Quote:
Originally Posted by Bruce Dennis
Just an aside, but some accounts of the 617 Squadron raid on Tirpitz in September 1944 from Yagodnik near Archangel include statements that there was no high octane fuel available when the Lancasters first arrived...
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Hello Bruce,
Thank you for mentioning this incident. A search through Leo McKinstry's book using the term "octane" suggests that the Russians provided their highly leaded gasoline for 617's flight back to Britain. This was 4B-78, in all likelihood, since this had both a high octane number and a high lead content. See link -
https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=eDHF9gwqUF0C .
Soviet sources report that the Allison engines of Airacobras had very serious trouble with 4B-78, to the extent that this fuel could only be used for training missions at low boost. Given that there were quite a few P-39s and other Lend-Lease aircraft in the North in 1944, I am surprised that their Lend-Lease fuel stocks could not be spared for the Lancasters. This is perhaps a reflection of the poor state of Anglo-Soviet cooperation by this stage of the war.
Regards,
Paul