English Electric

The English Electric Company Limited was a British industrial manufacturer formed after the armistice of World War I at the end of 1918. It was created to make one of Britain's three principal electrical manufacturing concerns by amalgamating five businesses which, during the war, had been making munitions, armaments and aeroplanes. It initially specialised in industrial electric motors and transformers, railway locomotives and traction equipment, diesel motors and steam turbines. In the end its activities expanded to include consumer electronics, nuclear reactors, guided missiles, military aircraft and mainframe computers.
The aircraft division was formed into the subsidiary English Electric Aviation Ltd. in 1958, which became in 1960 a founding constituent (40% stake) with Vickers (40%) and Bristol (20%) of the new British Aircraft Corporation (BAC). The guided weapons division was added to BAC in 1963.
Two English Electric aircraft designs became landmarks in British aeronautical engineering; the Canberra or B-57 and the Lightning.
English Electric's operations were merged with General Electric Company's (GEC) in 1968, the combined business employing more than 250,000 people.

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English Electric Canberra

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 most 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 feet (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 PR.7 is a photo-reconnaissance variant, the B(I).58 a tropicalized B(I).8 interdictor for India.

Canberra PR.7, registration WH773, built 1953, serial number EEP73110
Flughafen Weeze (NRN/EDLV), Weeze, Germany, 4 June 2017

Canberra B(I).58, registration F907, built ????, serial number EEP71548
Indian Air Force Museum, Delhi, India, 28 April 2018

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