SURVIVORS LISTING

Lightnings have thankfully survived retirement very well, with many airframes preserved throughout the UK (and a few elsewhere). Some are even flying, though not in the UK (see below). The sheer popularity of the Lightning is evident in the number that have ended up in museums - and not only just parked on the nearest bit of grass, but often pampered with nice air-conditioned hangars! Given the importance of the Lightning in beginning Britain's defence exports to the Middle East and its advanced design for its time, it is only fitting that you don't have to travel far to find at least one of these wonderful pieces of aviation history. The list here is as complete as I can make it from personal knowledge, scouring various books (in particular, Peter R. March's Military Aircraft Markings, Ken Ellis' Wrecks & Relics and Hugh Trevor's Lightnings Live On!) and magazines (in particular, Dave Allport's article in January 1997's issue of FlyPast and subsequent updates) and visitor contributions. If you have any changes please let me know.

Sadly not all can be saved - XN774 was used for fire crew training duties, ending up as a prop in a crash training scenario at RAF Coningsby before finally being buried under a pile of gravel; Steve Vardy

I am not including examples on target ranges as they are generally not viewable and are in very poor state with no hope of preservation. However, some BDR and fire training airframes are included in the hope they will eventually be rescued and preserved. Some serial numbers are links to a page with a recent(ish) picture of the preserved aircraft (mostly links to the appropriate bit on the Survivors Pictures pages - be warned, these pages are rather graphics intensive).

COMPLETE AIRCRAFT

SB.5
Serial	Owner & location
WG768	RAF Museum Cosford, Shropshire

P.1A
Serial	Owner & location
WG760	RAF Museum Cosford, Shropshire
WG763	Museum of Science and Industry, Manchester

P.1B
Serial	Owner & location
XA847	Giles Howell, Suffolk

F.1
Serial	Owner & location
XG313	RSAF, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia
XG329	Ian Hancock, Norfolk & Suffolk Aviation Museum, Flixton, Norfolk
XG337	RAF Museum Cosford, Shropshire
XM135	Imperial War Museum, Duxford Airfield, Cambridgeshire

F.1A
Serial	Owner & location
XM172	Lakes Lightnings, Spark Bridge, Cumbria
XM173	RAF Bentley Priory (up for disposal), Greater London
XM178	Association des Amis du Musee du Chateau, Savigny-Les-Beaune, France
XM192	Charles Ross, Thorpe Camp Visitor Centre, , Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire

F.2A
Serial	Owner & location
XN728	Former A1 Commercial Sales yard (derelict, extremely poor condition), Balderton, Nottinghamshire
XN730	Luftwaffenmuseum, Gatow, Germany
XN776	Scottish National Museum Of Flight, East Fortune Airfield, Lothian, Scotland
'XN781' (really XN784)	Luftfahrtausstellung Museum (dismantled, stored), Hermeskeil, Germany
XN782	Luftfahrtausstellung Museum, Hermeskeil, Germany

F.3
Serial	Owner & location
XP706	Scott Clayton, Aeroventure, Lakeside and Leisure Complex, Doncaster, South Yorkshire
XR713	111 Squadron (BDRT/mascot), RAF Leuchars, Fife, Scotland
XR718	Anthony Harker, Darlington, Durham
XR749	Integrated Valve and Gas Turbine Solutions, Glenugie Engineering Works, Peterhead, Aberdeenshire
XR751	Roy Flood, Venland Manor, St. Clear, Cornwall

T.4
Serial	Owner & location
XL629	DERA Boscombe Down (displayed near gate), Wiltshire

T.5
Serial	Owner & location
XS416	NATO Aircraft Museum, Grainthorpe, Louth, Lincolnshire
XS417	Newark Air Museum, Winthorpe, Nottinghamshire
XS420	Lakes Lightnings, Farnborough, Hampshire
XS422	Anglo-American Lightning Organisation, Stennis International Airport, Hancock County, Mississippi, USA
XS456	Elms Golf Centre (gate guardian), Wainfleet, Lincolnshire
XS458	Russell Carpenter (taxiable), Cranfield, Bedfordshire
XS459	Fenland Aviation Museum, Bamber Garden Centre, West Walton Highway, Norfolk
ZU-BBD (ex XS452)	Classic Jets (flyer), Thunder City, Cape Town, South Africa
ZU-BEX (ex XS451, G-LTNG)	Classic Jets (flyer), Thunder City, Cape Town, South Africa

