The decade of the 1960s introduced new upgraded
versions of the Vulcan B1a Bomber.
The Vulcans were upgraded to a Bmk2 standard with
wing spans increased and engine power almost doubled .
In the case of the Vulcan Bmk2 its wingspan was
increased from 99 feet to 111 feet and fitted with the
Olympus 200 engine @17,000lbs thrust . Onboard radar
and jamming gear were fitted in an enlarged tail cone
plus electrical generation systems were upgraded from
112 volts DC to 200 volts AC to help power these complex
electrical systems .
Production Vulcan Bmk 2’s made their first flights from
March 26th 1959 onwards and entered service with OCU
230 on July 1st 1960 . Of a total of 135 Vulcan’s produced
44 were Bmk 2 and 22 of these were fitted with the
Olympus 301 engines @20,000lbs thrust . Unlike the
earlier Bmk 1/1a which standardised the Olympus 104
engines there was no refit programme for the earlier
Bmk 2 and they retained there original engines until the
end .
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