1/48 Airfix Lightning

[Avgas]

As if it could be anything else. Best jet ever. The last of the real, non computerised, brutal, fly by the seat of your pants dogfighter. As a pal of mine who used to fly them said of his first flight (your first flight solo was your first flight, the two seaters didn't come along until later) 'I was fully in control of the aircraft at all times and it was no problem at all, an absolute pussy. Then I released the brakes for take off...'

From Wiki

'The first operational Lightning, designated Lightning F.1, was designed as an interceptor to defend the V Force airfields in conjunction with the V Force airfield's own "last ditch" Bristol Bloodhound missile defences from enemy nuclear-armed bomber attack long enough for the also nuclear-armed V Force bombers to take-off and get clear of their airfields, airfields which, along with the dispersal airfields, would be the highest priority targets in the UK for enemy nuclear weapons. To best perform this intercept mission, emphasis was placed on rate-of-climb, acceleration, and speed, rather than range – originally a radius of operation of 150 miles from the V bomber airfields was specified – and combat endurance. It was equipped with two 30 mm ADEN cannon in front of the cockpit windscreen and an interchangeable fuselage weapons pack containing either an additional two ADEN cannon, 48 two-inch (51 mm) unguided air-to-air rockets, or two de Havilland Firestreak air-to-air missiles;[21] a heavy loadout optimised for damaging large aircraft, missile guidance and ranging, as well as search and track functions, mainly were provided via the Ferranti AI.23 onboard radar.[22]

The next two Lightning variants, the Lightning F.1A and F.2, were steady but relatively minor refinements of the design; the next variant, the Lightning F.3, was a major departure. The F.3 had higher thrust Rolls-Royce Avon 301R engines, a larger squared-off fin and strengthened inlet cone allowing a service clearance to Mach 2.0 (2,450 km/h) (the F.1, F.1A and F.2 were limited to Mach 1.7 (2,083 km/h)).[23] The A.I.23B radar and Red Top missile offered a forward hemisphere attack capability and deletion of the nose cannon. The new engines and fin made the F.3 the highest performance Lightning yet, but with an even higher fuel consumption and resulting shorter range. The next variant, the Lightning F.6, was already in development, but there was a need for an interim solution to partially address the F.3’s shortcomings, the F.3A.
Lightning F.3 in flight, 1983

The F.3A introduced two improvements: a new, non-jettisonable, 610-imperial-gallon (2,800 L) ventral fuel tank,[24] and a new, kinked, conically cambered wing leading edge, incorporating a slightly larger leading edge fuel tank, raising the total usable internal fuel to 716 imperial gallons (3,260 L). The conically cambered wing noticeably improved manoeuvrability, especially at higher altitudes, and the ventral tank nearly doubled available fuel. The increased fuel was very welcome, but the lack of cannon armament was felt to be a deficiency. It was thought that cannons were desirable to fire warning shots in the intercept mission.[25]

The Lightning F.6 was the ultimate Lightning version to see British service. Originally, it was nearly identical to the F.3A with the exception that it could carry two 260-imperial-gallon (1,200 L) ferry tanks on pylons over the wings. These tanks were jettisonable in an emergency, and gave the F.6 a substantially improved deployment capability. There remained one glaring shortcoming: the lack of cannon. This was finally rectified in the form of a modified ventral tank with two ADEN cannons mounted in the front. The addition of the cannons and their ammunition decreased the tank's fuel capacity from 610 to 535 imperial gallons (2,770 to 2,430 L), but the cannon made the F.6 a “real fighter” again.[24]

The final British Lightning was the Lightning F.2A. This was an F.2 upgraded with the cambered wing, the squared fin, and the 610 imperial gallons (2,800 L) ventral tank. The F.2A retained the A.I.23 and Firestreak missile, the nose cannon, and the earlier Avon 211R engines.[26] Although the F.2A lacked the thrust of the later Lightnings, it had the longest tactical range of all Lightning variants, and was used for low-altitude interception over West Germany.'

