Phantom
Thunder
Overall
size of prints 28” x 12½"
An
F4 Phantom of 92 Squadron, based at Wildenraf, Germany, about to
embark on yet another QRA (Quick Reaction Alert) mission to intercept
potential hostile aircraft during the Cold War. You can almost hear
and feel the power of this incredible aircraft as it roars down
the runway.
Signed
by the artist and two former Phantom pilots.
Please see below for details of the signatories of this edition.
As with all our prints, this edition was signed in the presence
of Sean Whyte, owner and publisher of SWA Fine Art Limited.
Philip West is recognised as one of the world’s finest aviation artists. Collectors of his original oil paintings span the globe, many waiting patiently for his next breathtaking canvas to appear. Self taught, Philip has won many accolades for his paintings, not the least of which was the prestigious Duane Whitney Award for Excellence at the 1997 American Society of Aviation Artists Exhibition.
Air Marshal Sir Christopher Coville joined the RAF in 1964 as a Flight Cadet at RAF College, Cranwell. Initially serving as a Lightning Pilot on 5 Sqn, he later undertook a tour on the Lightning OCU. In 1973 he converted to the F4, serving as a QW1 on 43 Sqn. Upon promotion to Sqn Ldr, he took up a post on the Phantom OCU at RAF Coningsby. Staff tours as the fighter specialist at the CTTO, Staff College and NATO followed before he resumed flying F4s as OC Ops Wing at RAF Stanley in the Falkland Islands. In 1983 he assumed command of RAF Coningsby where he oversaw the conversion of the station from an F4 to a Tornado F3 base. During this same period he also flew the Spitfire and Hurricane aircraft of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. Formerly Deputy Commander in Chief Allied Forces North Europe he is currently Commander in Chief RAF Personnel and Training Command and a member of the Air Force Board as Air Member for Personnel.
Air Chief Marshal Sir John Allison joined the Royal Air Force in 1961 and trained as a pilot. His first two tours were on Lightnings, but in 1970 he was posted to fly Phantoms as an Exchange Officer with the United States Air Force. Thus began his relationship with the main aircraft of his career, a relationship that only finished when the Phantom was retired from Royal Air Force service in 1992. Indeed, he made the last Phantom flight in the RAF when he delivered XV497 to RAF Coningsby. That aircraft is now preserved at RAF Waddington. Also in 1992, he led the Queen’ Birthday Flypast; the chosen formation was a close diamond of sixteen Phantoms, to mark the type’s imminent retirement. The aircraft he flew on that occasion, XV474, can be seen at the Imperial War Museum’s airfield at Duxford. Also relevant to this painting is the fact that Sir John commanded RAF Wildenrath from 1982 to 1985. He well remembers sights as the one depicted. Sir John ended his career as the Commander-in-Chief of Strike Command, retiring in 1999.
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