Airfix Avro Anson Mk.I

With its commissioning into No. 84 Squadron at RAF Manston in March 1936, the Avro Anson became the first monoplane to achieve squadron status and also the first RAF aircraft to feature retractable landing gear. The RAF Anson Mk.I was equipped with a fixed, forward-firing .303 machine gun operated by the pilot, as well as a single Lewis gun in a manually adjustable rear turret. It could also be fitted with a modest bomb load, which was required by the Coastal Command's anti-submarine aircraft. Although the RAF had over 26 Avro Ansons at the onset of World War II, they were essentially outdated as combat aircraft and were quickly relegated to secondary training roles, a task for which the "Faithful Annie" was particularly well-suited. As part of the Empire Air Training Scheme, many thousands of aircrew destined for service in Bomber Command were trained both in the United Kingdom and overseas.