michaelmaltby
Colonel
Like others here, I have always been a great admirer of the Westland Lysander. Officially an "Army Co-operation aircraft" - that term covers a lot of ground. The RAF P-51's were also lumped into the same category yet clearly were very different aircraft.
I've admired the Lysander in part because - like Lancs, Mosquitos, Hurricanes, Ansons and Cansos - they were built in Canada as part of the Canadian war effort - all started before the USA became involved in 1941.
Canada was opened up after WW1 by aircraft and came to depend on planes that were rugged and that could get in and out of tight places. The RCAF must have found the Lysander a great asset - and there may well have been RCAF pilots who flew the Lysander in safety in Canada and went on to fly covert blackout missions into occupied Europe and/or SE Asia - ferrying agents, arms and supplies in and agents and perhaps high value human assets out.
Was the Lysander the precursor of modern STOL aircraft?
Ironically - when I think of amazing STOL performance I think of the Fieseler Fi 156 Storch and the resue mission by Otto Skorzeni's troops to rescue Musollini. Both were designed at roughly the same time though of different sizes and purposes.
Without detracting from USSAF planes like the Grasshopper and such, I don't think there's a technical comparision between the Storch, Lysander and the US machines.
And finally, lets remember that Glenn Miller disappeared in a USAAF Norseman - another Canadian-built machine that was the first post-WW2 Canadian bush plane and STOL pioneer.
My nationalism is showing here, but there's lots to chew on here: especially the graceful Lysander and the amazing Storch (built post-war by the Swiss if I'm not mistaken.
Anyone ...
Chairs,
michaelmaltby
I've admired the Lysander in part because - like Lancs, Mosquitos, Hurricanes, Ansons and Cansos - they were built in Canada as part of the Canadian war effort - all started before the USA became involved in 1941.
Canada was opened up after WW1 by aircraft and came to depend on planes that were rugged and that could get in and out of tight places. The RCAF must have found the Lysander a great asset - and there may well have been RCAF pilots who flew the Lysander in safety in Canada and went on to fly covert blackout missions into occupied Europe and/or SE Asia - ferrying agents, arms and supplies in and agents and perhaps high value human assets out.
Was the Lysander the precursor of modern STOL aircraft?
Ironically - when I think of amazing STOL performance I think of the Fieseler Fi 156 Storch and the resue mission by Otto Skorzeni's troops to rescue Musollini. Both were designed at roughly the same time though of different sizes and purposes.
Without detracting from USSAF planes like the Grasshopper and such, I don't think there's a technical comparision between the Storch, Lysander and the US machines.
And finally, lets remember that Glenn Miller disappeared in a USAAF Norseman - another Canadian-built machine that was the first post-WW2 Canadian bush plane and STOL pioneer.
My nationalism is showing here, but there's lots to chew on here: especially the graceful Lysander and the amazing Storch (built post-war by the Swiss if I'm not mistaken.
Anyone ...
Chairs,
michaelmaltby
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