Another one of the ex Royal Saudi Air Force Lightnings that UK museums feel the urge to paint into fake RAF markings. This one is pretending to belong to 11 Squadron. Delivered to the RSAF on 01 Jul 1968 as 53-681. Later reregistered to 306 and then to 210. Returned to BAe at Warton as ZF583 on 14 Jan 1986. Delivered to the museum on 08 Jan 1989.

Delivered to the RAF as XS209 on 10 Feb 1964. To St Athan on 07 Oct 1974 for ground instruction as 8409M. To Halton for GI in Apr 1977. Sold Sep 1995. To the museum 24 Jun 2006.

Delivered to the RAF on 08 Mar 1954. SOC 19 Nov 1981. Moved to the museum in Apr 1988.

Delivered to the Royal Navy on 28 Jan 1953. To RAF Halton for ground instruction as 8634M in Jun 1979. To RAF Syerston for police dog training in 1982. To Specialist Spares, Hull in Mar 1989 and finally to the museum in Aug 1998.

Built in the UK in 1958 and registered G-APLG on 04 Mar 1958. The registration was last cancelled on 11 Feb 1999. The aircraft was noted without a propeller in 1968 and was dismantled in 1971. It moved through various owners until being acquired by the museum. Originally the plan had been to bring it back to an airworthy standard.

Displayed in 85 Squadron markings. Delivered to the RAF on 14 May 1954. SOC 24 Apr 1966. To the museum for display on 15 Jan 1977.

Delivered to the RAF on 29 Oct 1968. WFU and allocated 9098M on 14 Nov 1991. Moved to Carlisle for display and to moved to the museum on 22 Apr 1998. Displayed in Treble One squadron markings.

Delivered to BEA on 13 Apr 1961 as G-ARPP and transferred to British Airways on 01 Apr 1974. PWFU on 10 Mar 1983. To Glasgow airport fire service as a ground trainer on 12 Dec 1983. Broken up in summer of 2003. Nose preserved and first seen at the Museum in Jan 2006.

Its not carrying Navy titles but this is the colour scheme used by the Royal Navy. This is a composite. The forward part is from WB584 with the tail section from WG303. WB584 was delivered to the RAF on 28 Mar 1950. Later reduced to a PAX ground trainer as 7706M. It was acquired by the museum on 16 Jul 2016.

Built new in the UK. Registered G-BRHL on 07 Aug 1989. PWFU on 19 Nov 2010.

Painted as WZ792 but appears to be a composite based on WZ784. WZ784 was delivered to the RAF on 03 Sep 1952. Sold 09 Mar 1988. To the Museum during 2001. WZ792 was burnt in Jul 2010 after spares recovery.

Built in the USA in 1981 and registered N6121Q. Later reregistered to N40SU then to N40SX. To the UK register as G-BNNR on 15 Jun 1987. PWFU on 08 Sep 2011. Was being used as a children's play thing in Nov 2017.

Believed to be built in 1936 it never made it onto the UK civil register. It had one test flight at Cark where it refused to take off and nosed over destroying the propeller and airframe. It was repaired but no more attempts were made to fly it. After being stored for many years it was restored and displayed at the RAF Millom museum until in closed in 2010 when it moved to Carlisle.

Registered in the UK as G-BDTT on 17 Mar 1976. De-registered on 02 Feb 1987.

Delivered to the RAF on 01 Apr 1953. SOC 04 Dec 1968. To the museum during May 1990.

After initial use in recce pod trials, XV406 moved to the A&AEE for more trials work. On entering RAF service, she served with 23, 29, 43, 54 and 111 Sqns. Retired to gate guard duty at RAF Carlisle and later moved to the Solway site, now displayed in the impressive markings of its last operating unit. I was pleased to reunited with this Phantom, having a photo of me sitting in its cockpit at the Finningley RAF Review in 1977.

Over 28 years of service with the RAF, this 1952-vintage Canberra served with a long list of units, as follows, with credit to Damien Hurst's excellent Thunder & Lightnings site: Stn Flt RAF Waddington, Stn Flt RAF Upwood, 231 OCU, Stn Flt Upwood, 231 OCU, 56 Sqdn Cyprus, Stn Flt RAF Wyton, 100 Sqd, 231 OCU, 360 Sqdn and finally with 231 OCU again. Sold back to BAC in 1981 and stored at Samlesbury till 1988, when acquired by the Solway museum. It is to the credit of the hard-working staff there that I found almost all of the outdoor aircraft in unusually fine condition after recent repaints.

Built as a Gannet AS.4 and entering service in 1957, XA459 was converted to ECM.6 in 1961 and served 831 NAS at Culdrose until 1966. After use as a ground instructional trainer, it was moved to the museum at Cardiff airport in 1979 and when that collapsed in the late 1980s, passed through a series of private owners, landing up at White Waltham in 2006, appropriate as that is where Fairey built and test-flew Gannets. Acquired in very poor condition in 2020, once again the Solway volunteers have done a brilliant restoration job.

A long-term Carlisle resident having arrived at the museum in 1977. Operated by 238 OCU, North Luffenham from 1955 to 1958, this night-fighter Meteor spent most of its service life as a research and communications aircraft at RAE Llanbedr.

Looking splendid in a 56 Sqdn repaint completed this year and looking so much better than the grey colours in which it was previously displayed, this is really ex-Saudi Lightning ZF583. It was first flown in 1968 as G-27-51 and delivered in July of that year to the Royal Saudi Air Force at Jeddah. Served as 53-681 with 6 Sqdn and 2 Sqdn and with the type's withdrawal from Saudi service, BAe bought it back (as part of the deal to sell Tornados) in January 1986. After hopes to sell on the ex-Saudi machines proved fruitless, they were offered to various museums.