He Has A Lightning Fighter Jet In His GARDEN!? | Forces TV

Meet the man with an Electric Lightning in his front yard. Not your average lawn ornament... The Lightning Association was formed in 1988, the year after the aircraft’s retirement from RAF service.
The Lightning Association: xr724.co.uk/
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[@deanosborne7503]

Trust me guy`s he`s a good bloke,and extremely hardworking had the pleasure of meeting him a few times at his home in Binbrook.Perhaps retired now i`m not sure but was a Veterinarian in my hometown.If your reading this Charles myself and my son visited you from Norway about 13 years ago (you may not remember) and where made extremely welcome by yourself and your son along with Mat who used to help out on the aircraft.I just have to offer my condolences with regards to your son,i heard about what happened and i`m truly sorry for your loss.x

[@stevejpm1]

For someone who claims to love these planes,he could at least look after it better.

[@TONYPARAMOTOR]

which plane? they are there for all to see. at the end of the day... its costs money. this isnt just the only plane thats out in the open theres others.

[@7belowzero]

Even by todays standards the EE lightning is a monster of an aeroplane.

[@whitelinefever8769]

Jeremy Clarkson used to have one, not sure if he still has it though.

[@tomstravels520]

WhiteLine Fever don’t think so as he didn’t get planning permission

[@cgmason7568]

Not at his house because councils suck

[@deepakk1347]

@Ken Norcott 😂😂🤣

[@J00dy11]

He dosnt have it anymore but the aircraft is kept at lakes lightnings and kept in a good static display condition

[@LouisPrudhomme]

@Ken Norcott wait wait, what? Really? How can anybody have anything to do with a vehicle you park on your private property? 😦

[@greenking333]

The English electric lightning is a pice of our heritage and history just like the Vulcan bomber and the Hadley Paige victor They are all pieces of very special heritage

[@edwinrideout514]

If you’re fortunate enough to have one of these, why not do some upkeep

[@Callumscornerpoo]

The one in his garden needs a clean 😂

[@jaywalker3087]

I was at Binbrook from '77. Can you imagine getting paid to play with Lightnings! My dreams came true 👍

[@eddytaylor5423]

I remember them at Biggin Hill when I was a kid, along with the Vulcan meteor Lancaster etc. What a brilliant childhood living behind the aerodrome.

[@gregtaylor6146]

Hi, were they based at Biggin or was it an airshow?

[@channelsixtysix066]

When engineering excellence reigned supreme and not a bean counter in sight to stuff it all up.

[@MrPepe-qf6kh]

Hate when a plane just rots in the sun for no good reason

[@michaeltaylor8835]

Mr. Pepe what sun? You mean rain?

[@nervo6321]

You should go to Elvington museum i was gutted to see their Lightning and Javelin outside left to rot with flat tyres and corrosion when far less important airframes are kept snug and dry

[@lightning1975]

@@nervo6321 the owner of the Lightning at Elvington won’t allow any maintenance work on it. I don’t know why, nor do I know the story of the Javelin.

[@projectcolonialviper2094]

Love the look of the Lightning - well done keeping a piece of history alive!

[@clevlandblock]

There's one of these in the Air Force museum at Robins Air Force base, Georgia.

[@jacklowry420]

Who asked

[@kevinm.n.5158]

Are you referring to the USA Air force and Georgia?

[@commandingjudgedredd1841]

@@kevinm.n.5158 I would say, that was the case.

[@clevlandblock]

Yes. Warner Robins, Georgia. The airbase has an adjacent museum (indoor/outdoor) and is impressive. I was last there in the early 2000s. The Electric Lightning was sitting outside the main exhibit building. The base is/was a base for B1 bombers.

[@clevlandblock]

someone smarter than you@@jacklowry420

[@1chish]

And this Ladies & gentleman was the aircraft that invented 'Supercruise'. About 40 years before the Americans thought they invented it with the F-22 and had to create a new word. Mind we also did it in the '60s with TSR-2 and Concorde. Concorde - the only aircraft capable of Supercruise at Mach 2 and for thousands of miles.

[@Sebastian-tm6ud]

yes because the SR71 never did that xD

[@madmax07ish]

@@Sebastian-tm6ud Correct. The SR-71 couldn't reasonably supercruise.

[@Sebastian-tm6ud]

@@madmax07ish except it did...

[@madmax07ish]

@@Sebastian-tm6ud I said "reasonably". It needed to use afterburner to break mach 1, and needed constant afterburner to go faster than mach 1.2. That's only a 200km/h boundary where it could supercruise. Which it rarely ever did, because it was preferable to be either subsonic or much faster than just mach 1.2. Supercruise couldn't be used in any functional capacity, having too narrow operating conditions.

