5 Sqn Lightning Wanted
 

I have been tasked by my Sqn boss to try and locate a Lightning ac to be used as our sqn gate guardian. I have already contacted the Lightning Preservation Group in order to put the word out. It was suggested I might try to put up a post on this site.

For anyone who has visited the new 5 (AC) Sqn HQ at RAF Waddington, the plan is to have it on display in front of the main entrance on the airfield side.

It seems these ac are highly sought after, so any feedback would be much appreciated.

Talk to your OC Supply or whatever they're called these days - there's a leaflet somewhere in the AP830 that gives you chapter and verse on how to get a gate guardian. Oh, and get your OC Eng onside too so the thing can be regularly inspected, re-painted etc.

Good luck!

Seem to recall on PPrune some photo's of a Lightning rotting away at Binbrook. any chance that you can rescue it?:bored:

I have that very photo as my desktop but I can't find the original thread. And the Lightning is in 5 Sqn colours so you could save on paint.

5 Sqn Lightning
 

Try this (with a www. in front!) to see what the current situation is. best of luck:ok:

thunder-and-lightnings/lightning/survivorspics4.html#XR725

Binbrook Lightning
 

I was up at Brocklesby (ex RAF Binbrook, now looking like a traveller's camp) in early April'08 and can confirm the Lightning was still there in front of one of the hangars.

Alternatively, as the RAF no longer has a stake in Bentley Priory, there may be an airframe in much better condition looking for a new home.;)

The Bentley Priory one was flogged off by the DSA some months ago, details here;

http://forum.keypublishing.co.uk/showthread.php?t=71097&highlight=XM173

In fact you might want to put a post on the Key forum, there is a lot knowledge about preserved Lightning's on there.

Search for "Binbrook, Lightning"; it is the fourth one down, "Binbrook".

First post has the evocative piccie.

3P:ok:

This may also assist: http://www.britishaircraft.co.uk/aircraftpage.php?ID=48

You may have better luck tracking down a Vampire which your Sqn also flew in the distant past.

Heartily second the 'go and speak to OC Supply' advice. There are procedures for the allocation, movement, accounting for and positioning of gate guardians - not as easy as getting a mate to get a frame and asking MT to drop it outside the sqn!

I have a cunning plan....
 

You could always wait until 11 Squadron are away, take a tow truck down to Conheadsby and steal theirs!
BV;)

Is this an attempt by 5 Squadron to actually get a proper aircraft working?

Mind you, it looks a fair swap to me!

I think you did the right thing by going to LPG first, as they are more likely to know if there is anything up for grabs. but don't shoot me if I'm wrong, however. The ex flagship of 5 Squadron as flown by Wg Cdr Andy Williams, towards the end would naturally make a fine choice, I'm not sure what the status of the ex BAe a/c at my old local is.

You could ask over on Key Publishings forum, which was my former employer (thankfully I am no longer chained up in the archive) although the discussion about 724 recently claim things were due to change along with that of 770 and there was some suggestion that wild speculation would likely affect sensitive ongoing efforts to sort out new locations.

Whatever you find best of luck, I really do miss them beating up some of the NATO allies during NATO exercises like Mallet Blow and Priory....

Happy Days, although if I had payed more attention in class I might have actally got into the RAF.........

Doh........


V1

Ask Clarkson. His missus was pissed off no end when he put one in his garden. He is v. warry and dead supportive of our brave boys. He also owes the RAF one.:ok:

Ah, Andy Williams. What a gent!

I quite agree! I met him as a Group Captain one day, and Flt Lt the next... One of the few true gentleman aviators.

Have you thought about nipping up the road to free the one rusting away beside Newark?

SB

If you want a flying one, there are several P-38s with the Confederate Air Force.:O

Bob V, I did wonder what that grey twin engined big job was, thought it might have been a Domine or Phantom or summat :E

Try here:

There is a lightning undergoing a re-build there and they may be able to help in some way.

Quote
The ex flagship of 5 Squadron as flown by Wg Cdr Andy Williams, towards the end would naturally make a fine choice, I'm not sure what the status of the ex BAe a/c at my old local is.

Reply
Valiant one, This F6?? that was donated by 5 Sqn to the people of Grimsby is now at the Nato museum that has moved from Grimsby down to Grainaby I think??

They had 3 Lightnings the last time I looked on their site.

Can't understand why CAA won't give an AOC on the 'Light' and the 'Vulc' has one.:hmm:

Would say the 'Vulc' is a just as complexed airframe.

