The British Aircraft Corporation chose to conduct a series of trials on the unopened section of the M55 motorway near Blackpool, Lancashire, because the Jaguar was the only conventional aircraft that could be used from unprepared strips or motorways
Consider the intriguing video in this post, which depicts Tim Ferguson, a test pilot for the British Corporation (BAC), landing a Jaguar fighter bomber in Lancashire on April 26, 1975, just before the M55 was made accessible to the general public. The landing proved the aircraft’s ability to take off and land in unusual locations distant from major airbases during combat.
Notably, the idea behind these trials was that important airfields would be among the first Warsaw Pact (WARPAC) and NATO targets to be damaged or destroyed in the event of a conflict. This was something that was already taken into account in the design of the majority of Soviet combat aircraft but was not in the West, and would clearly benefit WARPAC forces. The British Aircraft Corporation chose to conduct a number of experiments on the closed section of the M55 motorway near Blackpool, not too far from the Warton factory, as the Jaguar was the only conventional aircraft that could be used from unprepared strips or motorways.
In his book SEPECAT Jaguar In Action, Glenn Ashley writes that “on 26-27 April 1975 a single Jaguar GR.1, XX109, was used to make a series of landings and take-offs from the M55 carrying a full weapon load, after all an unarmed aircraft would prove nothing. Landing took just over 400 yards to complete with the assistance of a braking parachute whilst take-off was carried out in 500-600 yards.
“The first landings were undertaken with only a centerline tank fitted and the aircraft was turned around, fuelled, and armed with four cluster bomb units before taking off again. The pilot for these trials was Tim Ferguson, the Deputy Chief Test Pilot, who stated that the trials threw up no major problems.
“The aircraft had to make a steep approach and high-angle landing using the bulk of the aircraft as well as the braking chute to bring the aircraft to a halt in the short length of the motorway. He stated that as the Jaguar had excellent steering and handling the landing was not overly complicated.
“Following the success of the trials four RAF Germany aircraft from No. 31 Sqn undertook similar trials on an unopened stretch of autobahn between Bremerhaven and Bremen in September 1977.
“Another series of trials were undertaken by the A&EE at Boscombe Down using a landing strip that crossed a runway, two taxiways with various elements added to make the surface very uneven. It seems the pilots soon became capable of taking off and landing on this strip with a feeling described as being like a ‘well-sprung limousine with four-wheel drive’.”
The F-35 Lightning II is one of the aircraft (capable of taking off and landing in tight spots) that BAE Systems, the company that succeeded BAC, is currently working on.
Photo by BAE Systems