Why this 1950s British fighter was still serving in 2014

[@GintaPPE1000]

Still flying in regular service as aggressors over here in the US. There's a fleet of 20 or so owned by ATAC, a private contractor based out of Newport News. Crazy to think this jet that took its first flight into skies filled with WWII warbirds is now regularly flying alongside F-22s and F-35s.

[@richsmith7200]

Lost one a while back, pilot ejected, but injured. Some guys fishing recovered the pilot, after witnessing the whole thing. It would be tough to top that fishing story. I wasn't paying attention, mistook a Hunter on approach, thinking it might be a Harrier doing a conventional approach landing, because of the color scheme. Then quickly realized it was a beautiful shiny Hunter.

[@leecutler1527]

If it ain't broke, don't fix it

[@gunner678]

It's still a great aircraft. I understand Lebanon has brought several back into service.

[@browning50cal]

I'm in Key West. The Hunters flew on Friday.

[@kylitoooooo]

I love how much history we share with our warbirds.

[@Jon.A.Scholt]

The Hunter is a gorgeous aircraft. It has a both an awesome 1950s aircraft aesthetic and a timelessness about it at the same time. Simple and elegant.

[@keyboardt8276]

It clearly looks dated though

[@Jon.A.Scholt]

@@keyboardt8276I probably should've been more specific. "Dated" and "timeless" are not necessarily mutually exclusive. Yes, part of the design shows its age; not having a blended wing, the placement of the horizontal stabilizer and the inlets all come to mind as being "of their time". However, the elegance and it's general aesthetic are always going to hold up. To me, it looks like an aircraft that "wants" to fly, if that makes sense. I'd say there are some other examples of planes like that, the Spitfire, B-47 and the F-23 all spring to mind as planes that look like they "want" to be in the air. There are also many example of planes that look like flying bricks; planes that look as if they're constantly struggling to stay airborne; the (in my opinion) hideous F-104 and it's stubby wings and the brick-like Phantom come to mind. So, when I say "timeless", I mean it's a timeless design aesthetically. It'll always be a beautiful aircraft regardless of whatever era and that era's standard of beauty.

[@riso9059]

@Will Rose why the hell is that relevant lmao

[@mikepette4422]

it looks "right" like a fighter jet should look. Like a kid imagines a fighter jet hes about to draw what he puts on paper looks a lot like a hunter or the f-11 tiger. 2 planes that have that look

[@brownnoise357]

@@keyboardt8276 The way they fly definitely isn't dated though. 👍

[@RJW998]

Hunters just look so 'right', simple aesthetic, beautiful. In a similar way, I also love the Northrop F5.

[@TjpjMusic]

Hawker Hunters were still being used by the USAF and US Navy (flown and owned by civilian contractors) for threat simulation as of 2020, and likely still are bing used. There were several of them stationed at NAF Atsugi in Japan when I was stationed there.

[@arc00ta]

We had several of them at NAS Point Mugu as well used as test beds and to tow drones, but there were two fatal crashes when I was still there in 2014 so I don't know if they're still using them.

[@chriscarbaugh3936]

Hard to believe! 👍

[@swiftusmaximus5651]

Also Ground Attack Training for Pilots

[@crabby7668]

@@arc00ta hi, when did they arrive at mugu? I lived nearish to mugu from 98 to 2000 and went to a couple of airshows there. Would have loved to see the hunters along with everything else there.

[@arc00ta]

@@crabby7668 I was there from 2010 to 2014, not sure when those planes got there. It's a pretty nice place to be honest.

[@giancarlogarlaschi4388]

1968 Santiago de Chile . I was sitting at home reading a book , everything was very quiet. Suddenly a Huge bang ! , I was 13 years old and had Never heard Anything like this ! It was one of the new Hawker Hunters FG9 aquired by the Air Force of Chile breaking the Sound Barrier to announce the Supersonic Era had begun !

[@mjc8281]

As a child my dad was a pilot in the RAF in the 60-80s and pretty much anyone I recall who flew them found the Hunter the best plane to fly of anything the RAF had of the jet-era...

[@gunner678]

I remember seeing the Hunter in considerable numbers suddenly appearing from a motorway tunnel during a Swiss mobilisation exercise. Very impressive.

[@sarkybugger5009]

On their wheels, hopefully. 😁

[@angusclark8330]

Oh, those crazy Swiss!

[@paulgolder9557]

One small error I noticed. The SABRINA panels did NOT collect the spent shells, they were ejected via the white tubes just behind the panels. The Sabrina panels did however, collect the links from the ammunition belt for reuse.