[@Sebastian-tm6ud]

@@madmax07ish I mean it's top speed still counts as Supercruising. The sr71s engines functioned as ramjets at that speed and they could hold top speed for give or take about tan hour.

[@bigcahoona7931]

Gorgeous aircraft!!! Bravo!

[@tedex8100]

Why doesn't he at least put it under cover to protect against precipitation ? He doesn't maintain it,look at the state of it.

[@mktm1290]

Give him a chance, might have only just got it lol

[@laa0fa502]

Ahh yes a decades old supersonic jet will be absolutely destroyed as soon as the rain hits it! Believe it or not during war opposing forces won't try and bomb these, shoot heavy artillery at them, or any of that other rubbish they simply just take a hose and spray them down to render them completely useless for the rest of time

[@floppa_whoppa9191]

Laa0fa beautifully said

[@REDISCOVER7769]

To have one of these souvenirs is certainly no joke given a chance. He can surely bring back to its original state.

[@Boudicca-the-musical]

@Tex Ex, maybe he uncovered it for the on camera interview.

[@philiptyson4000]

As an ornament its sad but beautiful but in the air its another thing

[@commandingjudgedredd1841]

Sadly our civvy aviation authorities won't allow former supersonic combat jets like the Lightning, back into the skies. Just have to be happy seeing them static or, if you are lucky, a powered taxi display like you used to get at Bruntingthorpe, before it changed hands.

[@AB-qn9cs]

I'm sorry, the Lightning does not outweigh a Eurofighter typhoon. Typhoon has around 25% more power per engine and has all the same specs in terms of performance in terms of climb, super cruise etc. The main reason a lightning is incomparable to the Typhoon is weapon capacity. A fully armed typhoon can still perform unbelievably well with a full payload as demonstrated at RIAT by BAE system demo team.

[@TheDolphinator8]

Do you mean British Electric Lighting or an F-35? Because one is drastically different to the other

[@pieterweatherall2826]

You Have to remember That the English Electric Lightning was on the drawing board way back in 1947. For years it was way ahead of the rest of the world for its performance. Its Only real drawback was the maintenance hungry hours and the tactical range. I still love the Lightning as I was many years a RAF Aircraft Tech working on the Magnificent Lightning.

[@andrewdavies3584]

It's like watching a video of a classic racing car where someone says "they don't make a beast like this anymore" to then have some comment stating the obvious increase in horse power over the past decades... missed the point completely. It's called a passion for something and is subjective.

[@scootergrant8683]

@@andrewdavies3584 Well the lightning can still go faster. Mach 2.27 although that wasn't commonly reached.

[@saucerman110]

The F6 Lightning STILL holds the WORLD RECORD for CLIMB RATE, 0-50.000ft in 59 seconds

[@angelsone-five7912]

Very good luck to you, keep at it.

[@mike.47]

My favourite Cold War aircraft. I spent many hours in the cockpit flying from RAF Wattisham in 56sqn colours with full afterburn. Shame it was on my Microsoft Flight Simulator. You can but dream.

[@Horizon344]

Fighting a losing battle I'm afraid trying to keep these old jets airworthy without a fortune to fund it, they are by their nature high maintenance and require a government's financial support, & their parts were never meant for anything more than a short service life.

[@Horizon344]

@Nonya Business I was speaking about maintenance rather than service career life. There were 4 flying in SA 10 years ago, but now there are less after one crashed killing its pilot about 10 years back, the cause of the accident being poor maintenance due to the issues I mentioned in my first post.

[@gregtaylor6146]

@@Horizon344 - For the love of God, the reason that Lightning was lost was NOT DUE TO POOR MAINTENANCE, the pilot (Dave Stock) was a yahoo, Read the comprehensive crash report, it's widely available online.

[@RodFleming-World]

Used to watch these do vertical zoomies to 30k just about every day in the 60s

[@commandingjudgedredd1841]

So, you lived through seeing the halcyon days of the Cold War RAF, when these jets were in abundance. Kinda envious. My earliest memory was being scared to death by a Vulcan bomber, back in the Seventies, as it passed over the house I Iived in. The noise those engine made, were too much for my younger ears.

[@1chish]

There you go RAF - get your arses into gear and give these people a hangar and some equipment and let them bring another piece of British aviation history back to life. You should have kept one of every aircraft in good order ... shame on you.

[@bigcahoona7931]

1chish very well said! Keep your history a reality!

