English Electric Canberra
| Canberra | |
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| Canberra T.4 WJ874 in 2005. It had been painted in 1999 to represent the first prototype VN799, first flown in 1949. | |
| Role | Bomber/Reconnaissance |
| National origin | United Kingdom |
| Manufacturer | English Electric |
| First flight | 13 May 1949 |
| Introduction | 25 May 1951 |
| Retired | 23 June 2006 (RAF) |
| Status | Retired from service |
| Primary users |
Royal Air Force |
| Number built |
403 (USA) |
| Variants | Martin B-57 Canberra |
 Canberra bomber at Avalon Airshow, 2003
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Pathe News report on the Canberra, 1951
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1998 documentary on the Canberra
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403 (USA)
The English Electric Canberra is a British first-generation jet-powered medium bomber that was manufactured during the 1950s. It was developed by English Electric during the mid-to-late 1940s in response to a 1944 Air Ministry requirement for a successor to the wartime de Havilland Mosquito fast-bomber; amongst the performance requirements for the type was the demand for an outstanding high altitude bombing capability in addition to flying at high speeds, these were partly accomplished by making use of newly developed jet propulsion technology. When the Canberra was introduced to service with the Royal Air Force (RAF), the type's first operator, in May 1951, it became the service's first jet-powered bomber aircraft.
Throughout the majority of the 1950s, the Canberra could fly at a higher altitude than any other bomber or even any other aircraft in the world. In 1957, one Canberra established a world altitude record of 70,310 ft (21,430 m). In February 1951, another Canberra set another world record when it became the first jet aircraft to make a non-stop transatlantic flight. Due to its ability to evade the early jet interceptor aircraft and its significant performance advancement over contemporary piston-engined bombers, the Canberra became a popular aircraft on the export market, being procured for service in the air forces of many nations both inside and outside of the Commonwealth of Nations. The type was also licence produced in Australia and the United States of America, the latter building it as the Martin B-57 Canberra.
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