It was some years before the war when M-V started to collaborate with Government departments on the development and production of war equipment: the manufacture of searchlights at Trafford Park began as far back as 1934, that of automatic pilots in December 1936, radar in June 1937, and gun mountings a few months later.

The most extensive enterprise—and the furthest removed from the normal range of work—was the building of heavy bomber aircraft. The first plan was that M-V and four other manufacturers should carry out assembly only, but later the Company undertook the complete manufacture except for engines. A new factory having main bays 100-ft wide was built for this work in 1939, and in the following year it was trebled in size, giving a floor area of 800,000 square feet.

Six months after cutting the first sod, work began in the machine shop; some 26,000 jigs and tools were required, and parts had to be made at the bench till tools were ready. By December 1940, the first airframe for a complete Manchester bomber had passed inspection tests. Alas, two days before Christmas there came an air raid in which a direct hit completely wrecked this machine and badly damaged the building, delaying production by six months.

Altogether the Company built forty-three Manchesters, but in May 1941 it was decided to change over to the famous four-engined Lancaster. Another 9000 jigs and tools were required, but in seven months the first Lancaster was ready for its test flight, well ahead of time. After this the monthly programme was stepped up from thirty to thirty-five, forty and forty-five in quick succession, and eventually nearly 1100 Lancasters were produced. Much later a demand arose for the fourengined Lincoln, another type that involved more large changes in tooling; eighty Lincolns had been completed, and another 250 were well on the way when contracts were cancelled soon after V-J Day.

The Company also made undercarriages, first the Messier type for Halifax bombers and the Dowty type for Lancasters and later electrically operated undercarriages of its own design.

The aircraft factory employed at its peak 8411 people, of whom 3250 were women. Equipment to a total value of £30,000,000 was produced under the leadership of T. Fraser, whose work was rewarded with a C.B.E. in 1946. F. Connors, at one time convenor of shop stewards, received the B.E.M. F. A. Pucknell, previously superintendent of the process and rate department, was in charge of Messier undercarriage manufacture.