Mysterious Lightning T5 picture

My God this could run forever:D

It is XS458 – there was never any doubt about that.

red star

spoke to the crew who stripped the paint off 458’s tail and their was indeed a red star uncoverd…..so i am guessing it is indeed xs458

Its XS458 100%!

If you look at the green camo its the same distance from the LTF badge on XS458 but touches the badge on XS456 therefore its XS458. Hope this helps

ebay

a picture for sale on ebay shows XS456 with the code dx and the same paintwork as mentioned in previous post, so this might suggest that it is 456 and not 458
have a look

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=180387462361&viewitem=&sspagename=ADME%3AB%3ASS%3AGB%3A1123&salenotsupported

No one bought the collection, shame really, it will be sad to see a man’s life time hobby broken up and sold piece-meal.

I was slightly tempted but realised even if I bought the collection my commitments will not allow me to do anything with it for the next few years.

🙁

Thanks to everyone that has contributed to this topic – very enjoyable to keep up with and the answer I wanted too!!

I feel some home made decals coming on now.

The Truth

I think the person who is selling the Ltg Pics wont mind me saying that he is pretty much the “Guru” on Ltgs if he says its XS458 DX then thats 100% correct. I think the matter might be closed ! As an aside its easy to see that the Mks are the same on later pictures of 458 which left an outline of where the star was. XS456 had a star as did F3 XP750 (Albiet smaller) . For those of you interested as to the History of why aircraft were marked such perhaps i can fill in some gaps. Each RAF station had an annual exc called TACEVAL- tactical evaluation, through out the year mini exc called mini ivals and maxi vals prepared the stns for the big one ie Taceval. Day 1 of these exc started with a “Defector ” aircraft trying to penetrate UK airspace this then required a fighter to scramble intercept it and bring it home. various procedures took place to Shepard the “defector back to home base. Hence the Dayglo Star on the Ltgs. These were Dayglo sticky backed fablon not paint. If you were tasked with flying the Defector mission it did involve a land away however …. at a price once you had defected the normal over zealous RAF police/Regiment normally dragged you out of the Cockpit stripped you down to your shreddies and left you spread eagled on the tarmac as a defecting pilot! Hope this finally clears the Mystery picture up- oh and its taken at Binbrook outside the LTF hanger in front of the 11 sqn hanger . rgds SF

Pointless consider it dropped:):)

I have no idea what else you want to know really Quid. The thread was about the Ebay photo. It’s XS458, photographed at Binbrook, carrying exercise markings. End of story really.

absolutely but somebody else must have seen it:eek:

surely theres another photo of it somewhere that shows the correct reg:confused::)

Well if someone has £15k to spare, we might be able to find out – you’d take more than one photograph of that right!

ok see attached immage of 458 taken by me in 87/88.

No evidence that the tail code has been changed from an X to a Y maybe a little smudging to the right of the Y were the last code has been painted over, but an X hasent in my opinion been messed with to make a Y

The star is there but it is very faint also no evidence of CCCP.

Chox the star is very evident in the pic you posted but if it did have CCCP on it as well then that would show up too so please show us all the rest of the plane with CCCP clearly visible

Perhaps were all right, perhaps all three tubs(419,456,458) have had stars on in the last 6 years or so of there flying lives but only one had the CCCP on surely theres another photo of it somewhere that shows the correct reg:confused::)

As I said previously, if there’s still any confusion as to the tail code, you just need to look at the “DY” more clearly. The positioning/spacing gives it away – the “Y” was obviously made from an “X”.

XS459….4.78 coded X/LTF….11.78 coded DX/LTF….27.3.81 damaged Binbrook in landing accident.repaired but didnt fly again until 13.3.84 coded DW/LTF remained DW until retirement 12.87 (2,306hrs)…now at West Walton Highway, Norfolk

If i was a gambling man (which i’m not) my money would be on XS459.

Nope.

Chox’s photo proves ‘458 was definately one of the Tubs and the one in the ebay photo and the code works out right, but it’s I guess Elder Forest in 85 or 86 not ’84 as I suggested.

I think it was ‘456 and ‘419 the two Tubs used in Holland in ’84.

ok assuming the pic was taken in the 80s…..say 79-88…..some histories i’ve found out:-

XS456…..11.80 coded DT/LTF….8.85stored….2.86 coded DX/LTF remained DX until retirement 5.87 (2,314hrs)…now at Wainfleet.

XS458…12.1.79 coded T/5sqn….10.80 coded AT/5sqn…5.3.85 coded DX/LTF…..8.86 stored….10.86 coded DY/LTF….remained DY until retirement 30.6.88 (?,???hrs)…now at Cranfield

XS459….4.78 coded X/LTF….11.78 coded DX/LTF….27.3.81 damaged Binbrook in landing accident.repaired but didnt fly again until 13.3.84 coded DW/LTF remained DW until retirement 12.87 (2,306hrs)…now at West Walton Highway, Norfolk

If i was a gambling man (which i’m not) my money would be on XS459.

Note that dates are not exact

If you compare the camouflage in Tim’s picture to the Ebay picture, they just about line up exactly looking through my glasses, so not too sure what you mean?

The marking at the top of the fin – is it an an aerial that is visible in the first picture but not in the last picture?

If so, then they must have repainted the top of the fin as well as changing/amending the code because there is a difference in the paintwork.

If you compare the camouflage in Tim’s picture to the Ebay picture, they just about line up exactly looking through my glasses, so not too sure what you mean?

OK, with the passge of time i may have lost the plot but is what is being said here that the aircraft in the original photograph coded DX and the aircraft in Chox’s post coded DY the same aircraft XS458?

If so, then they must have repainted the top of the fin as well as changing/amending the code because there is a difference in the paintwork.

Or am I being blonde (or grey/silver in my case) ?

‘Soviet’ Shacks

Pagen 01,

Sorry, with the passage of time and more snow on the roof, I don’t recall what the receiving station called the Excercise Inject. From our input perspective, the official name was ‘Red Can’.

Oh, oh, is that a Black Omega pulling up…..

camlobe

I’m not sure what code 456 would have carried. My notes don’t say a great deal other than that she was coded “DT” at one stage. I doubt if 456 was ever doded “DY” though as I have a feeling that 458 was the only aircraft to carry that particular code.

I have only hazy memories of pictures showing aircraft carrying exercise stars but I can’t recall any aircraft other than 458 carrying the CCCP markings – that’s not to say that other’s didn’t though, I just can’t remember seeing any pictures. The above photo does appear to have been taken at Cranfield though and the Ebay photo appears to be Binbrook.

Spitfireman, you might remember that I spent some time driving round in your Landrover too – I was the lad you drove through the C-5A at St.Mawgan’s show one year – we used to stand and natter on an annual basis back in the good ol’ days!