[@Oliver-ub1mb]

1chish that’s what they should have done imagine the flying displays with all sorts of aircraft

[@1chish]

Oliver - Exactly. And as Cahoona said it keeps the history alive for our kids to see and hear. when you have an aircraft that is just retired from operations it is not expensive to maintain it in flying condition. Maybe reduce the operating envelope and speeds to avoid stressing the airframe. And you keep the skills alive and the tools in place for the next lot of riggers and fitters and again it doesn't cost anything just how easy would it have been for the Government to have taken a Concorde from BA, given it to the RAF and said "Fly it and maintain it". They would have had a mob of ex BA Volunteers queuing up to work on it all certified and with all the knowledge necessary. Again not necessarily @ Mach 2 but just so people could hear what that beauty sounded like and see a totally unique aircraft flying.

[@bigcahoona7931]

U wot m8? Do they have a flying Sterling?

[@robertfrank8056]

1chish blame the government not the RAF!

[@oXoONESHOToXo]

There's 2 that fast taxi at Bruntingthorpe Areodrome

[@reaper378]

Simon Berry not any more unfortunately :-(

[@crazyman1650]

“Good order” when the aircraft has moss all over it

[@RodFleming-World]

Came with the Sidewinders still on. Golly

[@lightning1975]

De Havilland Firestreak Missiles. Dummy rounds.

[@JohnSmith-kb5ku]

We need more of this type of behaviour. Everyone should have the chance at owning a working fighter jet.

[@commandingjudgedredd1841]

Much as I would love to, but where would I keep my Lightning, I wonder? It wouldn't be able to go in the garage, and the garden is too small as well.

[@iancharlton678]

They were still flying in South Africa until recently, along with Buccaneer and Hunter.... 🇬🇧

[@user-bh4rx8mf8g]

The English Electric Lightning isn't a fighter, it's an interceptor.

[@havocmwf]

They have two flying Lightnings at Thunder City in South Africa I think.

[@johnviegas496]

they had 3 , 2 flying 1 more static than flying and some spares. 1 crashed during an air show which killed the pilot , RIP.

[@etiennebotha759]

They are still in Cape Town in very good condition

[@shortribslongbow5312]

Where’s your pressure washer man? You have history there what?

[@trashyspeeds266]

"To prevent corrosion" Pans to corrosion Lol

[@nigelclark7360]

Nice to look out of your window and see the lighting stood there, better to see it than a load of squatters camping in your garden.

[@Dibley8899]

The Lightening Interceptor. WoooooooooooooSSSSHH

[@rogersmart1393]

I'd be buying some t-cut.

[@fasthracing]

Truly amazing fighter. Google them!

[@casparthomas4775]

What a state it’s in

[@carsonstewart4944]

WOW

[@Doubleoseven502]

Lightnigs literally give me shivers. This is an aircraft from a different time, no computers and the USSR just around the corner. I read 'Thunder and Lightnings' by Jan Mark as a small boy. Ive been in the RAF 28 years now. In fact when i joined they were still operational and Binbrook was still open. Brilliant!

[@U2QuoZepplin]

I think this guy might really REALLY like Lightnings!? Lolz 😂 😱🥶🤯🤯🤣🤣

[@paulmillard1130]

It's possible I have some photographs of this aircraft in action at Binbrook in the eighties. When I recover from illness I would be happy to share them.

[@NorfolknStealth]

Cool..

[@pieterweatherall2826]

If you have a love of the Lightning Aircraft, one would have thought you would put some love into it. Its a sorry looking state and needs some TLC right down to the Firestreak missile. I was an Aircraft tech with a lightning squadron for many years. And looking at the very sad state of this once beautiful Aircraft makes me wonder why on earth you have it?????

[@gabrielbertoliniwissenbach797]

not even an engine cover? i cant imagine how many things are living in there

[@nervo6321]

I want one....

[@richardpoynton4026]

I wonder if those missiles have been decommissioned?

[@SergeantArchDornan2242]

they’d be usless anyways

[@lightning1975]

They are dummy rounds.

[@kiwsenior1966]

Jeremy Clarkson’s lightning still works I think

[@brianbrown4965]

south Africa has a few still flying

[@ifmbm332b]

I don't mind people who are smart enough to have the foresight to keep old birds like this but I don't see why can't go the extra mile and put something like this in a big old pole barn. The replacement cost of a handful of rotted parts would pay for the whole barn and the whole plane would be worth 10s of thousands more in a couple decades as parts become more and more scarce.

[@martinB68]

Well do not let it rot then!

[@raynus1160]

I'm hoping to find a CF-104 for my back yard.

[@finnegan6464]

CLAARRKSON!

[@Sumiori]

clarkson had one of theese

[@tfs203]

Lookslike a British Mig-21

[@goldiemusic8394]

Engineer " this is unbelievable , it's amazing what is can do !" Mig-21 : zat waz qute !

