Flaps up or down?

[rickshaw]

Airfix's Canberra kits have separate flaps that can be set up or down.   Does anybody know what is the usual position when the Canberra is parked on the ground?

[Steel Penguin]

having a quick look through my copy of " the Canberra display team"  its both with possibly a slight lean to up, ( though the pick of engine start on p25 there down) 

[GTX]

My sources also show both being used.

Regards,

Greg

[PR19_Kit]

They don't fall down when the hydraulic pressure bleeds off, unlike a P-51's main landing gear doors for instance. I suppose it depends where the pilot left them, so it's random choice.

[Gondor]

They don't fall down when the hydraulic pressure bleeds off, unlike a P-51's main landing gear doors for instance. I suppose it depends where the pilot left them, so it's random choice.

If I was the Pilot I would leave them on the aircraft 

Gondor

[GTX]

They don't fall down when the hydraulic pressure bleeds off, unlike a P-51's main landing gear doors for instance. I suppose it depends where the pilot left them, so it's random choice.

I knew you would be the best man to respond

[rickshaw]

Ah, the plot thickens.  Thanks for the explanations everybody.  We'll just have to see how they fall. 

[PR19_Kit]

They don't fall down when the hydraulic pressure bleeds off, unlike a P-51's main landing gear doors for instance. I suppose it depends where the pilot left them, so it's random choice.

If I was the Pilot I would leave them on the aircraft 

Indeed, you can't trust a crew chief with something as important as a flap..... 

[ChrisF]

From what both my father says and what i see here:

http://www.grubby-fingers-aircraft-illustration.com/canberra_walkaround.html

...The canberra SHOULD be flaps up with spacers and stays in place to stop random movement (Wind maybe? lol)

Assuming the stays are missing then i guess they may move down...

... Again the plot thickens... 

[jeremak]

Or maybe made it on the moment of just tuching down airstrip, with gears and flaps down? With a airstrip fragment base? Just sugestion...

[Ed S]

In my experience, the flaps were always retracted after landing before leaving the A/C. However, on some A/C after sitting without pressure on the hydraulics, they would slowly lower a little.

I guess the best reference would be photos of a specific A/C.

Ed

[Mossie]

I did an Airliners.net search with oldest aircraft first, after a quick look I only spotted one parked aircraft as having it's flaps down.
http://www.airliners.net/search/photo.search?keywords=english+electric+canberra&sort_order=year+asc&page_limit=120&page=1&sid=e4d1fd12a78e7a36c193f8158e9c2180

If anyone has a copy of the Canberra's pilot notes (they were recentley published) they should give you the normal flap procedure & possibly the position when power is off.

[PR19_Kit]

If I remember correctly from working on a PR9, the flap system has a pilot operated check valve in the control system. That's not the pilot who flies the aircraft, it's the name given to a small control port in the valve that 'reads' the main systme pressure. If that's not present the flaps are locked in position, wherever thay happen to be when the main system pressure drops below the 'pilot presuure', usually about 80% of the system pressure.

That's why I said the flaps don't droop if the system pressure falls off earlier on. Mind you, that may be unique to the PR9 as it was the only Canberra mark with fully powered controls.