treadigraph:
Sika, what height/speed would you be looking for over the top?
Min 3800 ft, speed above 110kts unloaded. 4000ft+ usually achieved.
Basically the Hunter at these weights has sufficient power for the manoeuvre, so wherever you find yourself, as long as you haven't washed energy off needlessly on the way up and keep pushing energy in, if it goes over the top, it will come out the bottom at or better than your entry height. If it looks like you aren't going to go over the top because you are too slow, you can always use the old combat manoeuvre of dropping flap 4 to help the nose down, unload and roll out when the nose is below the horizon again.
Its not like flying something like a small engined Slingsby T67, Fuji or 150 aerobat where you loose energy in the overall manoeuvre, no matter how you fly it.
The Hunter is without reservation, the most beautiful machine I have ever flown, and is almost (but not totally) vice-less. The initial design and subsequent development produced something that make it an amazing pilot's machine.