  
 Anson
Restoration Project
By Colin Ainsworth, Project Leader
28 February, 2006
During
the past four weeks Ernie Killen, Mike Dandurand, Keith Brenson, and
Peter Campagna, (the newest member of the restoration team), have
been very busy constructing the starboard wing.
The Anson wings consist of a forward and a rear spar. In between the two
spars are thirty plywood ribs. In front of the two spars are thirty
smaller wooden ribs that form the wings leading edge. Aft of the rear
spar are the attachment hinges that secure the wings trailing edge
and the attachments points for the metal flaps. Each  wooden piece has to
be cut and sanded to the size of the template listed in the wing
assembly drawing. This is very time consuming but essential to
ensure that the wing has the correct dihedral once it is fitted to the
aircraft.
Peter Miller
bead blasted the four aircraft crew seats prior to them being sent
to 14 Wing ACS paint shop for painting.
Chuck Calder,
and Butch Fleury installed the elevator trim cables and started to
re-assemble the landing gear manual hand crank.
Al Sheppard,
besides working on the aircraft electrical wiring, managed to
find time to replace the two mounting brackets for the aircraft radio
and install it at the radio operator’s position.
During the next
four weeks we hope to finish the wiring in the main electrical junction
box, and complete the starboard wing.
This
month's "Anson Trivia" is part four of the Anson development
prior to WW2.
The following
is from Flypast Magazine July 1989 Page 56 by Ken Wixey.
Coastal Command
found the Anson ideal at the start of World War Two for general
reconnaissance work, and for the protection of convoys as they drew
relatively close to Britain from across the Atlantic. Anson’s were not
fast, but very reliable and manoeuvrable, qualities exemplified in the
Coastal Command phrase, "Anson is as Anson does".
Early in the
War the Anson was involved in several air fights. For example on
November 8, 1939 one Anson fought two Dornier Do 18 flying boats,
forcing one into the sea. Another Anson on patrol spotted an aircraft
carrying black crosses. It flew in to attack and the first burst of
gunfire sent the enemy machine plunging into the sea. It disintegrated
so quickly that the Anson crew did not have time to even identify the
type.
Much of the
Anson's work was, like many Coastal Command flights, a monotonous
routine of clawing through bad weather, especially in autumn and winter,
patrolling mile after endless mile of unbroken sea.
Some Anson
crews patrolling the north and northwest coasts of Scotland became a
familiar sight to the lighthouse keepers in their lonely posts on the
islands off the coasts. A strange friendship arose whereby the Anson
crews dropped magazines and newspapers to the keepers, and used sign
language when possible.
From the outset
of World War Two Coastal Command joined the Royal Navy in attacking
U-boats on sight. Indeed on the third day of the war an Anson flew in to
drop its bombs on a surfaced U-boat; it was so low a column of water
flung skywards by the Anson's bombs damaged its tail plane, but it
managed to make base safely.
On December 8,
1939, at 09.30, far to the north west of Cape Wrath, an Anson spotted a
U-boat on the surface and immediately attacked the submarine by
releasing two bombs. The first fell to starboard of the conning tower,
the second into a swirl of water being set up as the U-boat dived. After
some moments oil and bubbles appeared on the surface before the
submarine rose from the sea with its bows at an angle. This grew more
pronounced until the hull was almost vertical. Then the U-boat sank
slowly stern first to be counted a "kill" by the Anson crew.
Next month we
will continue with part five on the development of the Avro Anson.
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