British engineer who ACCIDENTALLY TOOK OFF in a fighter jet: Taffy Holden's Lightning Flight

[@danrostron6133]

Taffy’s grandson here. A very accurate and well researched retelling of Taffy’s inadvertent flight in XM135. I've of course heard the story many times over the years, but is great to see it pieced together like this with the background history of lightnings and the animations of the accident itself. Great work Paper Skies!

[@indiana146]

Dan the gods were with him

[@indiana146]

@@mattred1200 i worked at bae systems at samlesbury we had lightning as a gate guardian One day a lightining came over to do a display when it switched on after burners it was gone a plane beyond its time How the guy survived was a miracle the gods were with him Whatch for bae new plane in development stage called the tempest its a stealth jet 2 engines yeah f35 is ok But 1 engine ok vectored thrust but if discovered its no good in a dog fight but It wasnt built as air superiority fighter it was built for penetrating behind enemy lines without being discovered I like military tech when i started in 87 we still had Canberra bombers coming in for refurbishment i used to go down to ŕunway to watch them take off going back to raf Matt it was so strange they Looked so slow going down the runway first time i thought as it neared end of Runway bloody hell hurry up Then it just glided up and away i honestly thought it would not make it I used to build models My 2 favs 1 heìnkel and 2 all time fav lancàster Have good day

[@125brat]

I've read the book several times and am amazed how he survived, but I suppose when staring death in the face the survival instinct takes over. I believe Taff was at Halton whilst I was there during my apprenticeship '75 to '78 and in fact it was he that rumbled our planned pass-out stunt of putting a Gnat in Trafalgar Square in London. We were threatened that if ANYTHING happened, we would remain at Halton and not leave to join our new units after training. Needless to say, we conceded defeat, but our stunt of "relocating" the Whirlwind helicopter onto the Groves-Henderson parade square to celebrate our first year at Halton (1st April 1976) still lives on in infamy😊

[@Anglo-Brit]

Why is there a French flag on it..

[@kramelbbiw]

@@Anglo-Brit It's an RAF 'fin flash', used to help identify it as an RAF plane (along with the roundels in the same colour on the wings and fuselage).

[@SomeYouTubeGuy]

No ejection seat, no canopy, no helmet or I imagine goggles, no radio and flight experience only on much slower and less technical aircraft. Take a bow Taffy you did bloody well.

[@orlock20]

WW1 technology in a 1966 jet.

[@SomeYouTubeGuy]

@UC-YoIPdQPiT4YnDVrYQNXvw no shit Sherlock

[@RoamMeYo]

Respect to highest degree...hats off

[@redlioness6627]

No oxygen mask!

[@jojomarujo8704]

@@redlioness6627 it just became a convertible, a supersonic convertible

[@collectorguy3919]

Mrs Holden: "How was your day at work?" "It became surprisingly busy after I made a mistake. I have an important meeting about it tomorrow morning."

[@Dr.K.Wette_BE]

(or "Nothing special, I'll just need a new pair of pants...")

[@racheljennings8548]

" Oh darling, that's bad, here is your dinner,"

[@jayburn00]

Very british

[@redlioness6627]

Would you like a cup of tea dear?

[@iainbagnall4825]

A meeting without coffee, in British armed forces speak ;). When you are due a bollocking, they do not give you the luxury of coffee.

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

I mean it was checked with his superiors, the start was by accident and the got the plane, which was much faster than anything he flew before, in basically fine condition back on the ground without any comms. Managed the situation amazingly well and was humble about it, this man had all rights to be around planes, Only way it could've been better if during the flight he found the reason for the issue with the electrics.

[@meneldal]

Yeah his superiors were more likely to be in trouble than him.

[@neolexiousneolexian6079]

I would have probably abandoned the airfield after a minute and tried to land on the nearest cornfield or river, lol.

[@mysss29]

I felt like the story wasn't complete without that!

[@stephenphillip5656]

Technicians *did* find the fault eventually. Early EE Lightnings were fitted with some sort of a cut-out switch (don't know exactly what it was) which was deleted later on. On XM135, the switch had been removed, but the wiring was left in and uninsulated. An occasional short-circuit caused the fault apparently .

[@nixie2462]

@@stephenphillip5656 This is the answer I came looking for, thanks!

[@ZGryphon]

I feel like the museum ought to be displaying XM135 without the canopy on it. You know, for authenticity.

[@jcreedy20]

Yep and a brown smear on the pilot seat too!!

[@jannejohansson3383]

"there is nothing wrong in this plane, I tested it"

[@majstealth]

"thoroughly, without totaling it, as you "professionals" do it all so often"

[@kwamenaplays5899]

Hahaha

[@KedarAhire411007]

🤣🤣🤣

[@jannejohansson3383]

That was first feeling when I check this :p Like a car..

[@Bialy_1]

@@majstealth The testing is normaly done by the most experienced pilots that are called "test pilots", they know the handling of the plane so well that they can detect if there is anything wrong with the plane and also have more chance to land it safely if something is wrong... my father totalled plenty of aircrafts but not by crashing them, he just reported after the test flight that the handling of the aircraft is unaceptable to allow other pilots fly this aircraft in its curent condition -> as the aircraft got too much hours in the air and the vibrations were to severe-> and that was after the engineers "repaired" the aircraft...

[@ValladolidArde]

Mr Taffy is accidentally the man to have driven the fastest Cabriolet EVER. RIP legend! what a great story!

[@richardvernon317]

The early Lightnings had a habit of losing canopies in flight. One of the EE test pilots had a canopy come off the aircraft while at supersonic speed.

[@redlioness6627]

LOL.

[@bertvdlast]

Not just Lightnings. I live near Soesterberg AB Netherlands where an American F-15 squadron was stationed long time ago. And once an F-15 lost the canopy on take off. The pilot could land it without further incidents but i guess one of the maintenance guys had a very bad day...

[@4nz-nl]

@@richardvernon317 😵 how did that end?

[@ollep9142]

No. Not the fastest cab, but (manually) driving a cab the fastest. I'm pretty sure that the title for fastest cab goes to Elon Musk's red Tesla that left Earth orbit at a much higher speed!

[@PozieNayan]

Accidentally took off in a fighter jet. "Trust me, I'm an engineer".

[@jannejohansson3383]

That was best one!

[@nevillecreativitymentor]

underrated comment 👍 nice word play ... very relevant

[@stevebzz839]

At least it reheated his career and didn’t put the brakes on it..

[@Hellsong89]

And this is why any engineer should have mandatory practical experience in the field. How things go in paper and in real world are two different things and how ever much you draw it on paper, it wont magically come so. Welder buddy of mine was once welding frame work for full glass front building with rather peculiar shape. Engineer come to site inspection and started to whine that these welds are inefficient! buddy jokingly: Tag welds hold one ton and flux another, so it will hold. Engineer puffs, marches to his car, coming back with some welding reading material or toilet paper hoe ever you see it, starting to read how such little welds only hold this and this much and that flux hold barely nothing. Buddy: Sir engineer, how about you fuck right off and come back when we have finished, since its impossible to weld this framing as your drawings state. If done so, whole thing will pull into high heaven and not a single window will fit into openings. Engineer complained to management that explained the engineer what tag welds are and how metal distorts when welded and building was finished as it should be. Engineer was not seen on site during working hours after that....

