In awe of the EE Lightning...

[lasermonkey]

I got to sit in the one that's at Duxford. It's surprisingly cramped and the thought of doing 1400 mph in that confined space with not a great deal of forward visibility gives me an awful lot of respect for the guys that flew them.
Apparently, the lightning at Duxford became airborne during a ground run-up with the engineer in the seat!
Watching the lightning takeoff, point it's nose upwards and then disappear was impressive to say the least. I don't think ive seen anything to match it.

[daveyh]

I thought the Widowmaker was the Lockheed Starfighter?

There was also a WWII American twin engined bomber (I forget which one) nicknamed The Widowmaker, they obviously didn't copyright it.

[koneguitarist]

I was working on the line at Rnas Yeovilton in `79 when a Starfighter crashed. scared hell out of me, I could see it going round the back of airfield as I was on top of Lynx Helicopter. Then a bit of silence then pilot ejected but aircraft was already dropping and had turned sideways, so Pilot ejected straight out parrallel to ground and hit the steel fence.

[bertie]

Pilots hated them, so I was told (by RAF pilots). Nicknamed 'The Widowmaker', every time they landed it had to be treated as a full emergency landing.

not according to my eldest bro, who was in the RAF in the 70s and 80s.................(hence why I was able to sit in one....(RAF Henlow)...but it was 1974 and I was 10 !!! )

[chillidoggy]

There was also a WWII American twin engined bomber (I forget which one) nicknamed The Widowmaker, they obviously didn't copyright it.

I think you might be mixing it up? Could have been the Northrop Black Widow night fighter.

[daveyh]

I think you might be mixing it up? Could have been the Northrop Black Widow night fighter.

Nope, brief Google tells me it was the Martin B-26 Marauder

[daveyh]

not according to my eldest bro, who was in the RAF in the 70s and 80s.................(hence why I was able to sit in one....(RAF Henlow)...but it was 1974 and I was 10 !!! )

Experiences differ, and RAF bases are a lot like micro-towns and what goes in one doesn't necessarily hold in another. My experience, directly from pilots in the late '80s, came from working on Lightning avionics.

[BlindLemonAde]

I used to see them at RAF Finningley in ooh, '65 to '68, until we moved South. I'd have been less than 10yo... they and the Vulcans used to scare the crap out of me and my sisters.

Phantoms were cool, too...

[guitargeek62]

not according to my eldest bro, who was in the RAF in the 70s and 80s.................(hence why I was able to sit in one....(RAF Henlow)...but it was 1974 and I was 10 !!! )

Seriously?! My mum would have been there at that point too - she'd have been 5! :O My Gramps was an MOD Policeman, hence how we all ended up down in Cornwall when he got a transfer to RNAS Culdrose.