F.6
Serial	Owner & location
XP693	Classic Jets (restoration to fly), Capetown, South Africa
XR724	Lightning Association (taxiable), Binbrook airfield, Lincolnshire
XR725	Charles Ross, Chestnut Farm, Binbrook village, Lincolnshire
XR728	Lightning Preservation Group (taxiable), Bruntingthorpe, Leicestershire
XR753	RAF Coningsby (11 Sqn mascot), Lincolnshire
XR755	Ernie Marshall, near Callington, Cornwall
XR770	NATO Aircraft Museum, Grainthorpe, Louth, Lincolnshire
XR771	Midland Air Museum, Coventry Airport, Warwickshire
XR773 (ZU-BEW, ex G-OPIB)	Classic Jets (flyer), Capetown, South Africa
XS897	Aeroventure, Lakeside and Leisure Complex, Doncaster, South Yorkshire
XS903	Yorkshire Air Museum, Elvington, North Yorkshire
XS904	Lightning Preservation Group (taxiable), Bruntingthorpe, Leicestershire
XS919	Wonderland Pleasure Park, near Farnsfield, Nottinghamshire
XS925	RAF Museum, Hendon, Greater London
XS928	BAe Warton (crew escape procedure training), Lancashire
XS929	RAF Akrotiri (gate guardian), Cyprus
XS936	Roy Flood, Castle Air/Castle Motors, on A38 near Liskeard, Cornwall

F.52
Serial	Owner & location
52-655	Technical Services Institute, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia
52-656	Riyadh (stored for display in the future), Saudi Arabia

F.53
Serial	Owner & location
53-412	Kuwait International Airport, Kuwait
53-415	RKAFB Al Jaber (gate guardian), Kuwait
53-416	RKAFB Al Jaber (gate guardian), Kuwait
53-417	RKAFB Al Jaber (gate guardian), Kuwait
53-418	Educational Science Museum, Kuwait City, Kuwait
53-420	Kuwait Technology Institute, Kuwait
53-421	Air Museum, Kuwait International Airport, Kuwait
53-422	RKAFB Ali Al Salem (gate guardian), Kuwait
53-423	RKAFB Ali Al Salem (gate guardian), Kuwait
53-687	RSAF, Khamis Mushayt, Saudi Arabia
53-699	RSAF, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia
'XR753' (really ZF578, ex 53-670)	Tangmere Military Aviation Museum, Tangmere, West Sussex
ZF577 (ex 53-668)	Marine Salvage (dismantled, for sale, nose section currently at Pinewood or in Luxembourg), Portsmouth, Hampshire
ZF579 (ex 53-671)	Gatwick Aviation Museum, Charlwood, Surrey
ZF580 (ex 53-672)	BAE Systems (gate guard), Samlesbury, Lancashire
ZF581 (ex 53-675)	BAE Systems Avionics (gateguard), Rochester, Kent
ZF583 (ex 53-681)	Solway Aviation Society, Carlisle Airport, Cumbria
ZF584 (ex 53-682)	Dumfries & Galloway Aviation Museum, South Gyle, Edinburgh, Scotland
ZF588 (ex 53-693)	East Midlands Aeropark, East Midlands Airport, Leicestershire
ZF591 (ex 53-685)	Marine Salvage (dismantled, for sale, nose section currently at Pinewood or in Luxembourg), Portsmouth, Hampshire
ZF592 (ex 53-686)	City of Norwich Aviation Museum, Horsham St. Faith, Norfolk
ZF593 (ex 53-692)	Warner-Robins Museum (stored), Warner-Robins AFB, Georgia, USA
ZF594 (ex 53-696)	North East Aircraft Museum, Sunderland, Tyne & Wear

T.54
Serial	Owner & location
54-650	RSAF (displayed), Dhahran Airport, Saudi Arabia

T.55
Serial	Owner & location
55-411	Air Museum, Kuwait International Airport, Kuwait
55-713 (ZF598)	Midland Air Museum, Coventry Airport, Warwickshire
ZF597 (ex 55-711)	Olympic Flight Museum, Olympia, Washington, USA

NOSE/COCKPIT/OTHER SECTIONS

F.1
Serial	Owner & location
XG325	1476 ATC (cockpit), Rayleigh, Essex
XG331	Jet Age Museum (cockpit only), Gloucestershire

