eye. 🇬🇧 It's one of our most iconic British Aircraft. You see a Vulcan, you think Great Britain. Our RAF was enormous during the early cold war. It's not nearly as big now, but a lot more flexible and deployable. It's an expeditionary force these days. The Vulcan was used as it was our only bomber by that point (and it's our last ever bomber). The Valiants had been retired as the wing spars were worn out and were close to breaking point and the Victor's were all converted to Tanker Aircraft by then. Modern Aircraft such as the F35 and Typhoon are classed as Ground Attack Aircraft - They're 1-2 seat Aircraft that can carry bombs and manoeuvre like a fighter. The big multi engine Bombers with 5-6 crew are no longer flown by the RAF.

[@kmac499]

A staple air shows was a four ship scramble. Four 60 ton planes chasing each other down the runway the ground shook.. awesome

[@thecomputingchronicles]

I'm not even sure the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress could have done that journey to the Falklands without refuelling.

[@090giver090]

B-52 would have needed only one aerial refuelling on a way back to England.

[@davidribeiro1064]

@@090giver090 No, if the mission was from England they would need at least two refuelings. From Ascension one might be enough, although depending on the loadout more might be preferable.

[@oktfg]

@@090giver090 multiple refuelling aircraft where needed to refuel not just the bomber, but also each refuelling aircraft on the round trip. The flight also flying in formation like migrating geese reduced fuel burn. The Vulcan was selected because it’s crews where trained in strategic bombing operations. The British Falklands response was put together on the fly with equipment and capabilities to hand. Prosecution of an unplanned war using an hastily assembled expeditionary force on the other side of the world is something few countries can achieve. Europe led by Spain thought the U.K. could not succeed. This fed Argentina’s belief the Brits would fail, or withdraw if attacked. Interesting that after the conflict the USA requested the U.K. to assist training it’s on special forces to lift standards

[@090giver090]

​@@oktfg Yes, but if you have bomber with 8000+nm combat range (like B-52) and 4000+nm range refuellers (like KC-10) you don't need formation flying and recursive refuelling. Brits made an exemplary feat with this operation. No wonder that their experience was taken into account by USAF. But it was an act of necessity rather then simple "because we can". RAF don't have ultra-long range bombing forces as Britain is much more closer to potential european theatre then the US. Vulcan was designed to reach Moscow, not Buenos Aires ;)

[@vinnyganzano1930]

But the B-52 would have been lucky to hit the island.

[@stevegasparutti8341]

Love your vlogs. Your interest in all things everywhere is brilliant. Im from the Uk and I had no knowledge about the Vulcan Bombers. Thank you - Keep it up SoGal.