[@Deepthought-42]

Sabrina was a rather buxom pin up at the time. I wonder whether they were named after her 🤔

[@neiloflongbeck5705]

@@Deepthought-42 they were. Her real name was Norma Ann Sykes, sadly she's no longer with us as she died I November 2016.

[@Twirlyhead]

Gorgeous plane. Like an E-Type Jaguar with wings.

[@Macrobish]

When it comes to good looking aircraft the Hunter takes some beating in my eyes and the old saying “if it looks right it is right” comes to mind

[@sjoormen1]

My father was never in RAF well not suprising really, we lived in yugoslavia at that time, and though I never seen one of these in flesh, it's my favorite british fighter. It has beautiful lines.

[@stuartpeacock8257]

Aesthetically the finest looking operational jet fighter built

[@Tom-jk3hy]

In your opinion . And you know what they say about options !!

[@jaybee9269]

It is pretty!

[@danbrooks3697]

If it looks right it generally is right

[@billgiles3261]

I lived near Farnborough as a child. The Farnborough Air Show was a must see for us aircraft mad kids. I remember the sonic booms before they were banned and remember the great loop. I was so smitten by aircraft that I wanted to be a pilot but was let down by my eyesight. Nevertheless, I joined the RAF as an apprentice and subsequently worked on Hunters at Halton, Chivenor, West Raynham and Gibraltar. Point of correction: the tubes behind the Sabrinas were for the spent ammunition rounds (empty cases) the sabrinas were for the clips which held the belts of ammunition together. The light clips got sucked into the air intakes. Also the model shown did not have the gas deflectors on the gun muzzles, the smoke from 4 guns firing together could stall the engine so the smoke had to be deflected. I thought all Mk 6s had them.

[@louissanderson719]

I lived opposite the airport for a number of years. Loved the air show

[@paulqueripel3493]

A pity the locals have had it neutered.

[@johnboyce127]

I served with 208 Squadron R.A.F. Muharraq 1967-1969 as a airframe technician. Beautiful aircraft and so easy to service.

[@nagendrasingh7911]

Chief then you should know about battle of Longewala

[@gilbertmoyes2918]

Only one thing I ever disliked about the Hunter, was the spigot in the undercarrage bay that centred the main wheel. Let out an expletive every time I smacked my head on it. 🤣

[@andrewockenden]

I know the feeling......short as I am at 5' 6"

[@derin111]

As a child of the '60s, if you ask me to "draw a Jet Fighter"...a Hawker Hunter is still pretty much what you still get! Beautiful!

[@danielhenzphotography]

Probably the most elegant jet we had in the the swiss air force. Especially the trainer with the side by side cockpit. Very elegant lines.

[@vectrex740]

I happened to be in Lebanon when they put the Hawker Hunter back into service for the final time. I was out on the balcony when one flew right overhead at low altitude. I will never forget the sound that it made. What beautiful plane!

[@davidburrows499]

One of the most beautiful jets ever built, no doubt.

[@robertlassiter907]

I was at Clark AB in the Philippines in the early 80’s and the Singapore Air Force was there with this aircraft. I was talking to one of the maintenance people and he told me that the plane was Britain’s revenge on them for seeking independence. I believe he was coming from a maintenance point of view. Anyway I got to see them flying. Also got to see a Vulcan bomber at Nellis AFB, Nevada in the late 70’s. One loud plane. Actually I was around the RAF several times during my time in the USAF. Great memories. Long live the RAF!

[@Anglo_Saxon1]

Cheers brother 🇬🇧🇺🇸

[@robertlassiter907]

@@Anglo_Saxon1 Back at you, Karl! One of the times I was with the RAF was in Cold Lake, Alberta. They came with Harrier’s and came down to where our F-15’s were parked and turned to face us with seven of them line abreast. Rose in unison and preceded to hover doing all sorts of maneuvers and when they were done, bowed , sat down and taxied back. One of the coolest things I ever saw in my time in the AF. Was with them at Nellis AFB, Nevada and they had Buccaneers. I asked one of the guys what kind of plane it was and he said, Buccaneer with an accent that I couldn’t make out what he said. After about the third time asking him to repeat it he finally blurted out “Bloody Hell Yank’ Buc-in- ear”. To this day 40 plus years later I still smile thinking about it. Long winded, but there you have it. I love military aviation and I have deep and abiding respect for both the RAF and USAF. I was an aircraft electrician btw.

[@billgiles3261]

I was a maintainer and some aspects of the aircraft were a nightmare. Nevertheless, I loved it.

[@robertlassiter907]

@@billgiles3261 Some aspects of all aircraft were a nightmare but they’re all good memories now. Good on you, Bill!

[@johnwatt4490]

@Andrew_koala o

[@chrisaskin6144]

There should be no blame attached to the Hunter that crashed at the Shoreham Air Show, even though it was then a 'vintage' aircraft.

