Westland Lynx AH7
First flying in 1971, the Westland Lynx to this day holds the international speed record for a helicopter at 249.09mph, new designs have gone faster but are not classed as a traditional helicopter. The landing skid equipped version of the Lynx entered service with the Army Air Corps in 1979 as the AH.1 and were regularly upgraded into the AH.7. The AH.7 served as the Army's anti-tank helicopter for the latter half of the cold war and throughout the 1990s, seeing service in both Gulf Wars. The Lynx AH.7 was replaced in the anti-tank role in 2005 by the Apache and was eventually retired from support roles in August 2015.
Headquartered at Bury St Edmunds, Project Lynx have made it their aim to return Lynx helicopters to the sky so that they can be remembered for the roles they have played in the British Military, the team also support the charity GeeWizz. The team acquired Lynx AH.7 XZ179 during 2019 and since then the helicopter has been based at North Weald under the care of Weald Aviation Limited. Over the course of the next three years, the Lynx was completely refurbished and returned to airworthy condition. On February 14th 2022, XZ179 returned to the skies.
Project Lynx will be brining XZ179 to RAF Fairford for static display at this year's Air Tattoo. XZ179 last appeared at an Air Tattoo in 2013 when it still served with the Army Air Corps as part of the Blue Eagles display team, a display that included this helicopter performing loops and rolls - aerobatic manoeuvres not many helicopters can do.
On display
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Static |