DV287
DV287
Photo courtesy of Etienne du Plessis
DV287 was one of 200 Lancasters ordered from Metro-Vick in 1941 and built as Mk.III’s (Merlin 28 engines) from May 1943 to Nov 1943. They were transported to Woodford for final assembly and flight testing. DV287 was delivered to No.44 Sqn on 14 September 1943 before she joined 101 Sqn.
On top of the usual seven crew in No. 101 Sqn, this Lancaster carried an eighth man. This was the “special”, who spoke fluently German and supplied the German fighters by radio with erroneous instructions in their own language. No. 101 Sqn was part of No. 100 Group, primarily tasked with countermeasurement of German initiatives in the game of electronic warfare. In the night of 7/8 october 1943, the squadron first made operational use of the so-called “Airborne Cigar” (ABC). This apparatus, which searched out and then jammed enemy radio frequencies, was vital to the “Battle of the Ether”, and a specially-trained German-speaking operator accompanied the crew. The special Lancasters – they were readily distinguishable from normal aircraft by their two large dorsal masts – carried a normal bomb load less the weight of the operator and the ABC apparatus. Naturally the Airborne Cigar, like so many other ingeneous R.C.M. (Radio Counter Measures) devices, was top secret during the war.
Read more about the story of this aircraft and its crew on the next pages.