F.1A
Serial	Owner & location
XM144	Lakes Lightnings, Spark Bridge, Cumbria
XM169	Highlands Aviation Museum, Inverness Airport, Scotland
XM191	RAF Exhibition, Production & Transportation Unit, RAF St. Athan, South Glamorgan, Wales

F.2
Serial	Owner & location
XN769	Malta Aviation Museum, Ta' Qali, Malta

F.2A
Serial	Owner & location
XN726	Boscombe Down Museum, DERA Boscombe Down, Wiltshire
XN734	Privately owned, Cranfield, Bedfordshire
XN774	Darren Swinn (cockpit only), Boston, Lincolnshire
XN795	Nigel Towler, Cockpit Collection, Rayleigh, Essex

F.3
Serial	Owner & location
N/A (simulator)	1268 ATC, Haslemere, Surrey
XP701	Robertsbridge Aviation Society, Mayfield, East Sussex
XP703	City of Norwich Aviation Museum, Horsham St. Faith, Norfolk
XP743	351 Squadron ATC, Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire
XP745	Vanguard Haulage (undergoing restoration for display at The Lightning pub next door), Greenford, Greater London
XP757	Darren Swinn (cockpit only), Boston, Lincolnshire

T.5
Serial	Owner & location
XS421	Nigel Towler, Cockpit Collection, Rayleigh, Essex
XS457	Lincair, Grainthorpe, Louth, Lincolnshire
XV328	Phoenix Aviation, Bruntingthorpe Aerodrome, Leicestershire

F.6
Serial	Owner & location
XR726	Privately owned, Harrogate, North Yorkshire
XR747	Privately owned, Cubert, Newquay, Devon
XR754	Aeroventure, Lakeside and Leisure Complex, Doncaster, South Yorkshire
XR757	NATO Aircraft Museum, Grainthorpe, Louth, Lincolnshire
XR759	Andrew Exton, Haxey, Gainsborough, Humberside
XS898	Tony Collins, Lavendon, Buckinghamshire
XS899	City of Norwich Aviation Museum, Horsham St. Faith, Norfolk
XS922	Lakes Lightnings (cockpit only), Spark Bridge, Cumbria
XS923	Sue & Roy Gorman, Welshpool, Powys, Wales
XS932	Lakes Lightnings, Spark Bridge, Cumbria
XS933	Hadyn Block, Terrington Aviation Collection, Terrington St. Clement, Norfolk

F.53
Serial	Owner & location
ZF582 (ex 53-676)	Bournemouth Aviation Museum, Hurn, Dorset
ZF587	Lashenden Air Warfare Museum (nose), Headcorn, Kent
ZF587 (ex 53-691)	Giles Howell (fuselage), Suffolk
ZF590 (ex 53-679)	Lincair (fuselage), Grainthorpe, Louth, Lincolnshire

T.55
Serial	Owner & location
55-410	RKAFB Ali Al Salem (fuselage, derelict), Kuwait
ZF595 (ex 55-714)	Anglo-American Lightning Organisation (spares use), Stennis International Airport, Hancock County, Mississippi, USA
ZF596 (ex 55-715)	Anglo American Lightning Organisation (fuselage - stored, spares use), Bruntingthorpe Aerodrome, Leicestershire
ZF596 (ex 55-715)	British Aerospace Northwest Heritage Group, BAe Warton, Lancashire

FLY A LIGHTNING!

A number of the Lightnings in private hands are in near airworthy condition, but the UK's CAA blocked any attempt to fly them here. You can imagine what most aviation enthusiasts, including myself, think of that. This meant that the best of the bunch simply got exported to South Africa, where they have joined Mike Beachyhead's expanding collection, along with his Buccaneers and Hunters! Thunder rolls once more, but it's a crime that it won't be here, in the Lightning's own country of origin.

