Pictured here during a routine sortie on 4 August 2005, aircraft WJ874 has been painted to represent the first prototype Canberra, VN799, when it flew for the first time on 13 May 1949 at Warton airfield where it was built
The Canberra was designed in 1944 by W.E.W Petter at English Electric, Preston. It entered RAF service with 101 Squadron on 25 May 1951 as a medium bomber, although photo reconnaissance (PR) variants were first produced soon afterwards - the prototype PR9 made its maiden flight on 8 July 1955.
The T4 variant is much more representative of the Canberras deployed by the Royal Air Force than the much more powerful "second generation" PR9 version, of which only 23 were built (between 1958 and 1962), the first operational sortie being flown by an aircraft of 58 Squadron in April 1960.
39 Squadron, at RAF Marham, first received the PR9 in 1962, being equipped with 8 by December of that year, and as the only remaining Canberra squadron in RAF service, have conducted their own conversion training using the T4 dual-control training aircraft
In its first 10 years of service the Canberra broke 19 flight records and 3 altitude records. It was the first aircraft to:
fly across the Atlantic in both directions in one day,
fly from the UK to Australia in under 24 hours - the Canberra's time being 22 hours, and
exceed 60,000ft and 70,000ft altitude
When the PR9 lands for the last time next year, Canberras will have been in continuous front-line service with the RAF for a staggering 55 years, or nearly two-thirds of the RAF's entire existence.
A total of Canberras 1347 were produced, and of the 925 built in the UK, 773 were delivered to the RAF.