[@jryde421]

Best comment

[@AutoMatters]

From the description I expected this video to be mildly interesting, but it totally blew me away. As unlikely as Taffy was to survive accelerating down the runway past the truck and the jet, and establishing controlled flight, landing that thing successfully without a parachute to arrest its speed seems like an absolute miracle. He must have been a phenomenal natural pilot. Thank you for masterfully putting this true story together, Paper Skies. Jan

[@notaulgoodman9732]

If I were Taffy, I’d have begun training to become a pilot. That landing was a sign for something.

[@joshiasbaja3934]

He was a cool cat

[@simoncarter3197]

I remember this incident really well, I witnessed it from below. We had just started our summer break from school and I was playing in the school playground with friends when a Lightening appeared at very low level from completely the wrong angle. As an 8 year old I was a little scared (it's a lot noisier than Britannia's and Comets), and I tripped up in the moment, skinning my knees. The aircraft made a few erratic passes and then disappeared from view. My dad (who was a crew chief at Lyneham) came home that night rabbiting on about how some-one had lost control of the aircraft on what he thought was an engine run. Now we know the truth. What an incredible story and its amazing that Taffy held his cool enough to get the aircraft down without crashing it. Fantastic.

[@Will-jb7dd]

Sus

[@zen4men]

You saw history in the making!

[@__DwiPurna]

Question, how many people saw taffy flying around to land the stubborn plane? 😅 I found this like "the plane disagree to be part of military so he troll the maintenance to keep him away and survive to placed in museum 😂"

[@Bill23799]

If I was that museum curator I would have made sure the fuel tanks were drained, the battery removed and the wheels chocked before i let Taffy near that cockpit.

[@MGSLurmey]

If I were that curator I'd be concerned if those weren't already done years ago!

[@CanalTremocos]

@@MGSLurmey -99 days without accidental XM135 liftoff!- 00 days without accidental XM135 liftoff!

[@1shivanox]

@@CanalTremocos Battlestar Galactica and her fighters greet

[@aidankeys8534]

He'd still find a way to get it in the air somehow

[@ElmoUnk1953]

🤣😂👍

[@44SirLoopalot]

Great story. My dad had a similar experience in the 60s, not in a jet, but in a piper tripacer. He had no flight experience or training whatsoever. He was a young engineer working in airline maintenance, when a pilot asked him to compensate the compass on his private plane. Dad took the plane and another engineer during nightshift, taxied to a remote area on the airport and did what he was asked for. On the way back, he looked down on the skales for too long, suddenly felt the plane wobbeling, looked up and realized he was flying some 50feet above the ground, between the trees on a long taxiway on an international airport heading towards the maintenance facilities in almost full darkness. He pulled the power back, somehow landed the plane without damage, and told nobody for many years. But after the incident, he took flying lessons and flew oldtimer planes for the next 50 years.

[@lofturhjalmarsson9896]

l was in a care in a parking lot engine running foot on brake , tired sleepy so l closed my eyes relaxed, but foot relaxed too , l felt movement opened eyes car was driving not far from hitting other parked. damned automatics want to drive themselves.

[@P7777-u7r]

There has to be some way to physically prevent a plane from taking off when you simply want to taxi it around

[@patheddles4004]

@@P7777-u7r You'd have to hard-limit the speed somehow - if the plane gets moving fast enough, it's taking off whether you want it to or not. Normally there's a huge difference between taxiing speeds and takeoff speeds though, so this is almost never an issue. Taffy had an issue because he was testing the start of the takeoff phase and then got the throttle locked open with afterburner, and 44SirLoopalot's dad had an issue because he was careless about taxiing speed in a plane with a really low takeoff speed.

[@kalatapie]

That's why you have to always be in either Neutral or Park when you're not moving. Aside from being more safe, you're also sparing the clutches in the transmission! Sadly people who have only ever driven automatics see only two shifter positions: Drive and Park.

[@malayafreespirit1905]

@@lofturhjalmarsson9896 i stop by a traffic light on downward hill, didnt pull the hand brake, fell asleep, then bang hit the back of a bus. i was prepare to stop aside and confront with the consequence, but apparently the bus just dont give a shit and dont even bother to stop. lucky 😆

[@Joaking91]

As an engineer I always find myself doing other people's job too.

[@sadia2395]

Haha under rated comment ✌🏻

[@foolapprentice3321]

I work as a controls tech/programmer. In my experience, things are quite the opposite

[@Joaking91]

@@foolapprentice3321 Others do your job?

[@foolapprentice3321]

@@Joaking91 others do engineers' jobs

[@Joaking91]

@@foolapprentice3321 I guess that if you're a good worker you end up doing other people's jobs regardless. Lots of lazy mofos around.

[@erictaylor5462]

18:00 I had something a bit like that happen to me 30 years ago. I was working in Death Valley and doing volunteer work with the National Park Service. I had a little historical presentation on the old mining camps in and around the Valley and after the presentation one of the people aske me about one of the "facts" I had mentioned. It turned out the fact had been slightly inaccurate but the man asked me where the fact came from. I mentioned the book from which most of my research had come and he said he knew the fact had not come from that book, because he had written that book. He turned out to be very nice. I bought the guy lunch and he game me all sorts of great stories to add to my presentation. Also, he signed my copy of my book, even though it was dirty and dogeared. He said it just meant the book was well loved (it was).

[@rachidluildha2676]

Incredible story. That he managed to take off, fly that rocketship and land it in one piece, reveals nerves of steel, analytic intelligence, awesome psychomotricity. Taffy should have been awarded the Distinguished Flying Medal.

[@a5cgb]

As a schoolboy I was privileged to live next door to this inspirational man. A humble but amazing person!

[@caveman85635]

Awesome.

[@Brave_Sir_Robin]

May we press you for an anecdote?

[@danrostron6133]

Weston Turville?

[@NJTDover]

My landlord, Dr Paul Durkin, a former RAF radar operator, shared with me this incredible story back in 1989. I remember that as though it were yesterday. I had missed the last bus back to Little Clacton so he drove all the way up to Colchester bus station to collect me. On the way home, he told me about Taffy's incredible feat. I thought he was pulling my leg but he eventually showed me the Sunday Express newspaper of the time where the story appeared. And now this video about Taffy - two near misses before he took off! No doubt his guardian angel gave him a hand to touch down unscathed and in one piece. RIP Taffy ... Big Balls Of Fire! Actually, KZbin is full of rubbish but this channel is a remarkable exception. Kudos for a job well done, Paper Skies.

[@richardvernon317]

First heard of the Story in 1982 while on an ATC camp at RAF Binbrook where I spent 2 days actually helping out on the maintenance of the aircraft.

[@tyrotrainer765]

@@richardvernon317 We missed each other by about 11 years. My Sqn 266 (Stockton) did summer camp at Waddington in the early 70s. My main memory was washing down a Binbrook Lightning with rags and paraffin, no gloves or PPE. My mate was awarded cadet of the week and won a flight in a JP3 of the Macaws aerobatic team. He could not stop smiling for the rest of the time I knew him. I got a flight in a Chipmunk the following year. Not quite the same!

[@proph7543]

@@tyrotrainer765 No. 266 squadron? You must know Biggles.

[@FuzzyOne2007]

Hello fellow Clacton resident

[@felipeaugusto6991]

i can imagine everyone around even his superiors that are not pilots would think ''if it was me i would not pull that one alive'', they were true to theirselves in honoring him and not firing him.