[@ptonpc]

Definitely. It was the pilot.

[@richardweldon2062]

It is such a shame the 'authorities' took out their revenge on the classic aircraft collections. There was absolutely no need to permanently ground these aircraft. it was done out of spite and airshows have been the poorer for it since.

[@charlieyerrell9146]

It was not the playns fault it was the pilot. He made a big mistake.

[@smcqueen2481]

FRADU ops based at RNAS Yeovilton. I was blessed at having a flight in a 2 seater Hunter flying over to Portland for the Thursday war. The pilot gave me the experience of flying very low skimming the sea. I was a Radio Operator and I worked in the office giving the pilots weather information, best time ever in the 80’s.

[@justandy333]

Bloody hell! Turning it around in 9 minutes! Fuel, ammo, rockets the lot. Thats Impressive!

[@johnp8131]

Standard! Many hands and all that. The hardest thing was getting the gun pack to align with the aircraft skin during 'profile checks'. Sometimes? We had similar problems occasionally when fitting camera packs to PR9 Canberras.

[@brucewilliams4152]

My dad, based at boscombe down 1952 to 1954, had two hunter mark/f2 under his charge with A squadron, experimental fighters and weapons development. These were wn888 and wn892, both built by Armstrong whitworth whitley,baginton Coventry. ( where he had served his apprenticeship harder leaving bablake school. He is uncomfortably dead, but he loved his hunters. He said they were the best he ever worked on. One of the fun things just before his death, was a visit to badminton air museum, where a very young man was working on a hunter, and trying to release a panel. I remember telling said youth to feel inside for a catch, or nob. The panel just fell away. So here is to.my dad, Richard Eric Clifford( taffy,),Williams.

[@chrisweeks6973]

The Hunter's a lovely aircraft. The F.2, being Sapphire-powered, was very much a Coventry aircraft. My dad was an AID Inspector at AWA's various facilities (Baginton, Whitley, Bitteswell) for 30+ years and most of AWA's Hunters - and many other types - passed through his hands. After retirement I got to work on/fly in a 2-seat T.75A, which was upgraded to the T.75S spec for Singapore's 140 Sqn - their 528 - in Queensland (VH-RHO). Great good fun!

[@WhiteIkiryo-yt2it]

07 for his service.

[@Hoves2]

Wonderful aircraft, but bloody difficult to maintain!! Worked on them in the 70's and 80's - Fuel tank changes and Engine changes. Still got a hole in my scalp from the spike in the undercarriage bay!!

[@steveanderson9290]

I had to laugh at your story, I have a similar scar from a P-3 Orion. Just 2 days ago I explained in a comment on another video why "the Americans" made everyone working on the flight line wear a vast and a "cranial"...Oh heck, I'll just re-post it here: "The vest is color coded so everyone knows what your specialty (or lack thereof) is without having to communicate verbally where verbal communication is often impossible. The "cranial" is to protect your head if you walk into sharp aircraft parts. They are everywhere, often difficult to see, and you WILL walk into one eventually. I suppose they also protect the aircraft from having your scalp or brain matter jammed into a pitot tube just before flight. Another prime use of the helmet is to stabilize David Clark headsets or aural sound attenuators so they don't get blown off your head, creating a hazard for you, and a FOD hazard for the aircraft. They have cutouts in the ear area to accommodate either."

[@johnp8131]

Ouch! Know what you mean. Jag's had a similar problem when loading them. Never had that problem on Vulcans though, I wonder why?

[@davidhunt3808]

My father flew Hunters and Sabres also Vampires in the 1950s. He always told me the Sabre and the Hunter were his favourite aircraft to fly . He belonged to 26 Squadron RAF spent a lot of time in Germany at Oldenburg . He called the Sabre and the Hunters a pilots aircraft . I still have the pilots notes for both the Hunter and Sabre .

[@baronvonklik7159]

My old dad was stationed at Oldenburg 1948-49. Oldenburg remained an raf base until 1956/7. A childhood memory of mine is the sound of the Hawker hunter, the now famed 'blue note'. Never forgot that howling note in the sky!. The base had a 'skiffle group' that used instruments such as a wooden tea chest with a broomstick fixed into it, the broomstick had a fishing line from the top down to the tea chest. This was the 'base'. Another item was a washboard. Dad was impressed!. Two of the members of the raf Oldenburg skiffle group later gained fame and fortune. William Perks, later known as Bill Wyman was one of the group members, as was Casey Jones. I still live near Oldenburg to this day!.

