Simflying The Avro Lancaster Four Engined Bomber On Your Very Own Desk

The day I write this I am 64 years old and so is the peace that followed World War 2. This means that I'm from "after the war", which is the way I want to keep it! It also means that I only saw the Avro Lancaster heavy bomber in peaceful fly-by's which is a scarce enough happening anyway, considering that there are only two (!) flyable Lancs left in the whole wide world. There's very little airtime to be shared among the eager crowd, so there are probably not even a dozen people who get to fly a real Lancaster from the left seat every once in a while.

The closest us earthbound ground hogs can come to flying a real Lancaster, is via flight simulation. I am dedicated to Microsofts Flight Simulator X, in which I fly "my own" version of the Lancaster B1, a hybrid based on the "Wings of Power" version for exterior and flight model, and for the instrument panel on just about everything up to and including the kitchen sink. Out of many existing panels that I collected during my flight simming years, I created a completely individual panel.

Panel rearranging required!

There are two reasons to design my own simulator panels. Initially because there's no existing Lancaster panel available that is to my liking. Secondly because all existing panels put the pilots position somewhere in the middle of the cockpit, like straight behind the engine controls. That's no good: it takes away much of the illusion or immersion. Although my real world flying experiences are sadly confined to single engined pipsqueeks like Cessna 172 and Piper Cherokee, I know that Lancaster pilots did not sit with their precious crotch shoved painfully into the throttle/propeller quadrants of their Avro Lancaster bomber!

My panel redesigns produce a much more natural pilots position, and considerably enlarged instruments and gauges. Simulation, including flight simulation, is simply illusion - and I don't really care about the panel lay-out being realistic: I want it to look and feel realistic within the confines of a computer screen!!

The physical controls

In order to create a acceptable amount of realism, flying your digital Avro bomber with the keyboard or mouse won't do. If you can even remotely afford it, a steering yoke is an absolute must, with a set of pedals coming in a close second. Fortunately these additions are available in a wide price range, from pleasantly strong but equally expensive, to somewhat wobbly but easily in the affordability sector of most of us.

Concerning this subject I have a confession to make. Some six years ago I got the cheapest yoke and pedals that I could find, and I'm still using them without a problem and to my continuing satisfaction! In those years I must have acquired a couple of thousand dollars worth of other flight sim equipment, but I never saw any reason for discarding my old and faithful pedals/yoke set! Sure, eventually I'll replace them, even if it is only on account of normal wear and tear from almost daily use, but it is far from necessary yet.

A red and flustered face!

I will never say that a relatively simple computer simulation like MS Flight Simulator can ever give you the joy of flying the real thing, but sometimes it comes surprisingly close. I've made many a simulated landing under conditions that turned my brow sweaty with concentration, and sweaty with almost physical fear! Nor am I the only one with such experiences. I think it was around 2004 that an RAF flight crew trained for, and eventually flew, an MS-simulated historic Raid of the Dam Busters. Those fighter pilots and "Anything, Anywhere, Anytime" types left their simulator after their hours long flight with a healthy respect for Microsofts simulation software, and for the good old Lancaster. You won't see them looking down on "that game" or "that old bomber" anymore!

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