Avro Shackleton AEW.2

Avro · UK · first flew 1971 · transport aircraft

The Shackleton AEW.2 was a radical conversion of the MR.2 maritime patrol airframe into an airborne early warning platform, identified by its large ventral radome housing the APS-20 radar.

Recognition (WEFT)

W — Wings	Low-mounted, tapered
E — Engines	4 × piston, wing-mounted
F — Fuselage	Large APS-20 radar ventral radome under forward fuselage — absent on MR.2 maritime patrol version
T — Tail	Twin fin

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Spot it by:

Large APS-20 radar ventral radome under forward fuselage — absent on MR.2 maritime patrol version
No MAD tailstinger; dorsal fin antenna removed; search radar replaces bomb-aimer position
Operated by No. 8 Squadron RAF in high-visibility markings as stop-gap AEW until Sentry arrived

Distinguished from the MR.2 by the large underfuselage radome dome and absence of the ASV tailboom and MAD stinger; the belly profile is completely different.

Specifications

The Avro Shackleton AEW.2 has a length of 26.6 m (87 ft).
It has a wingspan of 36.5 m (120 ft).
Its maximum speed is 480 km/h (298 mph).
Typical crew: 10.

Figures are for the representative variant described above; marks differ. See how AircraftIQ sources figures.

History

Converted from surplus MR.2s from 1971 as an emergency AEW replacement after the Nimrod AEW programme collapsed, the AEW.2 soldiered on with No. 8 Squadron until 1991 when the E-3D Sentry finally replaced it.

Variants

The AEW.2 was converted solely from MR.2 airframes; no AEW.3 variant was produced, though an MR.3 maritime variant existed separately.

Where you'll see it

No. 8 Squadron RAF at Lossiemouth operated the AEW.2 for twenty years in the North Sea AEW role, often flying eight-hour sorties with its piston engines.

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