[@baronvonklik7159]

Late response!- My old dad was also stationed in Oldenburg, I was born in BMH Oldenburg Kreyenbrück. I remember the sound of the hunter very well, a childhood memory, unforgotten!. My dad was much enthused by a skiffle group that he had seen playing at the Oldenburg "camp". This group was equipped with a tea-chest bass, and a scrubbing board was also one of the musical instruments used. Turns out, one of the members was one William George Perks, later stage name Bill Wyman., one of the others in this group was Casey Jones. Apparently, "Bill Wyman" bought his first guitar in Oldenburg.

[@Jabber-ig3iw]

Possibly the most elegant jet aircraft ever made. Couple of highlights at air shows were the Swiss aerobatic team who used hunters and the stunning Miss Demeanour, fantastic display aircraft sadly retired from airshows and now in the US.

[@andrewmorgan1819]

Miss Demeanour was in South Wales, around 2020, for maintenance.

[@hydorah]

I think the Hunter is the prettiest jet fighter ever. Such clean lines and the inlet ducts looks ultra mean! Like a mini Vulcan - The prettiest bomber. Deadly beauty

[@TheDiablotak]

The Hunter has got to be one of the better looking aircraft ever built

[@johnp8131]

It is, as was its contemporary the Swift. But that was a 'Bag of Nails' according to my colleagues who worked on both.

[@DanteTheAbyssalBeing]

Such a beautiful aircraft. All the early RAF jets were stunning.

[@oliverreno4734]

My father was a Hunter pilot, amongst other things, in the Rhodesian Air Force (RhAF). By the time he was flying them in the late 70s, they were practically obsolete against the Soviet MIGs that were being supplied to Mozambique and Zambia. He ended up emigrating to South Africa and eventually became a consultant helping to convert the French Mirages over to the Atlas Cheetah, in the face of international trade sanctions. He has some pretty interesting stories that he could tell, but for the sake of brevity I will keep them to myself.

[@mattyallen3396]

I would say the rhodesians did more combat hours than anyone else

[@trepan4944]

Rhodesians never die....

[@ronwilken5219]

I spent a few years based in Gwelo, Rhodesia. My house overlooked the airbase and we often heard the Hunters and other aircraft leaving on sorties to the Bush. Working in the Lowveld near Rutenga I was helping establish an FM radio station for RBC. At the very top of a 600' tower built on a 1200' kopjie I could easily see the runway of the local JOC a few miles away. Suddenly a Hunter was a few hundred feet away in a vertical climb up the side of the tower. To say I nearly shat myself would be an understatement. Whilst second engineer at Guinea fowl transmitter station for RBC we were often "buzzed" by ex students from the adjacent school of the same name when they achieved their "wings" and officially became "Blue Jobs". Great times, 1969-1979 all gone now but for those of us that remember "Rhodesian Never Die".

[@vumba1331]

@@ronwilken5219 My brother, John Piggott, was also in that area during the Bush War and did some glider flying there.

[@ronwilken5219]

@@vumba1331 not sure it's the same family but I went to school in Northern Rhodesia at Gilbert Rennie in Lusaka, 1956-1962, and I seem to remember a chap by the surname of Piggott, came from just outside Lusaka but too far to be a day scholar so ended up in boarding at Herbert Stanley hostel. Don't remember his years but they overlapped mine. Be funny if he was related. It's a small world and getting smaller.

[@princetonburchill6130]

I was an apprentice electician working at the Boulton and Paul aviation plant in Wolverhampton. I have always been interested in aircraft, and while I was there I noticed several Hawker Hunter 30mm gunpods were being refurbished for the Royal Jordanian Airforce. A few weeks later, the Six Day War of 1967 erupted, virtually out of nowhere, and no doubt Hawker Hunters figured large in that conflict.

[@respighi3]

Aside from its performance, the Hunter is visually one of the most beautiful aircraft ever built. (...And hats off to Flt. Lt. Pollock for buzzing Parliament during noise abatement hearings. Who ever said the British have no sense of humor...I mean humour. LOL)

[@sarkybugger5009]

I agree. A thing of timeless beauty.

[@respighi3]

@Mark Hepworth It was an old saw on this side of the Atlantic many years ago, probably because US humor and UK humour sometimes have different points of departure. (Just for the record, I never bought it since I remember Peter Sellers, Alastair Sim, Dudley Moore, etc.)

[@RFSA180]

Britain invented humour. And the spelling of it.

[@gordimac9089]

I did an article on Flypast Magazine in the August 21 called "Under the Bridge." Cut a long story short, I met him in Princess Margaret's," at RAF Wroughton, although didn't realise at the time who he was. I had a slipped disc at the time when this person came in a chatted all us guys in the Ward, two Medics rushed and hustle from the ward, found later he had absconded from the "Psychiatric Ward." There was not reason, I thought he was Mental.

