English Electric Lightning

The English Electric Lightning was the first Mach 2 fighter to enter service with the RAF. It began life as a purely experimental design, and despite inadequate funding from the government, was developed by the manufacturer into a highly effective combat aircraft. It was also an export success, particularly with the Royal Saudi Air Force, paving the way for major export contracts of future aircraft with Saudi Arabia and other nations.

Lightnings were challenging to fly and maintain—one pilot famously likened it to ‘being saddled to a skyrocket’—but the aircraft was nonetheless revered by pilots and ground crew alike, who valued its astonishing rate of climb among other performance advantages. Among enthusiasts, it quickly became iconic.

English Electric Lightning: The RAF’s First Mach 2 Fighter is a comprehensive history and analysis of the aircraft, covering its design, development and service, with extensive illustrations, many previously unpublished, as well as appendices detailing production, service and performance data, and information on preserved aircraft.