Chase Planes

[Martin H]

The TSR sig is doing the flight test side of the project this year for telford, not just TSR's but the other types involved in the program, im down to do a Lighning F-6 that was in Joes notes as a chase plane, untill i found the aircrafts service history on line,

The bird in question is Lightning F6 XR755. Now theres a quite well known photo of this bird parked at warton with XR219 on its left wing and cranberry WD937 on it right wing.

now for XR755s history or at least the first year or so.

TSR-2 was cancelled as we know on the 6th of April 1965.
XR755 had its first flight after leaveing the production line on the 15th of july 1965. And at that time she wasnt an F 6, she was built as an F 3A. she was stored at warton pending delivery to 33MU on the 10th of december 1965, so the photo of her along side XR219 was after cancellation and 755 just happened to be a spare airframe that looked clean (she was gleaming in the photo) and would also explain why there are no markings bar roundles and serial.

So in short XR755 wasnt on the TSR-2 program, just a stored new build air frame that was free for a photo shoot.

XR755 still survives privatly owned and displayed in her owners garden aproxx 11 miles NW of plymouth and from the web search i did to unearth her service history, shes viewable on google earth. (albeit nothing more that a lightning shaped blur)