Triumph of Endeavour

摘要

Looking at the speed and extent of military technological development throughout the long decades of the Cold War it is perhaps remarkable that an aircraft like the Shackleton was able to survive for so long. Whether its longevity can be regarded as a testament to its utility or to its economy however is a moot point but it seems to have performed its functions adequately, if unremarkably, right up until the 1990s and with no less than two brand new kits of the aircraft appearing simultaneously from mainstream manufacturers a re examination of its anomalous career does not seem out of place. The Shackleton was developed by Avro from the Lincoln bomber, itself a development of the famous wartime Lancaster. It served as a maritime patrol platform until replaced by the Nimrod in the early 1970s but was further adapted for the AEW role. Remarkably it performed this role right up until 1990 when the RAF acquired the E-3 Sentry as a long overdue replacement.