English Electric Lightning – fotografie a videa

Tá Anglický elektrický blesk je nadzvukový stíhací letoun z dob studené války. Byl navržen, vyvinut a vyroben společností English Electric, která byla následně pohlcena nově vytvořenou společností British Aircraft Corporation. Poté byl prodáván jako BAC Lightning. Lightning byl jediný britský stíhací letoun Mach 2. Lightning byl používán Royal Air Force (RAF) a Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF). Ačkoli to byl primární záchytný stíhač RAF po více než dvě desetiletí, nikdy nebylo nutné zaútočit na jiné letadlo.

Zdroj: English Electric Lightning na Wikipedii

Tá English Electric Lightning F.53 was a variant of the British supersonic interceptor and jet fighter that was developed for export markets. It was sold to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, who used it for various roles such as interception, reconnaissance, and ground-attack. The F.53 had a unique design feature of having two vertically stacked Rolls-Royce Avon turbojet engines within the fuselage, which gave it exceptional performance and capability during the Cold War era.
Tá F.53 could reach speeds of above Mach 2 and had a range of about 800 km with external fuel tanks. It was armed with two 30 mm ADEN cannons and could carry various missiles, rockets, bombs, and pods under its wings. The F.53 was also equipped with a Ferranti AI-23 radar and an autopilot system. The F.53 served with the Royal Saudi Air Force until 1986 and with the Kuwait Air Force until 1977, when they were replaced by more modern aircraft.