[@wilsjane]

He was a highly competent engineer, working on a problem that was putting both aircraft and lives at risk, so I cannot think of any reason why he could have been fired. No doubt a few jobsworth pen pushers thought that it may happen, but the REAL bosses would undoubtedly have laughed and looked forward to meeting him. After all I doubt that a single one of them would have reached their positions without seeing how far they could bend the rules. 😊

[@bjornspook2345]

@@wilsjane you're not wrong, you just underestimate this world.

[@barrytipton1179]

What do u mean superiors do u don your hat or curtsy better description is Supervisors not superiors you are not living In pre ww1 years in Uk as a skivy

[@iainbagnall4825]

Plus the PR angle. The British press, whilst a cut throat and mercenary bunch, would probably have been 110% behind the plucky engineer called Taffy if they'd tried to discharge him... if only because it would help them sell papers. Better to give the man a full round of tea and medals and do any bollocking in private.

[@wilsjane]

@@barrytipton1179 I will tell you a very funny TRUE story. Some years ago, a close friend of mine received a warning letter for not calling a jumped up supervisor 'sir'. The following day, he went to see the supervisor, profusely apologising and explaining that he had not been informed that he had received a knighthood from the Queen. Perhaps the real funny part is that 40 years later my friend received a knighthood for his work and needless to say, he did not expect anyone to call him 'sir'. PS, Last year, our daughter who is a London CID officer had a similar experience in the police force, but not in writing. I suggested that she took my friends line of action, but she said that she would not waste her time.

[@lukeguilfoyle9325]

Great video!! My dad was based at Lyneham at the time, and coming in to land in a Comet when he was told to hold position in the stack and keep visual look out for a rogue Lightning. It wasn't long before Taffy's jet screamed past and got a "Bloody hell!!" from the crew. Dad loved recounting the story, especially as it all ended so well. Thanks for making this - brought back loads of memories of growing up there in Wootton Bassett and cycle rides with my brother to the bund at the end of the runway where we'd spend whole afternoons watching mainly Fat Alberts coming in to land.

[@de_gale]

i feel like in another life taffy could of been an insane pilot as well. With just a basic understanding of the controls, he was able to land the jet which some trained pilots also had trouble with, wow what a great inspiration. RIP fly high taffy, and god speed.

[@bobolobocus333]

He did damage the parachute mechanism I think, but that's better than what I might've done.

[@explodethebomb]

@@bobolobocus333 Only because he didn't realise he was supposed to land nose first instead of tail first. Had this been explained, it likely wouldn't have been an issue, but of course, nobody would've seen any need to tell him how to land

[@Zordiak]

I'm sorry I laughed so hard when I heard HOW he made the mistake. Can you imagine? "Yeah and if you push it all the way up it'll kick on the afterburner. But you don't need to worry about that." Then all the sudden you push it up and it clicks and you instantly feel 4Gs of force. I bet this dude thought..."I'm fucked" lmao

[@twotone3070]

I suspect he actually said "This is a jolly bad show"

[@MarkTillotson]

@@twotone3070 Hmm, this kite's got a bit of oomph!

[@admiralgama6637]

I'm just imagining it like a cartoon where you hear the click and then it pauses for a second while he looks at the camera before it goes rocketing off

[@lethalwolf7455]

@@admiralgama6637 omg, thanks for the visual😂😂😂👍

[@WickedMuis]

@@twotone3070 Or just "Crickey!"

[@ianmacfarlane1241]

Eyes got a bit damp when Taffy appeared at RAF Duxford asking for a ladder.

[@CharlieTheAstronaut]

Yeah, mine started sweating too...

[@57thorns]

Yes, must be the warm weather.

[@mikeygti8930]

Its the onion ninja's chaps. Awful things....

[@pheakay]

I thought you said you got a bit damp, not kink shaming or anything but weird

[@rickw5024]

Not gonna lie now, but I did, when I told my wife it was my allergy's acting up.....

[@jamesbutler6253]

When I was in the RAF, in the early 80s, watching the Lightnings take off on station exercises, when they often simulated MIG intruders, was always amazing, especially in the evenings, clearly seeing the afterburners come on and then an almost vertical climb was a jawdrop every time.

[@alanguile8945]

I lived at an RAF base when the lightnings were there. Watching them take off and climb from the end of the runway was unforgettable. Others were amazed that I could sleep through a squadron taking off at night!

[@drewfarmer05]

This is off topic, but when my parents were in Korea they were always at an airfield and you literally couldn’t talk at all because phantoms were taking off and landing 24/7

[@wakeupuk3860]

I always consider the 6 months in 1972 I was attached to 111 Squadron at RAF Wattisham and a short tour in Cyprus as the resident Photog was the most exciting job I ever had. Initially it was my job to just remove the cassettes from the front facing camera that filmed the front when the pilot pressed his firing button and ground facing for aerial mapping shots but after being accepted by the ground crew, I was allowed to do tyre checking, fuelling and other checking jobs. Got the chance to go up in a T-Bird even though just for a short circuit and bump and also when the exercise of getting ALL the squadron into the air at one, required support crew to take out the generator cables at the last moment in sequence, requiring us to drop on the floor face down while the jet blast went over our heads as each kite turned onto the runway. No way can this Penguin even begin to compare that with real active service with bullets whizzing over you, but it was very exciting to be part of that Lightning exercise. Would have stayed in but after qualifying as Ground Photographer got sent to RAF Northolt where all I did was to pack printing machines with paper for Top Secret flight path books that could only be done by service personnel. But for a time, watching, being with 111 working on Lightnings was something most people never do and is something I will never forget.

[@tedmawson260]

I heard about the accidental Lightning flight when I first was based at RAF Conningsby around 1977 but I wasn't sure it was true; now I know. The guys used to say that nobody knew how fast a Lightning was because, on full reheat, it would run out of fuel before it stopped accelerating.

[@wakeupuk3860]

@@tedmawson260 Yes I heard the story about Taffy Holden from out Flight Sgt, whose was part of ground crew back then but not to the detail this video goes into. I also have another story about a jet crashing but it was not a Lightning but a Hawker Hunter. Looking back I can't believe I got in that T-Bird because about 1966 when I was in the Wantage Air Trainin Corps went on the yearly summer camp to RAF Chiverner near Barnstable, Devon. We were let loose on the dunes with our Lee Enfields 303 firing of our blanks at another cadet squadron when a very noisy jet flying very low went over, I thought it was part of the exercise to make it feel more real, when one of the pilots ejected and he shot up from his parachute to open. In those days I often bunked off school and hitch hiked in my ATC unform to RAF Benson, Abingdon and others near by to do 'circuit and bumps' in those days in transport planes, so I knew a fair bit about RAF kites in those days. So I recognize it was a T-Bird (ie a training jet) and immediately said to my friend there is another one in there. I can recall so well as I said it, it flipped on its side about 120 degree and ejector seat shot out and the pilot was driven into the ground which we did not actually see due do to the dunes but we sure heard the thump. The Hawker Hunter then banked to the right and crashed with a massive great big fire ball which I felt the heat on my face. Being quite stunned by what we had seen, most of us just stood looking at each other, I recall some of the more older lads starting to walk towards where the pilot had hit the ground. Then I heard some one shouting and it was the ATC Officer of the other squadron shouting at us to get back to the lorry we had been brought in. That eveing in our hut we had a visit from a senior officer who told us in no uncertain terms and putting the fear of god in us lads that not even to our parents were we were to talk about it and even had us sign on a letter where we put our name, ATC squadron and signature.I never found out about the other pilot who chute opened or if it was a cadet that shot into the ground. I did not talk about it at school or my friends but as my father was an RAF Electrician at the end of WW2 in Eygpt he was very interested and told me that for his detachment over seas he never saw a plane crash. LOL it did not deter him from telling me not to carry on 'hitching' flights on transport planes, which on one day earaly in the morning I went all the way to RAF Leuchars in Scotland and went back to school in the afternoon. The head caught me coming in late and wanted to know where I had been, on saying "Scotland" I got a detention.

