Lightning Eject: The Dubious Safety Record of Britain's Only Supersonic Fighter

by Peter Caygill

"The English Electric Lightning entered RAF squadron service in 1960 and continued flying in the interceptor role until 1988. It had a stunning world-beating performance with a top speed in excess of Mach 2 and a climb rate that would take it to 40,000 feet in a little over 3 minutes. The aircraft’s safety record, however, left much to be desired. During a period in the early 1970s the attrition rate was the loss of a Lightning every month. There was a six per cent chance of a pilot experiencing an engine fire and a one in four chance that he would not survive.

This book looks at Lightning accidents and incidents in chronological order using the official accident reports, Board of Inquiry findings and firsthand accounts from pilots. It puts the reader very much ‘in the cockpit’. "

288 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 2012

Reviews

[Terry Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely not what I was expecting - it is essentially a very detailed and comprehensive catalogue of Lightning accidents and crashes. This takes the shine off my boyhood "poster plane" status.

I was hoping for more technical details of the aircraft's construction as well as operational events. I believe I need to look elsewhere for those.

Overall, a bit disappointing but an admiral effort at what it sets out to be.

[Andy Campbell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating

Excellent factual history of the darker side of the Lightning. While I was aware of the issues it’s great to see the whole picture. I couldn’t put it down.

[Roy Szweda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have read books by this author before especially his Lightning From the Cockpit and enjoyed them. The subject returns in this book dedicated to chronologically recording the fateful career of a plane that impressed me so many times at airshows as a kid and later.
The performance of the Frightening is still amazing and ranks among that of modern interceptors. However, this came at a price given the technology of the time. Like F1 it was the pinnacle of what men, materials and engineering could provide against a perceived threat half a century and more ago. As the author relates there were common causes for the pilot's escape via ejection, less their inability to fly correctly than a technical fault developing in flight or in preparations for take-off. It is the price to pay for a credible deterrent to North Sea intruders in the Cold War. Thankfully we lost only 14 aircrew as a result. The same could not be said for contemporaries like the F104 Starfighter and we all know how infamous that superb plane became (maybe a potential future subject for another author as it would be a huge tome). Peter closes the book with a useful comparison which is worth the cover price on its own.
I am not sure why I find such books fascinating but it must be a combination of the machine and pilots (mostly RAF here) and the sheer curiosity of why things work, then sometimes don't. The book is descriptive and readable but not too technical so it suits all-comers. Illustrated with appendices and index it is a work of dedication and worth.