[@baselhammond1520]

Really appreciate the special footage of the black arrows.

[@hectorcruz3337]

9 minutes turn around time! That's outstanding.

[@chrismoll6862]

The Rhodesian Hunter pilots gained the most experience of all ,became the most profficient ground attackers in aviation history

[@wor53lg50]

RAF in Borneo,malaya emergency, suez and Oman aswell...

[@jimattrill8933]

In 1968-9 I worked on Hunter FGA9s and FR10s. One of these was the famous Tower Bridge aircraft which had a dayglo Tower Bridge on its tail. I loved the Hunters although changing the AVPIN starter on them was a pain in the eyes! The Avon was a great engine. We had one aircraft which had been hit in the engine by a 30mm projectile. It flew well enough to land normally though missing a few blades from the compressor. I went on a Harrier course to HS Kingston and saw them refurbishing all 'old' Hunters for sale. All ground crews loved the aircraft even with the spike in the undercarriage bay!

[@bigredracingdog466]

One of the best-looking jets ever. I flew against these in the mid-'80s in exercises with the Omani Air Force.

[@herdyantrikuncoro8703]

Indonesiaan had one, it's abandoned by the Dutch in West Papua, they burned and destroyed the plane, so it will not fall into Indonesian hand, but now it get restored and now on display in a museum in Yogyakarta, Indonesia

[@donsland1610]

I flew the Hunter RNAS Yeovilton in Somerset the late 1980's as an introduction to handling jet powered aircraft after years on helicopters. A great experience and a wonderful aircraft to fly. Eventually having completed my military time I flew the B757 which I always thought had similar handling characteristics.

[@paulmurphy42]

The Boeing 757 has similar handling characteristics to the Hawker Hunter? Please explain!

[@snowhawk58]

A late Linemanager of mine, (now sadly passed) used to Pilot the Hunter in the 50s & 60s He always said what a wonderful aircraft they were to fly.

[@andybeckett4480]

In July 2001, on the 50th anniversary of the Hawker Hunter's first flight, RAF Kemble in Gloucestershire played host to one of the most special airshows ever staged in the UK. The climax of the event was fifteen vintage Hunters flying a delta formation - a sight not witnessed for decades in Britain. I am proud to say that I was there, accompanied by a colleague of mine who had served his engineering apprenticeship on the Hunter production line.

[@ralphhathaway-coley5460]

I think that the Hunter is the most beautiful planes ever flown.

[@Chablar89]

One if the most gorgeous aircraft ever designed.

[@number8485]

I grew up with this great fighter in North Devon when they were based at RAF Chivenor.Our neighbour Ian Gordon-Johnson flew this great aircraft and was a highly rated Aerobatic pilot who put it through the falling leaf.Tragically he was killed in Canada after winning a DFC in Korea.His widow Alison remained a lifelong family friend and later became closely involved with the Imperial War Museum at Duxford.

[@Armadacon]

I also live in North Devon. Where I live. It was under the flight path of the Hunters as they returned To Chivenor. Oh. The Hunters of Chivenor and the Torrey Canyon is a subject of much embarrassment for the RAF.

[@number8485]

@@Armadacon Embarrassment?Why?

[@number8485]

@@breezytele Yes landing in Dulverton was never that comfortable and on the bumpy side. I found Winsford Hill en route to Exford was ok and usually a lot better I clear weather.😂

[@Armadacon]

@@number8485 The Chivenor Hunters were tasked in setting the oil spilled from the Torrey Canyon alight with rockets. They failed. As a result. They became a local laughing stock.

[@johnp8131]

@@Armadacon I believe they had to send in Fleet Air Arm Buccaneers after that to sort it out? At least that's what the guys off of 809Sqn told me at Honnington a few years later?

[@brianperry]

The transitionl period from Piston to Jet saw some beautiful aircraft...The Hawker Hunter is one fine example

[@giancarlogarlaschi4388]

About a year ago I was discussing this US Navy vs. Chilean Air Force " War " ( UNITAS ) on f.book...my colleague had been a Hunter Pilot ( Lieutenant Duncan Silva ). I was astonished to see gun camera footage with an F 14 , it's wings Fully opened , centered very close in my friend's Hunter gun sight ! This was " guns only " dissimilar Air Combat. Cheers! First Lieutenant / Airline Commander ( Ret . ) A - 37 Dragonfly - DH 115 Vampire.

[@raypurchase801]

The Hunter had a very quick turnaround time: Fast to refuel and rearm. It also had great reliability. In wartime, an air force with Hunters might have twice the serviceability of the opposing air force. Having twice the serviceability will double the size of your air force.

