I was wondering if anyone could shed light on the Bristol Britannia.
Apart from the usual details on wikipedia, there is not really many other sites with details on the aircraft.
Considering that 88 were made (and a few were converted to cargo duties) , I am surprised that there is not more details floating around the internet on this aircraft. was it that unimpressive (boring) and aircraft ?
With regard to Britannia's in RAF service probably the best source of details is David Berry's books on the aircraft:
"The Whispering Giant in Uniform: The Story of the Bristol Britannia in Royal Air Force Service, 1959 to 1975"
By David Berry
Published by Keyham Books, 1996
ISBN 0952771500, 9780952771500
254 pages
No longer in print, "The Whispering Giant in Uniform" was updated by the author about two years ago under the title "The RAF Britannia and its people - 1959 to 1975."
In 1996 David Berry wrote a history of the RAF Britannia which successfully sold out! In an intervening nine years he has gathered a wealth of extra material. Its inclusion in this history expands the original 256 pages to 626! The original title was 'The Whispering Giant in Uniform', which forms the skeleton of this new book. The fresh title represents a changed emphasis - this book has a greater 'people' content. It is the story of the relatively short RAF life for an elegant aeroplane, which contributed greatly to the tasks of the Armed Services in the 1960s and 70s. It also contains personal contributions from those 'people' who were part of the operation of this fine aircraft. There is a wealth of photographs - and it isn't all completely serious - there are lighter moments
It's available from Keyham Books here:
The RAF Britannia and its people which also contains a link to download a sample chapter.
As to incidents, Sqn Ldr Norman Rose a former RAF Britannia captain died earlier this year and someone asked about the incident that led to him being awarded a Bar to his Air Force Cross.
Here is how I replied at the time:
Sqn Ldr Norman Rose
Perhaps someone with more direct knowledge can recount the Gan Britannia triple engine failure story.
The event was not a "triple engine failure", but a major failure of No 4 engine, with a prop that couldn't be feathered. This event took place on 16th December 1962 (Britannia XM519) whilst en-route from Aden to Gan with 3 pax and a load of Sea Slug missiles.
Having passed the PNR and having descended from 17,500ft to 1,500 ft and flying at 120 knots to save the engine from disintegrating, Norman declared a full emergency and he and his crew nursed the aircraft towards Gan. 315 miles out the resident Gan SAR Shackleton met the incoming Britannia and escorted it into Gan for a safe landing. For this in the June 1963 Birthday Honours List Sqn Ldr Norman Rose was awarded a Bar to his Air Force Cross, whilst his Flight Engineer Master Engineer Bob Anstee received the Air Force Cross to add to his Air Force Medal.