Look inside a Lightning Video!

Thanks for the positive comments!! 🙂

Scott, this is truly “investigative aircraft documentation” of the highest order!

Yet another of your great vids! You guys do a fantastic job at Cranfield, thanks.:cool:

Fascinating. Ever thought of potholing as a hobby?!

Tried potholing a couple of times, and loved it too!

Fascinating. Ever thought of potholing as a hobby?!

Hi Deskpilot,

I used to be able to squeeze down there too when I joined the Lightning team at Cranfield I was only 11 years old! Since then I’ve discovered beer and curry, so not much chance of fitting now!

We left the intake blank,. and front cover sheets on simply because it was really windy at the weekend, and it’s really hard to re-sheet!!

I’m not sure when the guide veins were fitted, but apparently they were to help stop the No2 engine starving of air. According to an ex RAF helper on 458, they were added to stop him and a WAAF getting up to their antics in air intakes!

Cheers, Scott

As an Air Radar Fitter, I had to squeeze past the radar bullet quiet often as it tended to get stuck and couldn’t be pulled out from the front but needed some persuasion from behind. In those days I was a lot slimmer than I am now and actually enjoyed being in there. Mind you, it a lot brighter in there without the intake blank fitted. I don’t recall any guide vanes though so when were they introduced. I was with 19(Leconfield), 23(Luechars) and 74(Coltishall) Sqdns.

What a fascinating bit of footage, thank you.