[@nickgrazier3373]

Went through A/tech/W Apprenticeship at Halton and at my pass out was posted to RAF Chivenor in 71 - 73 as armourer wasn’t on a Sqn so armed the lot. Also went into the hanger to do seats, gun packs and pylons etc. what a great introduction to RAF ground crew work. Hunter F6’s, F9’s and T’s were the main fare but also looked after the Meteor and JP in the Hanger. Weren’t they susceptible to flameouts in know I went to a crash site after flame out doing low level to pick up ammo from the gun pack etc.?

[@johnp8131]

Had a play with a Hunter gun pack in Bruggen Armoury in the early eighties, though I can't remember for the life of me why? As we only had Jag's there at there time. I was at Honnington before that in the seventies, 237 ocu used them to prepare aircrew for Buccaneers. Unfortunately I never got to work on them as I was only a 'Dumpy' then.

[@yogiguitar1]

one of the best looking jets ever

[@georgesabouzeid6786]

Lebanon Air Force is still using Hawker Hunter jets....Still having strong impact on ennemy...

[@moefuggerr2970]

The Mk-58 Hawker Hunters are flown by the ATAC squadron that comes to my base. They still keep them flying.

[@adoreslaurel]

On holiday in Singapore in 1982, i looked up and saw a Hunter fly over, was amazed that such an old aircraft like this was still in service.

[@yiming99]

Yes, RSAF's hunters were only retired in 1992.

[@adoreslaurel]

@@yiming99 Amazing aircraft.

[@SynapseDriven]

Always thought that the meteor was a bit "meh" but the hunter and the lightning were top shelf.

[@eddieboyd590]

As a young RN aircraft engineer, whilst on a visit to RNAS Yeovilton in the early 80s, I managed to blag a jolly/impromptu flight in a T2 Hunter. Long story short the flight was fantastic, I even 'had a go' at the controls , but the best bit was at the end, with a long slow approach to the airfield the wheels touched the strip, then the pilot 'opened her up' & we were off again for a quick circuit. If you get a chance take it, what an experience...

[@fightingfalcon1986]

There's a mistake here: during the 70's and 80' era the Hunter was adapted by some Air Forces to carry and launch short-range air-to-air missiles. For instance, the Singaporean Air Force Hunters were adapted to carry 4 AIM-9L Sidewinder missiles, while in other countries were adapted to carry a couple of Rafael Shafrir missiles. That's the case with the Chilean Air Force Hawker Hunters that were hastily adapted and prepared to that due to the imminent threat of Argentine military attacks during the late 1970s (the so-called Operación Soberanía - Operation Sovereignty in English - to invade the Chilean territory in three fronts and seize three islands at the Beagle Channel: the group composed by the Lennox, Nueva and Picton islands) The Chilean Hunters were introduced in 1967 and were withdrawn in 1994, superseded by the Dassault Mirage 5M "Elkan".

[@dcanmore]

10:06 Swiss Hunters with Sidewinders

[@ogukuo97]

With regards to Hawker Hunters in RSAF (i.e. Republic of Singapore Air Force) service, this is absolutely correct. Although IIRC, by the late 1970s, the F-5s have taken over the air defense role while Hawker Hunters were relegated to ground support, so they probably did not carry 4 Sidewinders as a matter of routine, but like the Skyhaws, more likely to carry a mixture of bombs and rocket pods.

[@Chopper894]

Enjoyed that. I was brought with the blue tone sound of the Hunter everyday as I lived near RAF Pembrey where they were stationed and would practice on the nearby firing range.

[@timgosling6189]

Nice to see Tremblers and the Black Arrows. Final FGA9 was a lovely aeroplane. Might also have been worth mentioning the work done by Hunters at FRADU, working with the RN up until the mid-'90s simulating attacks by anti-ship missiles and EW-related tasks.

[@moddeydhoo4094]

@Tim Gosling well recognised I have a very clear memory of a FRADU hunter stimulating a missile attack on HMS Yarmouth during a FOST work up in 1985. Probably the closest I got to a hunter.

[@jmrodas9]

I always liked the Hawker Hunter. Its shape is nice and has a purposeful look.

[@chriscarbaugh3936]

There is a two seat Hunter in Dutch colours in a field outside Aberdeen, Scotland. Owned by someone; just sitting but seemingly well enough kept!

[@TheNavalAviator]

My granddad used to service Hunters in the Swiss air force around 1960, wonderful aircraft!

[@soulboy0506]

I worked the Hunter flight line at SOAF Thumrait from 1980 to 1983, fantastic aircraft. I was lucky to get a flight in one while I was there as well.

