The Avro Lancaster is one of the most famous and celebrated warplanes to have been produced by Britain’s aircraft industry. The type’s exploits in World War Two during the Allied bombing campaign against Nazi Germany are legendary, but it is often forgotten that the Lancaster continued in service after the end of the war in a variety of roles. In addition, a number of Lancasters were exported to foreign countries, and subsequently performed significant, if generally unsung service in less well-known colours.
One of the major export customers for the Lancaster post-war was France. In the years following World War Two, the French military was fully re-established following the upheavals caused by its defeat of 1940. In common with other branches of the armed forces, the naval air arm, the Aéronautique Navale (often abbreviated to Aéronavale), was chronically short of modern high-performance equipment. There was a specific need for a long-range, maritime patrol and anti-submarine aircraft, particularly to guard over far-flung French colonies.
The country’s aircraft industry was still, at that time, rebuilding following the end of the war and did not have any suitable aircraft in production. The French therefore looked…
