Flight Engineer's Notes for "Lancaster" Aircraft: Avro Type '683' Mk. I & III; [together with] -- Supplementary Diagrams for 'Lancaster' Mark II.

WORLD WAR II.

Published by Manchester: A. V. Roe & Co. Limited, May 1943

About this Item

Presumed first editions, number 911 of an unknown distribution. They were issued to Sergeant Desmond Howard Hughes (1923-1943) of 115 Squadron RAFVR on 26 July 1943, and have his signature and annotations. Just four months later he was lost with his Lancaster Mk II DS782 KO-K while on a raid, the largest so far sent to Berlin. Following Hughes's death these copies passed to Flying Officer Alfred Paul Mellows (1922-1997) of 169 Squadron RAFVR, with his signature to both front wrappers. Mellows flew over 50 operations during the war while piloting a Mosquito and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross on 20 March 1945. According to the citation, shared with Flight Lieutenant Leonard Drew, "these officers have completed a large number of sorties in the capacity of navigator and pilot of aircraft respectively. They have also shot down 2 enemy aircraft. The second of these was destroyed one night in Feb. 1945. On this occasion, the attack was pressed home from such close range that, when the enemy aircraft exploded in the air, their own aircraft was damaged. Nevertheless, Flight Lieutenant Mellows flew it back to base. Both he and his fellow crew have always displayed the greatest keenness for operations" (London Gazette, p. 1595). He was part of the crew that won a rowing silver in the 1948 Olympic Games. We have traced just four copies of the main volume, at the Australian War Memorial, the Ingenium Library, the British Library, and the National Aerospace Library. We have traced no copies of the supplementary volume. "Supplement to the London Gazette, 23 March 1945", The London Gazette. 2 works, octavo. Half-tone photographic plate with captioned overlay, 19 folding diagrams and tables, diagrams and tables in text; Notes interleaved with blanks as issued. Original purple paper wrappers, wire-stitched as issued (Notes glued into wrappers), wrappers lettered in blue, front wrappers stamped with Avro logo in blue. Light abrasions to wrappers, creased and nicked at edges, a little toning and foxing to contents, small stub tears to some folding diagrams, Supplementary Figure 7 tipped in: a very good set.

Seller Inventory # 183794

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Flight Engineer's Notes for "Lancaster" Aircraft: Avro Type '683' Mk. I & III; [together with] -- Supplementary Diagrams for 'Lancaster' Mark II.
• Publisher: Manchester: A. V. Roe & Co. Limited, May 1943
• Edition: 1st Edition