Airfix English Electric Lightning F2A 1/72 A04054A

The astonishing pace of aeronautical development in the 20th century is perhaps best underlined by the contrast between the capabilities of aircraft designed either side of the Second World War. The story of the English Electric Lightning is one such example of this. Borne out of the realisation that Britain's post-war aircraft defences were completely unable to cope with the threat of fast, high-flying, yet comparatively conventional jet bombers in the same class as the Canberra, the resulting aircraft was a quantum leap over the aircraft in service just ten or so years before. Extreme performance requirements called for radical design solutions, which in turn necessitated the construction of two different development aircraft to test low-speed (Short SB.5) and high speed (English Electric P.1A and P.1B) qualities.

Once the design was satisfactorily refined, the first Lightning proper, the F.1, rolled out of the factory. Its dramatic design, characterised by thin, sharply swept wings and sleek fuselage, offered superb performance but left relatively little room for fuel. This meant that although very fast, the early Lightnings were suitable only for point defence. The design was steadily refined though, through the F.1A and F.2 to the much more capable F.3, which featured more powerful engines, new radar and weapons system. In order to address the woeful endurance exacerbated by the more powerful Avon's, the F.3A introduced a larger ventral fuel tank and kinked wing leading edges which also contained larger fuel tanks. The F.6, which featured jettison able fuel tanks over the wing, was considered to be the ultimate incarnation of the Lightning, but the F.2A was the last to enter service. It was an upgrade to the F.2 which incorporated many of the features of the F.6 but utilised the same A.I.23 radar and Firestreak missiles of the version from which it was developed.