Editing Avro (section)

===Second World War===
[[File:Avro Lancaster B I PA474.jpg|thumb|250px|The [[Avro Lancaster]]]]
Maintaining their skills in designing [[Trainer (aircraft)|trainer]] aircraft, the company built a more robust biplane called the [[Avro Tutor]] in the 1930s which the [[Royal Air Force|Royal Air Force (RAF)]] also bought in quantity. A twin piston-engined airliner called the [[Avro Anson|Anson]] followed but as tensions rose again in Europe the firm's emphasis returned to combat aircraft. The [[Avro Manchester]], [[Avro Lancaster|Lancaster]], and [[Avro Lincoln|Lincoln]] were particularly famous Avro designs. Over 7,000 Lancasters were built and their bombing capabilities led to their use in the famous ''[[Operation Chastise|Dam Busters]]'' raid. Of the total, nearly half were built at Avro's Woodford (Stockport) and Chadderton (Oldham) sites, with some 700 Lancasters built at the Avro "shadow" factory next to [[Leeds Bradford Airport]] (formerly Yeadon Aerodrome), northwest [[Leeds]]. This factory employed 17,500 workers at a time when the population of Yeadon was just 10,000. It was the largest building in Europe at the time, at {{convert|1.5|e6sqft|m2|abbr=off}}, and its roof was disguised by the addition of fields and hedges to hide it from enemy planes.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/news/latest-news/top-stories/motion-to-celebrate-leeds-factory-s-war-efforts-1-5779881|title=Motion to celebrate Leeds factory's war efforts|last=Bowyer|first=Laura|date=19 June 2013|work=[[Yorkshire Evening Post]]|access-date=20 June 2013}}</ref> The old taxiway from the factory to the runway is still evident.

The Avro Lancaster carried the heaviest bomb loads of the war, including the [[Grand Slam (bomb)|Grand Slam bomb]].