[@ohmyridusoftictok3019]

This story can’t help but make you smile. Thanks to his quick thinking and Gods mercy, Mr. Holden got to live a long life in this beautiful world.

[@Quincy_Morris]

God is good

[@xzox]

I have had the great honour of sitting in the cockpit of a Lightening ( 2 seater ,Ex Lightening engineer beside me !) and being allowed to fire up one of the engines. It was an awesome experience and to see one of these remarkable planes do a "run" down Cranfield runway in Bedfordshire was something I will never forget. The courage of the young men who flew this wondrous beast is totally beyond my ken. All hail to them and those who built and maintained the English Electric Lightening.

[@phillipbailey70]

Absolutely the best random video I've been recommended on KZbin in months - Bravo!

[@disvet-1ad291]

I couldn’t agree more !!!! Shared with friends

[@anupabuthpitiya2791]

True

[@EuanH91]

Agreed! Btw, loved you in Earth, Wind & Fire.

[@phillipbailey70]

@@EuanH91 😁

[@fokendikhed]

completely agree...

[@stephentroup7943]

"After the landing Taffy was sent to the doctor where he immediately received some sedatives." I'm just gonna leave this right here. Good on ya mate!

[@ZGryphon]

In the RAF of the 1960s, I expect "some sedatives" =" most of a bottle of Courvoisier." :)

[@MontySadashiv]

..one can't even imagine how maxed out on adrenaline he must be at that point... And the flipside of adrenaline is.. eventually... aggression... then as it burns out... extreme exhaustion... So, kudos to the MI Room/MH on base to give him what the folks of today would call "downers"...

[@hauntedshadowslegacy2826]

So that's what it takes to get some sedatives? Hmm... brb, heading to the nearest airbase.

[@justinorwen1141]

And a new pair of underwear.

[@onyxsolo1]

A cup of tea?

[@NiskaMagnusson]

im very glad he lived to the age he did. seems like a humble person. lots of respect for people like that

[@tempestmkiv]

“I don’t want to get in the cockpit” ….priceless!

[@CTSH1]

i often visit duxford and i walked past that plane many many times, i never would have thought it would hold such a great story

[@jag1963]

What a man. The papers used the word panic. That guy didn't panic, he dealt with it.

[@MrSupercar55]

I think deep down inside he had a burning desire to fly that plane. If I was him, I’d scream *“YOLO!!!!!!!”* while pushing it to supersonic speed.

[@antwango]

@@MrSupercar55 XDD while flipping 2 birds at the control tower at the second flyby XDD

[@white_mage]

@@MrSupercar55 flying that fast without the canopy would suck you out of the plane.

[@lape9973]

He was probably buckled in.

[@Arthion]

Perhaps he did panic for the first few seconds when he nearly collided twice, but he certainly had his wits back in time to take off to avoid shooting straight into the village after running out of runway.

[@jamesmagnum]

No canopy, no helmet and no jet experience! Jaw dropping story and a wonderful chap! RIP

[@__DwiPurna]

accidently full throttles too XD

[@craigduncan4826]

Amazing and what selflessness and humility to refuse all the media interviews etc, finally agreeing to one so long as they paid the money to a veteran charity. He epitomises the qualities we strive for in all of the British armed forces. He did his country proud- even if it is a funny incident.

[@alexm7627]

Selflessness and humility, God's delight

[@uwanttono4012]

Self-abasement and self-depreciation - very admirable British qualities!!

[@FODOR00]

I think that it was not selflessness and humility. I think it was more that his superiors forbid him to speak to media.

[@sailendrayalamanchili4126]

Hair raising would be a more apt adjective to describe Taffy Browns experience.

[@moffatt43]

I remember my Father who was a Aircraft fitter with the RAF and worked on Meteors and other planes telling the Story of this event and quite a few other events whilst he was in service but I always remember that look he had when he shared his memories and the awe he had of the Planes but I think the lightning had a special place for him because when they got one at Duxford IWM Dad would go starry eyed looking at it… He Volunteered at Duxford and I learned to drive on the airfield before it became the Museum. I remember Concorde coming into land at Duxford and next day they started on the M11. Oh and apparently when they filmed the Battle of Britain film at Duxford and blew up one of the old hangers my Dads generator was in there and got blown up by mistake because they used to much explosives. Sadly Dad has passed away now but I have his enthusiasm for the Merlin and growing up in a village hearing the Spitfires and Hurricanes flying certainly fueled that passion but a lot of that passion came from My Dad….Love him to bits.

[@markthomas9706]

A fantastic story, well told which I greatly enjoyed. What an impressive generation they were. RIP Taffy.

[@howlinmoondog]

The most amazing thing was his ability to land fast enough not to stall into the ground but not so fast as to not be able to stop in the limited space available, especially as the chute failed.

[@akaHarvesteR]

Yep, and tbh, the parachute failing after a tailstrike on landing seems like the sort of thing you'd call a pretty important design blunder.

[@Groza_Dallocort]

@@akaHarvesteR he landed the plane in the wrong way, he landed it the way you do with planes with a small tailwheel

[@douglasczuczman]

he was probably a bit on the slow side, hence the tail strike

[@riggers7480]

Taffy, then a wing commander, was my boss in the late '70s, when I was an instructor at the RAF's Apprentice School. He was a good guy.... RIP

[@ianh.6825]

That's interesting because Wg Cdr Holden began his career as a Halton Apprentice in the 1940's.

[@riggers7480]

I too was an RAF Apprentice, I'm lucky to say...!@@ianh.6825

[@KrK007]

Good thing he was told about how to release the reheat throttle!

[@brutas_warman]

Yea otherwise he would have had to time his final landing with running out of fuel

[@Ikaros---]

@@brutas_warman would be kinda hard reading the fuel gauge and keeping an eye on the airport, especially at mach 2 with no canopy

[@RedRocky54]

@@Ikaros--- Most jets can't actually reach Mach 2 at low altitude due to air density. Mach 2 speeds are typically achieved at high altitude where there's less air resistance. At low altitude it probably wouldn't get past Mach 1.2 or so - though that's still incredibly fast.

[@zanshin8825]

What a calm, cool, collective, engineer /pilot Taffy was to deal with such an incident. Amazing great story, it was nice to see him at the museum near the aircraft he had flown, and what a character and good sense of humour, RIP Taffy thanks for your dedicated service.

[@GhostOfLorelei]

This is an amazingly well put together documentary about a plane I knew almost nothing about. Watched the whole thing, learned a ton about the Lightning and Taffy. Excellent job!

[@secondthought2320]

Keeping his thoughts clear saved many lives. And then he brought it back. Nerves of steel Taffy.

[@Unotch]

I would so much love to hear the audio from that! "Test 3, throttle up ... AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHhhhhhhhhhh........"

