Strap a couple of tons of high-octane fuel under your seat & then light it with a zippo & you have the BAE Lightening, a steerable missile that could cover Norfolk to Lossie in less than 15 mins. I used to enjoy watching them take off when I was a child. ... If the TSR2 had been completed then it would still be flying today, it was magestic in its design. ... Throughout the late 1940's though the 50's we were broke, but produced world changing aircraft - Victor, Vulcan, Hawk & Canbera but now ?
why on earth did Britian bottle it and back out of the TSR2 project. Did the UK not end up with the F111 at a cost multiple time larger than oroginal planned and less capable than the potential of the TSR2 anyway Always think the Jaguar took on some of the shape of the TSR 2. Greart shame. There was also a swing wing version planned which the Americans also used to great effect on the F14.
@smilo996 The Yanks forced the UK government to scrapped TSR2. Surely you know the story of the cash strapped Wilson government being effectively blackmailed by the Yanks? Wilson wanted a loan from the IMF. The Yanks made it clear that they could either support the British application to the IMF, or oppose it. Guess what the catch was? TSR 2 represented a massive threat to the F-111 in terms of sales exports. So, what would have been NATO's most potent strike aircraft was killed off.
flt ltnt hale would agree the lightning was faster than f15 it could out climb it 180 seconds to 45000ft not bad for old 1959 plane and that was from brake release on ground
I saw the Lighting flying over Taif ,Saudi Arabia in 1975, they were based at Khamisin The Royal Saudi Air Force. They were brilliant.They flew past the control tower at the Taif base and the Yank civilian training staff from Northrop took off in their F5e's and after about ten minutes came back down without even coming close to catching up with the Lighting.
It made us Brits just smile with pride and the Yanks never said another thing..
@kisauktak yup you are right the f5e could not catch a lightning if it was if it had hand brake on the f5e was totally inferior in speed power and vertical thrust good old lightning looked down on u2 spy plane at 88000ft not bad for a 1959 design that shocked american pilots who thought this impossible hale was name of pilot and CONCORDE could not be caught by any plane on rear end attack except an electric lightning
@motorguzzi100 Correct. NATO ran an intercept exercise in 1985/6. Concorde ran at full throttle and blew away EVERY NATO fighter-including the allegedly faster F-15. ONE aircraft caught the Concorde at full chat- The Mighty Lightning. Awesome machine, then & now.
@kisauktak The lightning was an icon of those days they had done the same in Malta as they went for intercepts over the Mediterranian sea,those were the days mate.
White elephant.
bigbullsful 8 hours ago
My old man was a RAF electronic technician on the Lightning. He said they used to call it the "flying brick".
stevo728822 1 week ago
This has been flagged as spam show
Strap a couple of tons of high-octane fuel under your seat & then light it with a zippo & you have the BAE Lightening, a steerable missile that could cover Norfolk to Lossie in less than 15 mins. I used to enjoy watching them take off when I was a child. ... If the TSR2 had been completed then it would still be flying today, it was magestic in its design. ... Throughout the late 1940's though the 50's we were broke, but produced world changing aircraft - Victor, Vulcan, Hawk & Canbera but now ?
arthurpounder 2 weeks ago
why on earth did Britian bottle it and back out of the TSR2 project. Did the UK not end up with the F111 at a cost multiple time larger than oroginal planned and less capable than the potential of the TSR2 anyway Always think the Jaguar took on some of the shape of the TSR 2. Greart shame. There was also a swing wing version planned which the Americans also used to great effect on the F14.
smilo996 1 month ago
@smilo996 The Yanks forced the UK government to scrapped TSR2. Surely you know the story of the cash strapped Wilson government being effectively blackmailed by the Yanks? Wilson wanted a loan from the IMF. The Yanks made it clear that they could either support the British application to the IMF, or oppose it. Guess what the catch was? TSR 2 represented a massive threat to the F-111 in terms of sales exports. So, what would have been NATO's most potent strike aircraft was killed off.
LIVERPOOLSCOTTISH 1 month ago
This plane makes me proud to be British
AgriVidsProductions 1 month ago
Thank's for sharing joluqa.
PICLex 2 months ago
flt ltnt hale would agree the lightning was faster than f15 it could out climb it 180 seconds to 45000ft not bad for old 1959 plane and that was from brake release on ground
motorguzzi100 3 months ago
I saw the Lighting flying over Taif ,Saudi Arabia in 1975, they were based at Khamisin The Royal Saudi Air Force. They were brilliant.They flew past the control tower at the Taif base and the Yank civilian training staff from Northrop took off in their F5e's and after about ten minutes came back down without even coming close to catching up with the Lighting.
It made us Brits just smile with pride and the Yanks never said another thing..
kisauktak 5 months ago 3
@kisauktak yup you are right the f5e could not catch a lightning if it was if it had hand brake on the f5e was totally inferior in speed power and vertical thrust good old lightning looked down on u2 spy plane at 88000ft not bad for a 1959 design that shocked american pilots who thought this impossible hale was name of pilot and CONCORDE could not be caught by any plane on rear end attack except an electric lightning
motorguzzi100 4 months ago
@motorguzzi100 Correct. NATO ran an intercept exercise in 1985/6. Concorde ran at full throttle and blew away EVERY NATO fighter-including the allegedly faster F-15. ONE aircraft caught the Concorde at full chat- The Mighty Lightning. Awesome machine, then & now.
LIVERPOOLSCOTTISH 3 months ago
@kisauktak The lightning was an icon of those days they had done the same in Malta as they went for intercepts over the Mediterranian sea,those were the days mate.
joluqa 4 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
Retired in '76? yes front line service
was replaced by F4 for QRA at Wildenrath, when I was there with 19 SQN
TheEuroboysie 7 months ago
Lightnings still flying in South Africa until 2010!!!
gavinspowart 8 months ago
Retired in '76? Nah. My last base was at Binbrook in '82 and the Lighning is what Binbrook hosted.
AVMamfortas 9 months ago
Last RAF flights were in 1988
Ecthaelyon 9 months ago
Good Video, (Although Some of the Date's Quoted might be wrong [I'm Sure the Lightning was Retired Later than that])
Out of Curiousity Were was The Material for It Sorced?
TSR1989FF 1 year ago