[@gzk6nk]

The commentary says swept wings "reduce turbulence and also friction through the air". The actual purpose of swept wings is to delay mach shock effects on the wing, delaying the onset of mach stall. This enables the aeroplane to fly faster than it otherwise would be capable of doing.

[@nitricoxide5899]

The most gorgeous 2nd Generation Fighter.

[@jurgmesser7723]

The Swiss Flugwaffe (i.e. flight force, not airforce at the time 😁) was so happy with the Hawker Hunter as ground attack plane, that they purchased 60 more in the 70's (including 30 from India). The Swiss had 160 Hunter and used them till 1994.

[@TherconJair]

Also important to add here, is that Switzerland was already procuring the FFA P-16 and series production was starting as it got curiously very quickly dropped after one accident with a prototype and there are still rumours that the British intervened and lobbyied heavily for Switzerland to buy more units of the Hunter instead of their own product. The wings of the FFA P-16 lived slightly modified on in the Learjet 23.

[@duartesimoes508]

...and I was lucky enough, as a tourist, to see a diamond formation of Swiss Hunters over the Swiss skies, the only time in my life I saw them. That was in 1984. Being Portuguese, I never saw a Hunter flying over my Country. I did see a few Camberra PR Mk 9 in _Ocean Safari_ exercises - Daggers was their call sign, I was ATCo back then - and a few Belgian Mirage 5, apart from our own A-7Ps, an outstanding aircraft too. 😀 Nowadays it's almost either F-16 or F-16...

[@rhodesia1578]

We Rhodesians used the Hunter during our bush war from 1965 till 1980 .. a brilliant fighter jet ahead of its time !

[@TMorgan-j1j]

Rhodesia was great!

[@waynevanhardeveld4707]

Easily one of the most beautiful aircraft ever made

[@willtrent3077]

Whilst I was living in Bahrain in 1978/9, an Omani friend of mine had recently joined Gulf Air as a pilot. He had been flying Hawker Hunters with the Omani Royal Air Force. His claim to fame was that he had survived a crashed landing of his Hunter. The reason for the crash; he forgot to put the landing gear down!

[@pinkdispatcher]

Very interesting to learn more about the Hunter's history. However, the swept wing does not reduce turbulence, it reduces wave drag which occurs at transonic speeds, where local flow becomes supersonic in some regions. For fully subsonic flight, with no local supersonic flow, straight wings will have lower drag, which is why even today all commercial turboprop aircraft have straight wings, and only some rarities, which go transonic, such as the Tu-95 Bear and the Airbus A400M, have props and swept wings.

[@BryanJohnson4891]

Airflow can go supersonic on the wings at speeds as low as 500mph

[@DaveCompton5150]

Saw the one at the Pima Air Museum in Arizona. Absolutely a beautiful plane. Maybe the best looking plane there.

[@andrewockenden]

At the time of the twenty two ship loop the squadron was commanded and the Black Arrows team was led by Squadron Leader Roger L.Topp AFC** (the late Air Cmdre ret'd), who was succeeded by Squadron Leader Peter Latham AFC (the late Air Vice Marshal ret'd). Both 'Bosses' were admired and respected by we ground crew members of the squadron, though their styles of command were completely different. I had 3 wonderful years with the Black Arrows visiting several European Air Shows in different countries, and many in the UK, between 1956 and 1959. Happy daze indeed! Some of us, pilots and ground crew, still keep in touch through our squadron association.

[@giancarlogarlaschi4388]

1988 " Blue Sky I " Exercise , US. Navy Aircraft Carrier USS " Idependece " , versus Air Force of Chile Groups 8 ( Hunters ) and Group 7 ( F 5 E , Tiger II ). An F 14 A " Tomcat " is " Killed " by a Hawker Hunter , the G- 95 gun camera shows the " Tomcat " with its wings fully extended (open ) in incredible detail . The F14 A is fully centered at close distance, " 6 O'clock " position . " Don't Ever Underestimate your Enemy "! Captain Duncan Silva D. was the Hunter's Pilot. From the book : " Jet Fighters of the Chilean Air Force ". The Chilean Air Force Pilots had trained with RAF - SAAF - Israeli Air Force. Best Regards.

[@drinksnapple8997]

1991. Same thing happened when the USS KITTY HAWK showed up (the FACH were given the E2 and the F14's had their radars off) -- the F14's did not have a good day. Then next day the tables were turned. The FACH Hunters/F5's/Mirage got crushed like a puppy getting hit by a truck. It's called....."TRAINING".

[@giancarlogarlaschi4388]

@@drinksnapple8997 Well that's the same info I have , radars were " Off " to give FACH'S Figthers a chance.

[@arobatto]

Perhaps the most graceful lines found in any fighter jet aircraft.