[@brutas_warman]

If there was a mic on board such as a headset to the tower... All they would hear is WIND... Maybe muffled screaming or jets

[@BartBe]

Ohcrapohcrapohcrapohcrapohcrap

[@reallifeengineer7214]

@@BartBe More like: Oh Lord Oh Lord Oh Lord Oh Lord Oh Lord... or Buggers Buggers Buggers Buggers...

[@lethalwolf7455]

😂

[@JEBavido]

I've heard many stories of first-time flying students who can't locate the runway again just shortly after take-off. He did incredibly well!

[@carbon1255]

I imagine they put the lights on for him xD I'm glad they chose a nice day to do the tests haha

[@beeble2003]

Right, but he _wasn't_ a first-time pilot, which explains why he immediately had that in mind.

[@Treasureson78RPM]

Accidentally taking off in a fighter jet with minimal high performance aircraft experience, with an open canopy, not flight helmet, no communications and nearly colliding with several objects. All things considered, he was without question one hell of a pilot to keep control and to successfully land . Should have been dead several times. Much respect sir!

[@solsdadio]

Brilliant mix. I’ve learnt about a plane I’d heard of but didn’t realise it’s historical role and significance. And the story of Taffy is simply incredible! Astounding that he could keep it together to that extent.

[@djsonicc]

Airforceproud95 from ATC: We have an XM135 barreling down the runway...aaand he has gone vertical

[@LGKvideos]

airpringle69

[@MustNotContainSpaces]

He's gone spaceshuttle-status

[@olympus__]

productforce94

[@wheatpuff]

Mom, get the camera

[@FlatBroke612]

Airforeskin69

[@PaperSkiesAviation]

*New video is coming soon! Meanwhile, help my channel to grow by clicking Subscribe.*

[@ianmacfarlane1241]

Don't know if I'm more impressed by the English Electric Lightning, Walter 'Taffy' Holden or the magnificent RAF moustaches.

[@jayschafer1760]

Have to have some big hairy wings on your upper lip to help give your face some extra lift!

[@fredsas12]

Hahah, I was thinking the same thing.

[@EclecticWarrior58]

We led the world in moustache technology in those days although we fell behind after Saddam Hussein seized power in Iraq.

[@smoothmicra]

Very interesting, such an amazing story. The Lightning was an elegant looking machine, but landing at such a necessarily high speed must have been a challenge for an experienced pilot, let alone someone who had never flown a jet plane. Now this man had remarkable presence of mind and resourcefulness to get the bird down. Salut Taffy!

[@lowprofile2412]

What an incredible story. Rest easy Taffy, you deserve it

[@Sssssssht]

Can we take a moment that he chose these clips beautifully as he explains

[@aviationphotographer3905]

During the mid-eighties pilot Mike Hale was granted permission to intercept a U2 during a major exercise. He zoom-climbed past the U2 at 66000 feet and continued to his intercept position at 88000 feet. He scared the life out of the U2 pilot.

[@lefr33man]

Haha, a mirage III pilot (Roger Pessidous) did the same thing in 1967 at 67000 feet, on a U2 that was snooping around over France's nuclear installations, although he needed to activate his SEPR rocket engine to do so. He buzzed the U2 at Mach 1.7 and even took a picture with the small camera they were issued with while approaching from the rear. apparently, they stopped flying U2s over France after that incident... but then, they came back with SR-71s, those bastards! :D

[@KOZMOuvBORG]

Didn't that pilot also chase down a Concorde doing Mach 2? Can do that for hours while a fighter only can for minutes.

[@nancybrown4011]

There was a mechanic/crewchief enlisted, that served at CanTho army air base in Viet Nam 1967/1968. When the base was attacked he and the pilot ran to a Cobra and prepared to lanch the helicopter. Next the pilot was shot by the raiders. The fighting was going on in front, and behind the wire. At this point the crew chief took the gunship aloft on his own. He made gun runs firing the mini gun. He was later decorated for his courage in this moment of confusion.

[@xavierandreumas2332]

makes for a nice one @markfelton story!

[@simonvance8054]

He did extremely well... as someone that has done flight training in helicopters it generally takes 12 hours flying experience before you can keep them balanced in a hover as you must coordinate 3 main controls at once.. that guy did amazing...

[@andrew_koala2974]

Nancy Brown VN is one place I never imagined I would be in, during the time I served with the RAF in th early 1960s. Only after Migrating to AUSTRALIA in 1966 and continuing Military service here, VN is where I found myself in., and after most of the AU forces were brought home in 1973, I was sent on exchange to the USAF. wearing my VN service ribbons. the US CO organized US service medals, on the basis I was considered a USAF service member that served in VN. It all seems rather pointless that a few I served with have died already, even former ROYAL NAVY. friends I have known fro decades have passed away, some making it past age 90 As was said to me by a former Italian Merchant NAVY friend 'Pietro' aka: Peter (now deceased) 'Fingers crossed, so far so good" We would all go to the RSL club Friday and Saturday night, most of us former Military, Some English, some Irish, some Italian and one from HONG KONG, we all got along fantastic, whether we were NAVY - ARMY or AIRFORCE we enjoyed each others company. Now those days are gone - Nothing stays the same for long [[ RSL - Returned Services League ]]

[@nancybrown4011]

@@simonvance8054 I'm pretty sure he must have gotten some stick time before that.

[@othername1000]

Any name or details to look that up? sounds like an interesting read

[@jamesritacco1693]

Thank you Dan Rostron for sharing with us. It makes the entire story all the more interesting. Best to you and yours.

[@harryspeakup8452]

This is a beautifully told version of the story, with an excellent selection of video clips, and great editing to fit them into the story. Very well done.

[@tonivazquez1081]

I read of that incident years ago in a "encyclopedia" about modern aircraft published in Spain when i was a teen, called "Aviones de guerra". I was that stupid after finishing 120 weekly parts and properly book them of letting an angry ex toss it to the garbage. A loss i mourn more that the loss of the ex.

[@ValladolidArde]

Todavia tengo mis tomos, "no hagas caso a las mujeres" fue el mejor consejo que me dio mi abuelo

[@tonivazquez1081]

@@ValladolidArde Y joder que buena era.. con esos desplegables centrales, con esquemas detallados, la lista en orden alfabetico al final.. aun recuerdo los dos primeros fasciculos. Panavia Tornado y SR-71 Blackbird. Me alucinaba el grado de detalle porque pensaba.. "y que pasa si esto lo consigue un ruso??". Espero que la disfrutes muchos años, un saludo.

[@curbowman]

¿¿¿Quéééééé??? Yo nunca pude completarla, y aún guardo los fascículos que sobrevivieron.

[@tonivazquez1081]

@@curbowman Lastima que no pudieras terminarla, aun así te confieso una sana envidia porque mirando el lado positivo, tienes varios fasciculos, es mucho mejor que nada. Que la disfrutes!

[@mikeyp0131]

Eh?

[@milanstevic8424]

the clips used in this video are sublimely edited and woven into this story as if Taffy's adventure was indeed recorded. kudos and much respect for your effort and this channel! very good.

[@bobdylan7120]

And that children, is why we never let Engineering Officers out of their office, let alone near an aeroplane.

[@PaperSkiesAviation]

😀👍

[@Flash1857]

😂

[@andrew_koala2974]

A somewhat similar incident happened at ETIHAD, where an Engineer inadvertently started a newly delivered aircraft and it commences a roll and crashed into a wall. I would imagine he was horrified. One can undertake an online search and discover the details for them-self.

