WW2 Royal Air Force RAF Overstands Postcards x 2

An original 1941 postally used postcard of a flight of B & P (Boutlon Paul) Overstrands. Some small tears and edge crease but a scarce image of this biplane Also a modern copy of a photograph taken circa 1933 of an stationary Overstrand with its crew.

The Boulton Paul P.75 Overstrand was a twin-engine biplane medium bomber designed and produced by the British aircraft manufacturer Boulton Paul. It was the final example of a series of biplane medium bombers that had served in the Royal Air Force since the First World War, starting with the likes of the Vickers Vimy and Handley Page Type O. The Overstrand was also the first aircraft to be fitted with a fully-enclosed power-operated turret (A replica of an Overstrand nose section, marked as K4556, is on display at the Norfolk and Suffolk Aviation Museum).

First flown in 1933, the Overstrand was essentially an improved model of the Boulton Paul Sidestrand of the 1920s, thus early references to the type referred to it as the Sidestrand Mk IV instead. It demonstrated a higher maximum speed than its predecessor and was procured for the RAF in limited numbers. As such, the type entered service during the mid 1930s, but became increasingly overshadowed by the new generation of monoplane medium bombers, such as the Vickers Wellington and Armstrong Whitworth Whitley. Nevertheless, the At the outbreak of the Second World War, eleven Overstrands remained in service and six were used for gunnery training. They remained in operation until May 1941, though flying was limited following the fatal mid-air breakup of Overstrand K8173 on 22 April 1940.

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Code: 69733