Plenty of 'Light' Cockpits around, But not many for sale, only see 2 in the last 8 months or so.

A SYAM member purchased an F6 about 4 years ago, It lives at Doncaster with 2 others.

I felt 'sick' when I heard how much he paid for it = 2,000 for a full airframe, minus engines:eek::ugh:

Even without engines would have thought it been more???

There is one on a certain internet auction site for 500 pounds at the moment!

I've heard that the Lightning at Samlesbury is to be broken up, along with the Canberra, so I'm sure the Company will give you all the help they can, as long as there are no H&S issues!!!:rolleyes:

5Sqn Pilot

Check your PM's

Scott

I can suppply the ejection seat for one if your short!:hmm:

I think there might still be a certain S`Engo`s chair in the `Stackers` at Lyneham ,and a cushion if he`s that short ,Jim.....!

A gate guardian should be representative of the station's history, not just something previously flown by a new squadron somewhere else in bygone times....

The EE Lightning, fine jet that it was, has utterly no relevance to RAF Waddington.

Good point BEagle; can't off hand think of a similar "sqn" guardian with no station connection.

So why a Lightning over an ex 5 Sqn Javelin?

The pic mentioned earlier...

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2322/...c3720559b6.jpg

It's for sale in looooooaaaaads of formats here, along with some other rather lovely snaps of Lincolnshire and Yorkshire...

http://www.redbubble.com/people/badd...still-on-guard

Some of the sales proceeds for this image go straight to charity (hence another shameless plug).

Ace.

It's not a guardian for the Station - it is going outside the Squadron and as such is representative of the Squadron's history.

23 have got a Phantom and how many of them flew from Waddo?

(Brampton have also got a Phantom and they haven't even got an airfield!)

Benbecula has got a Phantom too!

Oi Beagle.

Having read your post in detail, I feel you have made yet another posting blunder. Are you telling me that if a Sqn moves to another Station it no longer has a claim on any of its previously operated 'hardware', or have you once again launched feet first into a thread without reading the opening post correctly!!!

I shall await your post retraction and/or apology.

:ugh: :ugh: :ugh:

I suppose you wouldn't want them to display the Sqn silver as it too has no connection with Waddo? An extremely churlish reaction, if I may say so. Sorry Beags - wrong.

Definitely. The gate guardian should have relevance to the station's history. Waddington has an unfortunate precedent with the early E3 mob trying to ignore those who came before them - and who were an integral part of Lincolnshire life for decades.

XM607 is the only proper gate guardian for Waddington - new kids on the block can wait another quarter century before they can challenge that heritage.

Green Flush, my comment has absolutely nothing to do with Mess silver....

That 23 have one of The Crows' old F4s as a mascot is equally irrelevant.

..... :hmm: .....

So if they call it a mascot and not a gate-guardian can they have one then?
(no gates nearby anyway)

It may have been posted already, but why not try and rescue the one sat next to the A1 Grantham/Newark area!! It would give the JP something to polish other than his rocket!!!!:ok:

I feel that one may need just a bit more than a polish!

Beagle,

All they want is an airframe representing the squadron history to sit outside the squadron building. As 5 sqn now has a lot of army types is that wrong?

As for the "early E3 mob trying to ignore those who came before" What a crass statement, are you trying to say that no-one at Waddington on either squadron cares about the history of the station? or know about the aircraft that operated out of there?

as for "That 23 have one of The Crows' old F4s as a mascot is equally irrelevant"

No its not irelevant, who pays for the upkeep of that airframe? That airframe is the history of the squadron/RAF.


Let go Beagle, enjoy your retirement and stop the sniping. It gets tiring when ALL your posts have the undertone 'It/We were better in our day':hmm:

Probably because it 'were'?

At least a Lightning saved from the scrap heap parked outside the sqn would be better than an old cannon, or a stuffed horse or whatever else the pongos might wish for...

Fair enough if it isn't the station gate guardian, I'll concede.

But when the E3 was first at Waddo, it was cetainly true that a certain knob announced that the station 'was now an air defence station' and tried to do away with all traces of the V-force era.....

And my apologies to OC 5 Sqn for being rather rude....:=

Moved to Waddo in the mid 90's along with several hundred others from sunny Cambridgeshire.

At arrivals brief, young ginger haired OC GD announces that we are all there to support the E3. Grizzly old Flt Sgt in audience says "I'm not", followed by virtually everyone else in room saying the same. OC GD went redder than his hair.

S_H