[@chris-thumper7205]

"Accidently" Haha

[@racheljennings8548]

@@andrew_koala2974 I can imagine Ethihad was shocked seeing the plane going nose first into a wall - Ouch

[@Blarnix]

The fact that he lived and had 1. No canopy 2. No parachute 3. No ejection 4. No helmet 5. No radio 6. Barely had any brakes just makes this *perfect.*

[@ralfie8801]

What a great sense of humor he displayed at his museum appearance. You could tell the crowd loved every second of it.

[@mike_oe]

What a remarkable and wonderful story and how interesting to see the comment from Taffy's grandson. Thanks for sharing!

[@samrodian919]

What an amazing story! I am surprised I do not remember this incident as it was in the news and at that time as a youth I was RAF mad and must have seen or heard it in the news. Even as someone wearing the coveted RAF wings it must have been terrifying for Taffy at the time, and really and truly he should have got a medal for the preservation of life, for the fuel bowser driver, the crew and passengers of the RAF jet passenger plane, the people of the village at the end of the runway, and finally Taffy's own life. Not only that but saving the RAF millions with the cost of the Lightning. So glad to hear that he lived to the ripe old age of 90. Love the bit about him being at IWM Duxford and it being filmed shown at the end. RIP Taffy.

[@joefish6091]

Made up in the internet age.

[@projjwalray-6341]

And finally the fault was fixed. Moral of the story: Engineers can do anything!!

[@u.v.s.5583]

Except fixing electrical systems of a plane.

[@K4TAKAN]

I think the channel's owner is a russian ex-pilot, not because of the accent, but because of the sense of humour and tremendous facts about soviet era aviation. Nevertheless, this is one of the best content resources about aircraft. Cheers to the channel owner!

[@paulblake8664]

The only thing I can think of, that is missing, from this story; "Is A Medal For Bravery!"

[@tasercs]

What a brilliant film. So well pieced together with excellent use of library film, commentary and even animation. Love the look on the tour guide's face when the real Taffy stepped forward! The power of KZbin means there is even a comment from (the no doubt proud) grandson Dan Rostron. Excellent. Thanks.

[@redmenacetv]

How did the lightning take off with Taffy's giant steel balls on board?

[@ToaArcan]

The engines were just that powerful

[@30769s]

Considering how long the plane went down the runway it was probably a lot of weight weighing it down. I just want to know how Taffy managed to fly an overloaded Lighting with 5 tons of steel balls on board

[@jonwallace6204]

Legend says that after his brakes burned out he was only really able to stop by the weight of his giant balls.

[@unobombers]

Well, it took God several decades to reinforce the foundations of heaven as they would have collapsed from his heavy balled soul at the time so he helped him with the landing...

[@abuhamza1970]

As a seven year old boy, my mother took me to Pakistan with her and our ancestral family home was right next to an Air Force base. The PAF had bought a handful of Lightenings from the RAF however these were pretty much useless as they had basically come to the end of their lives. Anyway, you could hear these things coming from miles away as the sound they produced was unbelievable. Every time I heard one of them coming, I would run upstairs to the roof garden and watch the planes land. The waft of aviation fuel vapour was unmistakable and the noise would regularly shake pictures off the walls. An annoyance to my family but I thought it was so cool. I can remember on one occasion when whilst having tea, the teacups starting shaking making a distinctive tinkling sound. Our guests thought it was the start of an earthquake, however they were quickly corrected by my elders. As usual, I flew up the steps thankful of the break from the boring grown-ups. As I rounded the final steps I was greeted by one of the loudest explosions I’ve ever experienced. The aircraft had crash landed on the runway and exploded instantly. The force of the explosion knocked me back a few feet and I can still feel the heatwave today. Thank you for evoking such an amazing memory.

[@redlioness6627]

Wow.

[@derPetunientopf]

@@redlioness6627 Indeed.

[@stephenwhite7559]

Thankfully this plane never saw RAF combat.

[@redlioness6627]

@@stephenwhite7559 I am curious how it would have performed, very well I would think, in fact I would think that it would have probably been the only plane in our arsenal to perform its role 100% in defence of Britain. I would think our Jaguars, Buccaneers, Tornado's, Harriers would have been out performed by Russia's supersonic offerings and we would have been overwhelmed in the defence role, the Lightning on the other hand being an interceptor for targeting bombers would have been more successful against Russian bombers. On the other hand, the Vulcan I think would have been a 100% success rate in its own role, and along with those very same Jaguars, Buccaneers, Harriers and Tornado's in an attack role against ground targets, they too would have a high success rate in such roles, but that is a scenario of planes acting in an offensive role and not a defensive role so I cannot class both defensive and defensive roles as having the same success rate.

[@redlioness6627]

@@derPetunientopf I used to watch them here in the UK, they were seriously THE single most loudest aircraft that I have ever heard, and along with the Vulcan bomber they have to be THE most singularly impressive aircraft that I have ever seen. The Vulcan being a heavy bomber with the flight characteristics of a fighter plane, the Lightning being an interceptor with the flight characteristics of a rocket, I really don't think any other country achieved such performances. I remember seeing a video of a former Eastern Block fighter pilot who flew Soviet made supersonic fighters flying an English Electric Lightning many years after it was taken out of service, when he climbed out of the cockpit and took his helmet off his face was beaming, he was giggling like a silly little schoolgirl and his voice was filled with an excited enthusiasm as he expressed his feelings on flying it. He said that the English Electric Lightning was the most frightening aircraft that he had ever flown and that it was the greatest pleasure and the most fun he had ever had flying anything, he loved it and said it was the best experience that he had ever had at the controls of any plane.

[@massmedia5462]

Avoided death 5 times in 12 minutes.... He glitched the Matrix, that man was a living anomaly!

[@olentangy74]

What an incredible story! What is amazing to be is how Taffy exercised an incredible presence of mind, to grasp his situation and extricate himself from an all but impossible situation. Amazing.

[@lawrencemartin1113]

Brilliant! What a wonderful and extraordinary event. So glad that it ended safely and that Taffy or any one else was not hurt. I had heard some details of this story on and off over many years but this is excellent coverage of the whole event. Well done, a truly interesting film. Thank You.

[@PaperSkiesAviation]

Glad you enjoyed it, Lawrence Martin! 👍

[@erikev]

Did Taffy solve the problem he was investigating?

[@airplanemaniacgaming7877]

what problem? the problem of the electrical system, or the fact that he had taken off in a supersonic fighter jet?

[@eccentricthinker142]

@@airplanemaniacgaming7877 Yes

[@LMF5000]

Yes, problem was traced to extra wiring left behind for a ground test button that was deleted - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holden%27s_Lightning_flight

[@scottbrown411]

@@LMF5000 Sweet, thank you! As a mechanic, that was my question, was the original problem fixed? ;)

[@roberthunter6927]

Wow, I have heard of "a steep learning curve", but in Taffy Holden's case it was literally FAST. To [self-teach converting from a Tiger Moth to a supersonic Lightning in eleven minutes must be a record! Maybe there should be more engineer-pilots? He even fixed the problem -eventually- as the aircraft went into service. The man was obviously not only a genius, but adept at keeping his cool under the most terrifying and stressful conditions. A natural pilot.

