Originally Posted by aseanaero
So if the Mirage and the Lightning shared the same ramp in Malaysia it would be reasonable to guess there were some unofficial dogfights , which aircraft was superior ?
Is that a serious question
Despite it’s ‘steam powered’ missile weapons system, in a guns only 1 v 1, the Lightning wasn’t really outclassed until the advent of the F-15/F-16 into service in the mid-late 1970’s.
I’m sure the Mirage boys gave a good account of themselves though at times, and fun was had by all back then.
Dave Roome, as mentioned above, wrote a good article for one of the Lightning books about his tour with 74 Sqn at Tenagh.
This is an amusing paragragh he wrote about the first of the 3 dets 74 did to Aus during this time.
“We also took the Lightning to Australia, the first time in June 1969 for an exercise called Town House which was mounted in the Northern Territory and we were based at Darwin. This provided some excellent flying as the rules were few – the Base Commander was quoted by the local press as saying that, if they were to practise the defense of the area realistically, then the aircrew needed freedom and the town should ‘expect to get boomed’. Darwin was still used by the major airlines as a staging base and one sight that sticks in my mind is of a 707 taking-off whilst being over-taken by an attacking RNZAF Canberra. Giving chase were one RAAF Mirage and one Lightning, which went either side of the 707 as it pulled into it’s normal steep, noise abatement climb. The complaint of the 707 captain was met by the RAAF ATC statement to the effect that didn’t he know there was a war on?”
