Corgi 1/72 AA32712 Hawker Hunter T.Mk 7 RAF No.229 OCU, XL579, RAF Chivenor, England, Early 1960s

Limited Edition

The RAF ordered 55 Hunter Trainer Mark 7 (T.7) aircraft, with the first flying on 11th October 1957, and the first deliveries following shortly after. Only 45 of the 55 ordered were delivered to the RAF, with the other ten diverted to the Royal Navy FAA. The RAF also received six additional T.7s as conversions from ex-RAF F.4s. No.234 Sqn, RAF had flown Spitfires in the Battle of Britain and went on to fly Vampires, Sabres and Hunters until it was disbanded on 15th July 1957. The Squadron number was then allocated to one of the squadrons of No.229 OCU on 22nd October 1958, operating Hunter F.6 and FGA.9 aircraft to give Hunter pilots their operational training. The Unit was also allocated a few two-seat Hunter T.7s including XL579. On 2nd September 1974, No.229 OCU was re-designated as the Tactical Weapons Unit (TWU) and No.234 (Reserve) Sqn remained one of its components.

Hawker Hunter

Designed to exceed the performance of the straight-wing carrier-based Hawker Sea Hawk, the Hawker Hunter first flew on July 21, 1951. Early versions of this swept-wing aircraft suffered from a host of problems such as a short range (Maximum flight endurance was only about one hour) and an unreliable engine, but a series of refinements resulted in an aircraft that went on to become history's longest-serving British jet fighter, with almost 50 years on the front lines. The Hunter's high power-to-weight ratio and improvements in armament and fuel capacity made it an appealing export, and during its service history it was operated by 19 different nations.