Preservation Profile

Mike Davis' Kemble-based

MidAir Squadron has made a big impact on the UK airshow scene in 2014, with the introduction to regular display flying of both Canberra PR.9 XH134 and the team's first Hunter XL577. Both of these superbly restored vintage jets have been regularly displayed in 2014 and XH134 was a major feature in the July 2014 issue of Aeroplane.

XL577 is a Hunter T7 that was built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd at Blackpool and first flown by Frank Bullen on April 30, 1958. A total of 374 Hunters were built by Hawker's Squires Gate facility at Blackpool and XL577 was one of the last to come off the production line before the factory closed in 1958 and production transferred to Kingston.

Initially XL577 went to 19 MU at RAF St Athan for storage and was then issued to 229 OCU at RAF Chivenor on August 25, 1958. Here it was used as a gunnery trainer and issued with the unit codes ES82. The aircraft remained at Chivenor until November 1974 when 229 OCU (and XL577) moved to RAF Brawdy in West Wales.

Two years later, in November 1976, the OCU was renamed as the Tactical Weapons Unit and XL577 remained on strength until April 1979 when it was flown to RAF Kemble for a major overhaul.

After completion the jet was allocated jointly to 237 OCU and 2 TWU at RAF Lossiemouth but by March 1981 XL577 was retired from service flying and relegated to a ground instructional airframe at the RAF College Cranwell, bearing the serial 8676M.

In 1996 the aircraft was declared surplus and was sold to Ronan Harvey, the Chief Executive of Delta Jets. It was dismantled and delivered by road to Kemble where Delta Jets put the aircraft through a complete restoration to flying condition over the next five years. The project included the replacement of all the aircraft wiring and fuel tanks and when completed the jet was painted in the striking markings of 92 Sqn's Blue Diamond display team. Although the scheme depicted XL571, when in use by the team in 1962, it retained its authentic serial as XL577.

The aircraft returned to the skies (as G-BXKF) on September 20, 2004 and was operated by a Delta Jets syndicate until 2009. The organisation closed its operations in 2011 and XL577 spent a period in external storage at Kemble until Mike Davis's MidAir Squadron acquired it with the intent to complete a major overhaul and restoration to flight status.

The aircraft was placed into the care of C2 Aviation Ltd at Kemble where Chris Vaughan, Charlie Kyle and their team gave the jet a complete overhaul. In November 2013 it was given a repaint into the MidAir team colours of all-over-silver and XL577 successfully flew again in March 2014, this time registered G-XMHD.

Plans to return the MidAir Squadron's second Hunter T.7 (XL600/G-RAXA ex G-VETA) to the skies is taking slightly longer than anticipated due to the squadron's unprecedented booking schedule for the Canberra and Hunter this season. However, during August Hunter T7 XL573/G-BVGH was temporarily loaned to the MidAir Squadron (and painted in the MidAir house colours) in order to allow the team to fly their full three-ship routine during the 2014 season. It is anticipated that XL600 will replace it for the 2015 season onwards.

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