Avro York
Description
Role	Passenger/freight transport
Crew	5
Passengers	24
First flight	July 5, 1942
Entered service
Manufacturer	A V Roe
Dimensions
Length	78 ft 6 in	23.9 m
Wingspan	102 ft 0 in	31.1 m
Height	16 ft 6 in	5 m
Wing area	1,205 ft²	111.9 m²
Weights
Empty	33,200 lb	15,060 kg
Loaded	65,000 lb	29,480 kg
Maximum takeoff	lb	kg
Powerplant
Engine	4 × Rolls-Royce Merlin XX
Power (each)	1,280 hp	950 kW
Performance
Maximum speed	298 mph @ 21,000 ft	479 km/h @ 6,400 m
Combat range	3,000 miles	4,830 km
Service ceiling	23,000 ft	7,010 m
Rate of climb	820 ft/min	250 m/min

The Avro York was a passenger and freight transport of the 1940s, in both military and civilian applications. Initially designated the Avro type 685 it combined the wings and undercarriage of the Lancaster bomber with a much larger rectangular fuselage. The increased forward area necessitated fitting a third fin to retain control.

The first civilian York was delivered to BOAC in 1944. One of the prototypes became a flying conference room for Winston Churchill - it was named Ascalon and flew Churchill to the Yalta Conference in 1945. Other Yorks were provided for the use of Lord Mountbatten when Viceroy of India, the Duke of Gloucester when Governor-General of Australia, and South African leader Jan Smuts. In RAF Transport Command service the York was used on the England-India route.

50 civilian Yorks were delivered, and 208 to the RAF - many of which subsequently passed into civilian hands. During the Berlin Airlift, Yorks flew over 58,000 sorties - close to half of the British contribution, alongside the DC-3 and Handley Page Hastings.

In the post-war years, BOAC used Yorks on their Cairo to Durban service, which had previously been worked by Shorts flying-boats. They were also used by British South American Airways and many private operators.