XL231 “Lusty Lindy”

XL231 first flew on 28 December 1961 and joined 139 Squadron at RAF Wittering on 31 January 1962. In November 1963 it went back to Handley Page for Blue Steel stand-off missile modifications. It returned to Wittering on 17 July 1964.

After 139 Squadron disbanded in late 1968, it was stored. In April 1970 it was ferried to Woodford to become the K.2 tanker development aircraft. It flew again on 1 March 1972 and spent five years on trials, including with the A&AEE at Boscombe Down.

It joined 57 Squadron at RAF Marham on 8 July 1977. In 1982 it helped train crews in air-to-air refuelling for the Falklands campaign, then flew Airbridge sorties to the islands. It moved between 55 and 57 Squadrons in the mid-1980s.

With 55 Squadron it supported Operation Granby, the 1991 Gulf War and carried Granby nose art with the name 'Lusty Lindy'. It was retired on 15 October 1993 and made its last flight to Elvington on 25 November 1993.

Owner Andre Tempest and a volunteer team keep it running. Fast taxi runs have stopped because the museum does not own the runway, but static engine runs continue. In 2025 it was repainted in its early-1980s camouflage.

XL231 stands at Elvington and is kept in running order; check the museum's Thunder Days and events calendar for public engine runs.