LEADING PARTICULARS

Variant	P.1A	P.1B	F.1	F.1A	F.2/F.52	F.2A	F.3	F.3A	T.4/T.54	T.5	F.6	F.53	T.55
First flight	4 Aug 1954	4 Apr 1957	29 Oct 1959	16 Aug 1960	11 Jul 1961	24 Sep 1965	16 June 1962	17 Apr 1964	6 May 1959	29 Mar 1962	16 Jun 1965	1 Nov 1966	3 Nov 1966
Crew	One
Armament	None		Two 30mm cannon plus two Firestreak AAMs or two retractable 22 in unguided rocket packs		As F.1 less rocket pack		As F.2 plus two Red Top AAMs instead of Firestreaks, no cannon		As F.2 less cannon	As F.3	As F.3 plus two 30mm cannon	As F.6 plus bombs, rocket pods and other stores on above- and below-wing pylons	As F.53 less cannon
Powerplant	Two 7,500 lb Armstrong Siddeley Sapphire SA5 (later two 9,200 lb SA5R with reheat)	As F.1, later as F.1A	Two 14,430 lb (reheat) Rolls-Royce Avon 200R	Two 14,430 lb (reheat) Rolls-Royce Avon 210R	As F.1A	Two Rolls-Royce Avon 211R	Two 12,690 lb (16,360 lb reheat) Rolls-Royce Avon 301R	As F.3	As F.2	As F.3		Two Rolls-Royce Avon 302C
Max. speed	1,011 mph (Mach 1.53 at 36,000 ft)	1,390 mph (Mach 2.1 at 40,000 ft)	Varies slightly with Mark and load; approx. 1,500 mph (Mach 2.27 at 40,000 ft)
Service ceiling	60,000 ft plus
Range	800 m without overwing tanks
Empty weight	22,221 lb	24,816 lb	25,753 lb	25,737 lb	27,000 lb		26,906 lb	28,041 lb	As F.2		As F.3A	Similar to F.6
Max. take off weight	27,077 lb	34,140 lb	?					41,700 lb	?		As F.3A	Similar to F.6
Wing span	34 ft 10 in
Wing area	485.5 sq ft							474.5 sq ft	As F.1		As F.3A
Length	49 ft 8 in	55 ft 3 in
Height	17 ft 3 in	19 ft 5 in	19 ft 7 in
Production (total 345)	3	3	42*	29*	44 (6 of which converted to F.52)	31 (all F.2 conversions)	71 (10 F.1 conversions)	17 (1 F.3 conversion)	21 (2 of which converted to T.54)	24 (2 T.4 conversions)	63 (8 F.3 and 5 F.3A conversions)	47 (1 F.3 conversion)	9 (1 T.5 conversion)

* The 42 F. 1s included 20 pre-production development batch aircraft plus 3 static test airframes; the 29 F.1As included a single static test airframe.

Externally the various variants are quite easily distinguished; there are a number of points to look for. The tip of the tail had two main styles; rounded and squared off (the latter being a larger fin altogether). The belly tank also came in two flavours, small with a single strake and much larger with two strakes. The cannon ports could be found in the nose (usually on top, but sometimes with additional ones below) or in the forward part of the larger belly tank. Early marks lacked the cable ducts running along the sides of the lower fuselage, these beginning with the F.1A variant and extending further forward on the F.3 onwards. A small dorsal scoop could be found about midway along the upper fuselage spine on the F.2 onwards.

The table below simplifies matters somewhat, but there were several aircraft that differed in detail (e.g. some had cannon ports faired over when used as targets, F.6s were initially lacking cannon and so on). Also, P.1A WG760 trialled the kinked wing at one time and some development batch P1.Bs/F.1s trialled the large squared fin.

Feature	Radar bullet	Tail	Belly tank	Cannon	Cable ducts	Dorsal scoop	Kinked wing
P.1A	No	Rounded	None/Small	None	None	No	No
P.1B	Yes	Rounded	None/Small	None	None	No	No
F.1	Yes	Rounded	Small	Nose	None	No	No
F.1A	Yes	Rounded	Small	Nose	Short	No	No
F.2	Yes	Rounded	Small	Nose	Short	Yes	No
F.2A	Yes	Squared	Large	Nose	Short	Yes	Yes
F.3	Yes	Squared	Small	None	Long	Yes	No
F.3A	Yes	Squared	Large	None	Long	Yes	Yes
T.4	Yes	Rounded	Small	None	Short	No	No
T.5	Yes	Squared	Small	None	Long	Yes	No
F.6	Yes	Squared	Large	Belly tank	Long	Yes	Yes
F.53	Yes	Squared	Large	Belly tank	Long	Yes	Yes
T.55	Yes	Squared	Large	None	Long	Yes	Yes