ExMudmover - thanks for that interesting update - apologies for my delay in the replying, but I have been sunning myself in Cornwall.

Do you know when the picture was taken? Was it early 1983?

I came across a random video on Youtube which is a film of 3 lightnings at Wharton in 1988. It seems to be some kind of ceremony at the end? Was this the retirement?

Apologies if it's been posted before

Had it been a Jaguar....the helicopter would have had to stop for a refuel in all probability!

A Puma could go from Zero to 145 knots in 2,000 yards easily. There is a picture of an F4 with two Pumas in formation with it.

More or less the last flights before being sent off to museums and private owners. Colin Rae was the one opening the bottle of bubbly.

Weren't these three the aircraft that BAE used for the Tor F3 radar development work?

Scroll down the comments on that video and you will see a detailed reply from Colin Rae.

Not at all.
BAe continued to fly '693, '773 and 904 for another 2/3 years until the MOD contract for the Tornado trials ended in 1992 and '693 and '773 were bought by Barry Power and the Lightning Flying Club, and delivered to Exeter in Dec 1992. '904 went to the LPG at Brunty.
'928 was retired early being out of FI, IIRC, and BAe stripped it for parts and mounted it on a pole at BAe, and then '724 was retired, and bought by the Lightning Association and delivered back to Binbrook by Peter Gordon-Johnson IIRC in 1991?