Learn about the remarkable British Avro Vulcan Strategic Bomber, including the amazing mission in the Falklands, during the Argentinian conflict.
The Avro Vulcan (later Hawker Siddeley Vulcan from July 1963) is a jet-powered, tailless, delta-wing, high-altitude, strategic bomber, which was operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF) from 1956 until 1984. Aircraft manufacturer A.V. Roe and Company (Avro) designed the Vulcan in response to Specification B.35/46. Of the three V bombers produced, the Vulcan was considered the most technically advanced, hence the riskiest option. Several reduced-scale aircraft, designated Avro 707s, were produced to test and refine the delta-wing design principles.
The Vulcan B.1 was first delivered to the RAF in 1956; deliveries of the improved Vulcan B.2 started in 1960. The B.2 featured more powerful engines, a larger wing, an improved electrical system, and electronic countermeasures, and many were modified to accept the Blue Steel missile. As a part of the V-force, the Vulcan was the backbone of the United Kingdom's airborne nuclear deterrent during much of the Cold War. Although the Vulcan was typically armed with nuclear weapons, it could also carry out conventional bombing missions, which it did in Operation Black Buck during the Falklands War between the United Kingdom and Argentina in 1982.
The Vulcan had no defensive weaponry, initially relying upon high-speed, high-altitude flight to evade interception. Electronic countermeasures were employed by the B.1 (designated B.1A) and B.2 from around 1960. A change to low-level tactics was made in the mid-1960s. In the mid-1970s, nine Vulcans were adapted for maritime radar reconnaissance operations, redesignated as B.2 (MRR). In the final years of service, six Vulcans were converted to the K.2 tanker configuration for aerial refueling.
After retirement by the RAF, one example, B.2 XH558, named The Spirit of Great Britain, was restored for use in display flights and air shows, whilst two other B.2s, XL426 and XM655, have been kept in taxiable condition for ground runs and demonstrations. B.2 XH558 flew for the last time in October 2015, and is also being kept in taxiable condition.
The origin of the Vulcan and the other V bombers is linked with early British atomic weapon programme and nuclear deterrent policies. Britain's atom bomb programme began with Air Staff Operational Requirement OR.1001 issued in August 1946. This anticipated a government decision in January 1947 to authorise research and development work on atomic weapons, the U.S. Atomic Energy Act of 1946 (McMahon Act) having prohibited exporting atomic knowledge, even to countries that had collaborated on the Manhattan Project. OR.1001 envisaged a weapon not to exceed 24 ft 2 in (7.37 m) in length, 5 ft (1.5 m) in diameter and 10,000 lb (4,500 kg) in weight. The weapon had to be suitable for release from 20,000 to 50,000 ft (6,100 to 15,200 m).
In January 1947, the Ministry of Supply distributed Specification B.35/46 to UK aviation companies to satisfy Air Staff Operational Requirement OR.229 for "a medium range bomber landplane capable of carrying one 10,000 lb (4,500 kg) bomb to a target 1,500 nautical miles (1,700 mi; 2,800 km) from a base which may be anywhere in the world." A cruising speed of 500 knots (580 mph; 930 km/h) at altitudes between 35,000 and 50,000 ft (11,000 and 15,000 m) was specified. The maximum weight when fully loaded should not exceed 100,000 lb (45,000 kg). Alternatively, the aircraft was to be capable of carrying a conventional bomb load of 20,000 lb (9,100 kg).

Specifications:
Data from Polmar, Laming

General characteristics

Crew: 5 (pilot, co-pilot, AEO, Navigator Radar, Navigator Plotter)
Length: 97 ft 1 in (29.59 m)
Wingspan: 99 ft 5 in (30.30 m)
Height: 26 ft 6 in (8.08 m)
Wing area: 3,554 sq ft (330.2 m2)
Airfoil: root: NACA 0010 mod.; tip: NACA 0008 mod.
Empty weight: 83,573 lb (37,908 kg) equipped and crewed
Max takeoff weight: 170,000 lb (77,111 kg)
Fuel capacity: 9,280 imp gal (11,140 US gal; 42,200 l); 74,240 lb (33,675 kg)
Powerplant: 4 × Bristol Olympus Mk.101 / Mk.102 / Mk.104 twin-spool turbojet engines, 11,000 lbf (49 kN) thrust each
Performance

Maximum speed: 561 kn (646 mph, 1,039 km/h) at altitude
Maximum speed: Mach 0.96
Cruise speed: 493 kn (567 mph, 913 km/h) / M0.86 at 45,000 feet (14,000 m)
Range: 2,265 nmi (2,607 mi, 4,195 km)
Service ceiling: 55,000 ft (17,000 m)
Thrust/weight: 0.31
Armament
21 × 1,000 pounds (454 kg) of conventional bombs
1 × Blue Danube nuclear gravity bomb
1 × Violet Club 400 kt nuclear gravity bomb
1 × U.S. Mark 5 nuclear gravity bomb supplied under Project E
1 × Yellow Sun Mk.1 400 kt nuclear gravity bomb
1 × Yellow Sun Mk.2 1.1 Mt thermonuclear gravity bomb
1 × Red Beard nuclear gravity bomb
1 × WE.177B parachute-retarded nuclear gravity bomb

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