[@andresscl2002]

❤❤❤❤ Hawker Hunter it was Chilean fighter in Sept 1973 Great memories

[@iamtoooldtocare]

I lived in North Devon as a child in the sixties and remember very well, lying in bed at night, listening to the Hunter engines being tested at RAF Chivenor. Great memories.

[@chrishewitt4220]

My father was on Station Flight Gibraltar 74-76. He helped maintain the flight of Hunters based there. I remember them well...

[@jorgemarcelobana61]

So beautiful, it was a great warrior, the great design, it was an advanced fighter

[@mitchdaytonam3]

Those collection pods don’t collect the cartridges, they collect the links - it was the links that were the issue. The cartridges are spent out of the small chute you can see behind the pod. My old man worked on hunters as an armourer starting in 67, then moved to Harriers. He said the cases coming out of the Aden when being fired on the ground was like a solid brass pipe.

[@MandeepSingh-iv7ee]

Hunter and mig 21 was made awesome history

[@robertpacific8319]

What an elegant aircraft.

[@lionkingray]

This's the first fighter jet I piloted when I joined the RSAF as a pilot, love it at first sight... :D

[@keefsmiff]

Sadly i saw one of these crash at the airshow at shoreham ,

[@nicolabennington203]

Love the Hunter my favourite. Live in Barnstaple so saw them every day flying from RAF Chivenor as a child. 😎

[@KABModelsExtra]

refueling and rearming in 9 minutes is impressive AF

[@kiereluurs1243]

Yes, but I can hardly believe that.

[@still_guns]

I was at Shoreham when WV372 went down. Hard to believe that was basically the end of Hunter appearances at airshows. Even though the crash was pilot error, the public and the CAA seem to be too scared with classic jets at airshows, as if they think they'll just drop out of the sky.

[@WhiteIkiryo-yt2it]

It's a shame because the RAF and historical ground crews are some of the finest in the world but the public who don't look into things like aviation history don't understand just how well these machines can last with a good team to maintain them.

[@malcolm824]

Alan Pollock was a legend

[@FallNorth]

I've heard many times a pilot saying along the lines "if it looks right - it's right". I'm not a pro pilot, but the hunter just LOOKS right. It just does!

[@griffith500tvr]

I saw the Hunter at an airshow in Swanage in the late 90, truly amazing, the only thing that beat it that day was the F4U.

[@charliegould5865]

Good old Hunter, I worked on those when I started in 1969 as an apprentice aircraft electrician at Hawker Siddeley Kingston upon Thames and Dunsfold in Surrey.

[@NiskaMagnusson]

i'm really not a museum sort of person but the storytelling here was very well done, kept me interested.

[@jimfoster2028]

The Rhodesians used them extremely effectively operationally and earned the highest accolade’s, and well deserved.

[@fionabourhill2801]

You are correct, we used them very effectively ,mainly due to our excellent techs who kept them flying during all the sanctions.As an aircraft and a weapons platform it was a pleasure to fly.

[@anobody7467]

@@fionabourhill2801 Rhodesian?

[@alfieburns9019]

@@anobody7467 Effectively, an apartheid state in Africa that believed the African Natives, living in their own homeland, weren't ready to go into the Rhodesian government in account of them being, more or less, too savage. This resulted in Civil War which led to the rise of Zimbabwe, (they renamed Rhodesia), and the Communist Robert Mugabe. Robert Mugabe proceeded to pretty much destroy Zimbabwe's economy and was, generally a tyrannical leader.

[@christianjforbes]

Noticed 3 Hawker Hunters flying out of Point Magoo late Feb’23 … still flying

[@wtpeasley]

ATAC maintains 7 Mk-58 versions in Pt. Mugu

[@melomane2010]

A very clean, elegant design. Reminds me of the Spitfire in that regard.

[@revy1063]

Christ the 2015 crash my dad was literally in the crash it was that close was nuts.

[@fatbass22]

Put simply an absolutely beautiful aircraft

[@bobg1069]

I had the pleasure of getting checked out on the Hunter 6 in the late 1970s, it was a truly beautiful aircraft. It looked good, the cockpit was perfect, if a bit dated and it was a delight to fly. I went on to the Jaguar and they were comparable in terms of flying satisfaction.

[@Caseytify]

The Hunter is a beautiful machine.

[@billkunert7281]

The Hunter is one beautiful air craft.

[@samharvey6194]

The 'Blue Note' these give off is incredible

[@stevetheduck1425]

It has become the standard sound-effect for jet aircraft passing by in British films, and even in episodes of Thunderbirds.

[@jonnsmusich]

I remember them flying over Epsom Downs. The sonic boom was loud.