BAC Sea Lightning FR-1

When the Lightning entered RAF service in 1960 the Royal Navy was very interested in the high performance aircraft. However it was clear that a Lightning would never be able to land and take off from an aircraft carrier.

To remedy this, English Electric proposed a swing wing version of the lightning to the navy. The navy eagerly accepted and in 1962 the first Sea Lightning took off and made its first carrier landing.

The Sea lightning entered service in 1964 and served in the Royal Navy until 1989.

Plans for the export of the Sea Lightning to India and Spain fell through because the aircraft carrier of these countries were too small to handle the landing speeds of the Sea Lightning which were still quite high despite the variable wing.

Model: Airfix Lightning & Hasegawa F-14 1/48