[@devoid-of-life]

One might say he learned lightning fast

[@joefish6091]

Its a fake feel good story for the MSM, all the accounts of EE Lightning pilots call the plane a beast to fly, these are trained extremely experienced jet pilots. Remember the Lightning is a 50K feet per second interceptor, on a par with F15 or Mig25. Not a tame stable jet trainer.

[@devoid-of-life]

@@joefish6091 ah yes someone named Joe Fish commented on a KZbin video that it’s fake so it just be fake, no reason to question credibility there

[@MrSundio]

@@joefish6091 you are just a troll

[@JamesF0790]

@@joefish6091 It's a good thing he wasn't trying to do anything fancy with it then wasn't it? Also, you have sources to show it's fake right? Maybe someone from the airfield that day?

[@dirkhoekstra727]

This is a fantastic video and story! I had the privilege to see an Electric Lightning fly at an airshow in Cape Town, South Africa about 15 years ago.

[@Random4Logic]

7:42 ah poor man the refused handshake. An old classic

[@Brave_Sir_Robin]

Nice catch lol

[@michaelvanleeuwen3802]

16:15 I would like to hear of Sir Kenneth Porter's unfortunate flying incident in the middle east.

[@SimonTekConley]

Me too

[@foxtrotcharlie5473]

Same here ✌️✌️

[@AlexSDU]

Well, count me in.

[@jerseyshoredroneservices225]

Google has a lot on sir Kenneth Porter!

[@Wizardess]

If he'd not been an engineer with some flight experience there probably is no way he could have survived. Since he was both, as well as very knowledgeable about the plane, he had a fairly decent chance. And he made the best of it. That's all an engineer can do - make the best of what he or she has. His best showed he was a very good engineer. {^_^}

[@richardvernon317]

The Lightning was an easy aircraft to fly, but an absolute pig to fight in, thus the reason the RAF put their best Pilots into it.

[@ilo3456]

@@richardvernon317 Yeah I am not so sure how easy you think it is to flight a fighter jet, flying is not the problem it is landing.

[@vrterl9850]

No he showed his skill as a pilot, my guess if you put a fighter pilot in a Tiger Moth today they will struggle.

[@ilo3456]

@@vrterl9850 I think they would likely still know how to fly it quite well, the main struggle would be the different type of controls each plane uses and their specific aerodinamics, but it wouldn't be that weird for a pilot to fly a tiger moth well, it is easier to fly at low speeds than at high speeds mainly due to G forces, high speed flying can lead you to blackout or red out if you are not careful when turning, and also the ground moves a bit fast so it is also difficult to keep track of where you are.

[@charliewhiskey8440]

@@vrterl9850 yep. Few would have tail dragger experience these days.

[@jamesbutler5995]

Wow what a good story I could only imagine how loud the air had to be rushing around his head when in flight.This was really a good story glad no one was injured.

[@b.elzebub9252]

Possibly one of the most RAF stories in history. Taffy: 'Oh dear.. I appear to have taken off in this supersonic jet by accident. How frightfully clumsy of me.' Brass: 'Haha good show, old boy.' I do appreciate that the brass understood that they were just as much to blame for the whole incident as Taffy was and didn't blame him for it. I mean, they did put a lot of pressure on him to fix the issue. So you really can't be mad at the guy for employing some 'unconventional' means to get things done.. Honest mistake which he handled well given the situation. No one got hurt due to his professionalism and skill. And it's a hell of a story at end of the day.

[@MrDavewane]

What an amazing story. Taffy obviously kept his cool in the most difficult of circumstances. Great stuff.

[@Trialnerror]

I'm a GA pilot in training and I cannot imagine this. Just the high stall speed alone would make those approach's SO MUCH DIFFERENT and so much more dangerous as compared to what we're used to. Amazing man/story.

[@paramdrall]

*Pilot ~* it takes rigorous training to fly this jet ! *Engineer ~* Plane goes brrrrrrr

[@u.v.s.5583]

Pilots are soft. All this plexiglas, all the fancy helmets. When an engineer flies the plane, its just him, his wings and supersonic wind in the face.

[@FinalLugiaGuardian]

@Opecuted True. They do know more about the plane that any of the pilots ever could. Just because people are passionate about building for fixing planes doesn't mean they're passionate about flying them. There was a French engineer (let's call him Pierre) who, for his 64th birthday, was taken by his friends to a French Air Force Base and force to take a flight in in a dassault rafale. Pierre was subjected to a bunch of negative Gs (more than was initially planned) and in a Panic he reached to grab something for support. The problem was that the thing that Pierre grabbed onto was the ejection handle. And when he pulled the handle it triggered his ejection seat and it ejected him from the plane. Pierre sustained injuries and was taken to the hospital. Not exactly an ideal birthday for poor Pierre.

[@Kidraver555]

Great the way the narrator really has a fondness and respect for 'Taffy'.

[@rawrxd7870]

@Ignatios Nelson ur So old lol!

[@karhukivi]

The late Capt. Darby Kennedy told a story of an aircraft at Weston (Ireland) in the 50s which was being hand-propped by a mechanic who hadn't realized the throttle was partially open. The engine started, the mechanic managed to jump clear and the aircraft took off, flew around at a few hundred feet and then ran out of fuel and landed, nosing over but not too damaged. The manufacturer made much publicity from this event, claiming that "this aircraft is so easy to fly, it flies itself!".

[@garylam6233]

WOW How traumatic he must have felt two near misses on runway that would have been sure death. His speeds on the runway was so fast that it’s racing almost as fast as his heart beat And have all that air hitting you in the face and the noise of the wind whistling by I can’t even imagine his horror his will to overcome this tragedy outweighed the total devastation of himself and a very expensive piece of technology What a hero I would have died of a heart attack on runway AMAZING

[@dogsnads5634]

"How traumatic he must have felt two near misses on runway that would have been sure death." Actually Taffy later spoke about how he had played down the trauma of the entire incident and the effect it had on him. He suffered from PTSD from the event and only sought treatment later in life, he regreted that he hadn't gone for help sooner.

[@PrinceWesterburg]

My father knew a guy who serviced gear on RAF stations. He was at RAF Northolt, north of London and had to get to RAF Lossiemouth in north Scotland. He said he did his usual trick of going in the officer's mess and seeing what was going up there. That day there was a two seat Lighting trainer, the guy was leaving shortly so said to 'Ignore the instruments' and 'If I scream down the intercom, pull the eject handles!' It was all rather jolly. This was 35 years ago I heard to story but if I remember correctly, they went up the North Sea and got there in around 15mins. Thats not even Mach 3 and the top speed of the Lighting is still classified. However, I knew a guy who went for a flight in one and half way up the throttles was a wire acorss it. When he asked why, the pilot said if he was being chased bu a missile, you could break the wire and outrun the missile but it put an insane strain on the airframe and pretty much emptied the tanks. So God alone knows how fast it went!!!

[@kontoname]

That's not entirely true. Lightnings were flown by the saudis, kuwait and even privately owned! All those myths about classified are just myths. The engine specs are fully known and speed could even be calculated. To make matters worse the lightning was poor in range and had an extremely limited weapon payload. So it's safe to say the known limits are the known limits. It couldn't go faster, especially in any real application like combat, with weapon load (drag) and having to keep fuel on watch (maneuvering) or it's game over. Nonetheless, it was a great interceptor aircraft for it's time.