This is what the Lightning could do. The tape strip along the top is speed in knots, lower part of the strip is Mach. The dial upper left is the altimeter. Each sweep of the big hand is a thousand feet. This is an aircraft that went into operational service in 1960.

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Sprues all in one bag. Airfix please look at Hobbyboss etc and get a grip.



Nice looking sticker sheet. Haven't decided which of the three options I'm doing.



Directions are on double sided A4 with exploded CAD style drawings.





Paint diagrams are in colour which is nice.



And AM is a set of masks.



Let the butchery begin!

[Lysus]

Ooh, cool indeed! I like the red and silver, but it's your shelf it will sit on

[Twokidsnosleep]

"...then I released the brakes for takeoff" funny story, love that
I bet all hell broke loose on these when they cracked them throttles open

My vote is for any scheme but camo. She should be silver.
Hey, how about some BMF????? Come on, all the cool guys are using it

[Avgas]

Yeah I'm liking the red/NMF finish at the moment. It won't be camo, these birds were made for NMF.

[Willem]

Looking forward to this. Crack on, Dave.

[ElCapitan]

Best of luck!

[Tomcat64]

Looking forward to seeing how you pull this together Dave - been trying to resist adding this one to the stash for a while and this might tip me over the edge

[demarcation]

Wow!! NMF will be a stunner!! Looking forward to follow this.

[Kevthemodeller]

One of my all time favorite aircraft, I remember seeing them and Vulcan's flying in formation over my school as a lad. Awesome sight and still one of the fastest aircraft ever made and it's more the 50 years old

Best of luck with the build mate I'll follow this with great interest.

[Avgas]

Thanks chaps. A bit of progress and a bit of weirdness. I painted the pit and instrument panel black like it says in the instructions. I thought I would give the kit decals a go for the instruments, when I went to put them on I find out that they are black too... Luckily I managed to pull them off without any damage.

Anyway I painted the consoles and instrument panel grey and then they worked. WTF Airfix?



Seat is basic but this will be a closed lid anyway. Tarted up with the old standby Tamiya masking tape seatbelts and washed with Mig panel line wash.



Finished the intake and back end, got to paint the intake radar bullet yet.





And there she sits for the moment. Getting started I find is the hardest thing with a new build. Once you get the ball rolling it seems to gather a life of it's own.

[ElCapitan]

Nice work so far Dave Strange about the cockpit colour, sounds like a miscommunication between the decal printers and the colour researchers.

[Tomcat64]

Off to a cracking start Dave and great save on the decals too - that black on black situation is just nuts.

[Avgas]

Thanks chaps. Unfortunately it's all on hold for a while as I've found a flaw in the canopy. Have e-mailed Airfix and am waiting for a reply, I know they can take up to 28 days.



But anyway, I plodded on as far as I could. Pit done.



Fuselage buttoned up. Fit is very good, no problems at all getting everything in. Bit of a seam on the ventral tank though, that will take some work.







Wings, fin and stabilators fitted, and there she sits for the time being.

[Tomcat64]

Shame about the flawed canopy, but the cockpit looks great Dave

[Avgas]

Thanks. Believe it or not the replacement canopy came today. Great service by Airfix.

[RossiM1]

The cockpit looks fabulous Dave pity about the canopy but great customer service by Airfix to replace so promptly, looks like a nice kit have thought about getting one several times yours has given me that push to get one now for sure.
Look forward to seeing your progress good luck

[Avgas]

Thanks Rossi.

A grey Lightning.



A black Lightning.



A silver Lightning.



And you'll never guess what, they are all the same kit!! Magic innit!

Was a bit over enthusiastic with the metal coat, got to sand some of it back.

[BobM]

I like the black one, can't wait to see it finished!

[Avgas]

Yeah they do look good in black!

Bit more done, did a few panels in different metallics, can't really see it on the photo.



Did the red leading edges and spine. That was masking fun... And that's where she sits at the moment. Got the gloss to put on then I can start the decals.

[Lysus]

The red looks great, always an achievement!

[demarcation]

Top notch!