The Lightning has been your aircraft since the first page CC... it was a truly great fighter, it's unique configuration and performance...Single-seat twin-engined fighters were unusual, the Whirlwind probably the first...the Germans tried it with the Fw 187, which originally was a single-seater,[ but their RLM changed that] - The Lightning was the only major production single-seater twin - ...I know it came too late, but I often wonder how the DH Hornet would have compared....Like the Mosquito, it was made of wood too, which in a time of shortages, was a stroke of genius....I don't think they built them to last all that long, and considering their ability to absorb punishment, or be repairable, they were a powerful, economic, weapon - They made a great aircraft in the Lightning, all-metal, they were a hardy aircraft, and a 'Cadillac' to fly - I think it's a shame they didn't keep more, like the Mustang. - I can't get my head around them being ' better ' than a Mosquito, or a Hornet, but they certainly were a fine and 'rare' aircraft and have earned their legendary status...