[@thetourettesgamer8851]

cucubau we know the lightening wasn’t a dog fighter but she could do what she was meant to do well and I’m sure if the Cold War went hot these beautiful birds would have downed a fair few fishbeds with their red top missiles

[@scootergrant8683]

@@thetourettesgamer8851 Well the Mig-21 could go just over Mach 2 (13,000m) else Mach 1 at sea level. Whilst the lightning could reach Mach 2.27 at 12,000m.

[@1903chrisholden]

is Mr Charles Ross contactable ?

[@gregtaylor6146]

I'm sure it was lovely ........ when it arrived.

[@michaeltaylor8835]

Jeremy whatsit has one

[@paulhunter123]

it needs a karcher pressure washer

[@scootergrant8683]

Probably would take off the paint which is peeling.

[@k86mtx27]

The British army needs to give there old Equipments to Eastern Europe

[@MrGuvEuroman]

God we build nothing now 😔

[@bulletproofkam7931]

Not true, Britain has then4th largest aerospace industry on earth, worth many many billions. We build lots, just nit lots of whole planes, but every Boeing 777 has 25% British built parts, lots of airbust planes have many British parts. We build all the parts so why don't we build the planes! We should still build them I think.

[@echo_cx0324]

Everyone loves our RR engines.

[@jumpfortyfour9965]

thunder city has them flying .

[@GSP21]

Jump Forty Four stopped flying years ago.

[@harbselectronicslab3551]

This should be undercover.......

[@strat0871]

Paint it black would say Mick... ;)

[@stevenbell7902]

It could do with a wash

[@fluffy6169]

It’s in a dreadful state. I hope he hasn’t had it for very long.

[@michaelwalsh7846]

A monumental achievment by men and women at the time, now our history is scrapped and not saved, lets all watch nex flix and "smart" phones.

[@ZweGGy]

*This is one giant leap?* For who? For German engineers?

[@mktm1290]

The fact we don’t have One, just one still flying baring in mind this was the only all British supersonic fighter built is a absolute joke!!! If this was American, with the feats it achieved (when it came out it was the BEST FIGHTER IN THE WORLD), they would have looked after it better and kept it flying. I know the safety record isn’t great, but I’m sure they could have used modern technology to improve that and us being a island, could simply just display it over the sea

[@tobywenman4769]

Not neccisarily, look at the f14 for example. There isn't a single one of those in flying condition anywhere in the western world

[@jernejfunkl8300]

This precious thing deserve some gently touch. In this condition looks very sad :(

[@BIBIWCICC]

Why we leaving our aviation heritage to clueless people? These jets should be cared for professionally not left to rot by amateurs!

[@danielnowotny]

What happened with the brittish? brilliant people some decades ago...

[@Sirdiggar]

still are?

[@ingmarsen]

Exactly , danielnowtny ...I'm afraid national decline !

[@danielbanks9937]

why did the uk usee vulcan bombers in the late 70s early 80s?

[@marks_sparks1]

PUDDING Rodgers Vulcans armed with Blue Steel missiles were still part of the secondary response of Britain's nuclear deterrent. Primary response was RN launched Polaris missiles. The Falklands was the last hurrah for the bomber. It was slowly withdrawn from service tge next year.

[@Nils_Hammarsten]

Tires can stand 5 landings....

[@maxbarber4675]

clean it atleast

[@Rambogner]

Keep it in good order.....it's falling apart

[@elmolikesdrugs7279]

Needs a bit of a clean

[@alistairscott137]

Needs a clean and a new cote of paint

[@reaper378]

He’s passionate about the aeroplane he says yet it’s just sat there rotting... He would be better selling some of the clutter in his Lightning Room to help preserve. It... What a shame...

[@PhillRobinson]

To be brutally honest its condition is appalling so I dont know where the phrase keep it in good order fits in.

[@brain8484]

He is just showing off , he obviously could not care less

[@xvdd1]

For $18,750 you can fly in one of these you will have to go to South Africa though they have 4 of them probably the only flying examples left.

[@brain8484]

Why don’t you clean it once in awhile

[@roderickjamesriddick6255]

You don"t even clean it

[@Chilternflyer]

It's very sad to see a guy who is lucky enough to own such an important piece of our aviation heritage, just leave it to rot in his garden. It's almost selfish.

[@barryrudge1576]

It could do with a good clean and paint. It looks very badly neglected

[@JosheyG34]

It is not in good order

[@Topper_Harley68]

Idiot letting it stand outside to rot. If it was mine that would have been in top shape.

[@janehill9764]

its not fighter jet. its jet fighter. what is wrong with you?

[@ContentGramophone-tp9gw]

Needs a good clean, an a canopy over it

[@olman5874]

why would i care about this guy

[@stephenwalters9891]

Shame it is decaying.