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I know there are more than a couple of aviation nuts on this forum.

Thunder City in Cape Town operates the last four airworthy English Electric Lightnings. Sadly, on Saturday one was lost and the pilot killed.

I hope this does not sound the death knell for Thunder City and their beautiful collection of war birds from the 1960's.

Peter

That's very sad to read, particularly about the pilot. RIP.

The UK CAA would not give the Frightning a Permit To Fly as a war bird which is, think, why they moved to SA.

I don't imagine the authorities like the idea of taking passengers on Mach 2 flights so this could well be the end of the joy rides, if not air show participation.

Better book your ride quick!

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That's terrible news. Condolences to his family.

Any word on what caused the accident?

I watched a program on the South African channel about the EE Lightning and the team restoring them. Fascinating stuff. It makes it all the more heartbreaking to read news like this when you see the hard work and dedication the team put into getting these birds in the air again.

The pilot reported that he had an hydraulics failure and indicated that he may need to eject. He flew away from the crowd to an unpopulated area before reporting that he was having difficulty controlling the aircraft and was going to eject. Moments later he reported ejection failure

Peter

Picture taken the night before the crash

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Damn that picture gives me the shivers.

Grew up loving the Lightning, an incredible plane for it's time.

Terrible news about the pilot.

Thats a real shame to hear. The Lightning is a real beauty, they kept one at Cranfield where I was based during my training. Every so often they'd do accelerate stops on the runway, you'd hear it from miles away! was a real sight.

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