(Rus)  By the beginning of 1944 the Lancaster was the dominant type in RAF Bomber Command, 36 of the 74 established squadrons being operational with the aircraft. To meet the engine demands of production, most new Lancasters leaving the factories were by this time fitted with the Packard version of the Merlin, built in the United States. Otherwise identical to Lancaster Is with British-built Merlins, those with the American engines were designated В Mk HI. Here photographed above an undercast a few days after it was received by No 619 Squadron at Coningsby on 31 January 1944, Lancaster B.III LM446/PG:H would fail to return from an attack on the Gnome-Rhone aero-engine factory at Gennevilliers, France, on 9/10 May 1944. It had 215 hours flying time. (IWM CH21117)