[@toranamunter]

Absolute nonsense, sorry. You have combined every BS barstool yarn about the Lightning all in the one post, and should go and do some reading before opening one's mouth any further :-)

[@andrew_koala2974]

Put it this way. The Lightning could outpace the Concorde. And I won't even mention its flight ceiling. I was based at RAF Waddington and RAF Cottesmore during the early 1960s. Often we would receive visiting EE Lightning, and they weere most welcome. The Swiss Airforce was also based at RAF Waddington. Completed my service in 1966, migrated to AUSTRALIA, Studied Electronics Engineering and joined the Australian forces, served on exchange to the USAF finally oficially retiring in 1990 Worked in various fields and for almost 13 years taught English and History in High School and College. Retiring from that end of 2019 Now I am enjoying what time I have remaining. And it all started when I learned to fly at age 13. mostly I expect the interest in aviation came from my Moms eldest sister who served in the RAF during the War years.

[@dandare6865]

@@kontoname Despite limitations it was a great looking plane even today, maybe the TSR-2 in my opinion looks even better. Maybe its me but the British era jets look "scifi" even now.

[@CS_247]

Until a few years back (2009), you could go down to Thunder City in Capetown, unload a large wedge of cash, and get a ride in a Lightning with Dave Stock (who was sadly to die in a Lightning) or Mike Beachy Head. I would gladly have sold my kids for a ride in one of those beautiful beasts.

[@Marauder1981]

Engineer just lifting off: "MUHA! I´m so fired XD"

[@ANSWERTHECALLOFJESUSCHRIST]

xD

[@PaulTheSkeptic]

"All his thought were on the fuel bowser he was about to collide with..." Yeah. I think those thoughts were probably something like "Oh shit! Oh shit! Oh shit!". This is an amazing story. I'm surprised I never heard it before.

[@doronron7323]

I once had the privilege of sitting in a Lightning cockpit (XR724, Binbrook). Couldn't believe how small and cramped it was, surrounded by densely packed instruments and switches on every surface. The front screen was so small, Taffy wouldn't be able to see much. Landing speed of a Lightning was around 200mph; no canopy and 2 Avon engines in re-heat, it must have made a racket. Zero experience on type, he did his best and proved he had the balls to get that bird safely back on the ground. What a guy! Brown trousers, no doubt. Thanks for this excellent re-telling of this truly famous incident.

[@octomanuno2700]

BRUH I live locally to the Duxford IWM! I go there all the time, and I've heard this story a lot, I even have pictures of the Electric on my phone, but I never had any idea! Thank you Paper Skies!

[@uniktbrukernavn]

What an amazing story that could've made it into any comedy movie from the 80s :) Love the story telling, graphics and animation.

[@TechNed]

Very well told story! I think he kept it together because of being of the generation that had to confront war. He didn't panic, thought about what he knew had to be done and calmly got it together. Saved himself along with an expensive piece of military hardware.

[@nicolapegg6429]

I remember being near an RAF base as a little girl, a large group of lightnings took off and oh boy the noise, my little brother was very frightened

[@patton357]

When I joined the US Air Force and began working on the flight line, we heard stories of this. Amazing he survived.

[@mentalizatelo]

AMAZING. 1 in a million. Love the way you put up the complete production, amazingly interesting. Thank you!

[@CaptVirtual]

The lightning was a true pioneer and state-of-the-art for its time. Still to this day it's specs are impressive.

[@dalesfailssagaofasuslord783]

Yeah a lot of the Cold War fighters from different countries can keep with modern fighters in terms of speed and climb. Everyone stopped trying to go faster and higher and focused on avionics and weapon systems. The mig 21 and the f104 are still fast by today’s standards as well.

[@ryanlemons3255]

Ight

[@lucastekkan]

So so, most fighters can do what the EE was designed for

[@williewilson2250]

@@dalesfailssagaofasuslord783 max speed maybe, climb and acceleration however would be an entirely different story. The thrust to weight ratios would be different by a large margin and just worse overall But yes, they are very similar when looking at it from the outside

[@dalesfailssagaofasuslord783]

@@williewilson2250 yeah the f16 and f22 in particular are far lighter and would out climb and accelerate those jets easily. The 104 might be able to keep up in climb tho, not sure. I only offer that up because It was our first jet to go super sonic in a climb. Basically a tube with tiny wings and tail with a big engine. “The missle with a man in it”

[@sparkey6746]

As an engineer myself, what I want to know is did he duplicate the power supply issue so it could be fixed? 😆

[@CarlDidur]

Cold solder I bet.

[@richardvernon317]

@@CarlDidur Cable loom issue. The aircraft was one of the first Lightnings to be issued to the RAF and had been used for trials with the Air Fighting Development Squadron. For some reason some test instrumentation had been fitted and the cable looms had been modified to support it. when the trials had been completed the equipment had been removed but the loom had not been returned to original specs and there was an exposed cable outside of one of the looms. Thus when the aircraft accelerated, that wire made contact with the airframe and shorted out the alternators. Seeing that the cable was not in any of the wiring diagrams, nobody could find the problem on the ground

[@josephallen2655]

"Although the tests I did and the ensuing flight did not immediately provide a reason for the initial electrical fault, my electrical staff, with additional assistance from English Electric, Salmesbury eventually did. Apparently, in early versions of the Lightning, there was to be a ground test button fitted into the standby inverter circuit. It was never fitted to the Mk 1A but the wires were left in the looms. It was one of these redundant wires which shorted onto the UHF radio as it moved on its trunnions when the aircraft nudged forward on its take off."

[@CarlDidur]

@@richardvernon317 Wow, thank you so much! That is much more specific than I was able to track down. As a technician, I can sympathize... They were looking on paper for what COULD cause that problem, but the cause wasn't on paper. Makes sense that it involved the systems that had been uniquely modified. Must have felt GREAT when they found it...

[@CarlDidur]

@@josephallen2655 That seems like it is from Taffy himself! Thank you for the detail. I wonder, since they knew it happened during takeoff, if they tried "chopsticking" any movable components looking for short circuits, trying to push things toward the rear, imitating acceleration. Obviously it was hard to reproduce "on the bench". Easy for me to say... I repair tape machines. They don't accelerate!

[@maxinejupp7857]

i wish i could remember the name of the test pilot who after flight testing the new Lightning quoted " i had perfect control of the aircraft untill releasing the brakes " such was the ferocious acceleration and performance so what a survival story bloody well done.

[@PaperSkiesAviation]

The phrase belongs to John "Johnny" Howe after his first flight in Lightning. In 1960 he was appointed as Officer Commanding No. 74 Squadron RAF the 'Tiger' Squadron, to introduce the first of the supersonic English Electric Lightning interceptors into service with the RAF

[@maxinejupp7857]

@@PaperSkiesAviation cheers

[@sophienben-achour5450]

I think it’s safe to say that Commander Holden had ice running through his veins 😂😅. What a pro! May he Rest In Peace.

[@knowEyeDeer]

Aussie ex-military here. I was involved in a military power engine test run on C-130 Hercules. The crusty old snake (sargent) in control of the engine run accidentally jumped the wheel chocks, it can happen even though it's not a common occurrence. Instead of shutting down the aircraft and replacing the chocks, ya know, procedure... The crusty old snake instead put the prop into reverse and backed up over them so we could continue the engine run sans shutdown. He lost his engine run creds eventually because of the incident. But I'd be lieing if I didn't tell you that we all thought it was hilarious as the story was adapted in the sqn boozer that night. Moral of the story is: if you want to be an instant legend, disobey procedures while performing engine ground testing!