natrually I would love to fly in the Lightning but canīt really justify spending that much....but it would be a once in a lifetime experience.
I went through the same thoughts when I went into Thunder City while in SA. Just as 'experience of a lifetime' was beginning to move slowly but surely into the lead, I discovered it needed to be booked a few months ahead so the decision was made for me. I consoled myself by sitting in one of the single-seaters!
I didn't fly at Thunder City, but happened to fly in a Hunter just a few days ago with Delta Jets at Kemble. I'm only a PPL, have only flown two other military jets (under supervision obviously), and never in a Lightning or Buccaneer, so I'm not in a position to give you informed comparisons but, FWIW:
Lightning
Pro - It's a Lightning.
Vertical climb to 50,000 feet, supersonic.
Con - Very high cost, and only +/- 35 mins total for fuel reasons.
(The low level and aerobatics option is longer, +/- 50 mins, but that's not why most people want to fly in a Lightning and, for me, wouldn't be worth the money.)
Buccaneer
Pro - High speed low level experience. If aeros, it has a fantastic roll rate, I think possibly second only to the Gnat in that generation, very agile aircraft. (Never cleared for loops by the RAF - but done unofficially by some experienced pilots.)
Con - As you say, it's not much cheaper than the Lightning, and IMHO not worth twice the price of a Hunter flight.
Hunter
Pro
- Enormous thrill, as I suspect it would be for most non-mil pilots.
- Forgiving aircraft, not difficult to fly. (NB: I mean 'having a go under supervision' flying. Big difference between that and flying it well.)
- Very light, superbly harmonised controls (in my amateur opinion). Harmonised enough for me (after a few steep turns getting used to the aircraft) to do some wing-overs, barrell rolls and loops without things going wrong, and a landing which didn't break anything. (Landing talked through, obviously.)
- 'Fast jet' experience. Although the Hunter isn't a high performance jet by modern (or Lightning) standards - we climbed at 6000 fpm/about 370 kts, entry speed for practice display about 420 kts - when you're low doing 420 kts, the ground passes very quickly, more than enough to experience high speed low level flight! We only did that over the airfield, but there's ample unpopulated and unrestricted airspace in which to play near Cape Town.
- Exciting ride for a passenger. As a novice, I'd used entry speeds of 300-350 kts and did gentle aeros between 6000-12000 feet but, just as thrilling in a different way, was experiencing the pilot doing a practice display routine over the airfield at the end of the sortie. High speed run in, tight, perfectly controlled aeros pulling up to 5 g - enough to give me, and probably most non-mil pilots, a taste of a performance aicraft and high g!! A joy to experience a master in action - Andy Cubin (Chief Pilot of DeltaJets) used to be the RAF Jaguar display pilot and then led the synchro pair while in the Red Arrows.
Con - It's not a Lightning. (But nor is the cost.)
FWIW, although a Lightning flight would indeed be an experience of a lifetime, taking cost into account I think the Hunter would give you the most bang for your bucks - and it's such a classic aeroplane - but, whichever you chose, you're bound to enjoy it.
I've assumed you're a pilot. If you are, I'd be very surprised if the TC pilot didn't let you fly at some point. I've always found professional pilots to be very generous in that respect.
Hope that's of some help to you.
Look forward to reading your report in January!
FL