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Built to fly low and fast over very long distances, the Buccaneer reigned supreme during the Cold War years both as a carrier-borne and land-based strike aircraft. For 30 years, first with the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm then with the Royal Air Force and the South African Air Force, the Buccaneer's achievements in the low-level strike role approached the proportions of legend. Roy Boot's classic design is unbeatable in many respects even by the latest and most potent fighters and this much-loved aircraft is still immensely popular. It enjoys a unique reputation as a tough and reliable shipyard foundry-built aircraft and is sorely missed by those who flew it or worked on it and regarded it as irreplaceable.
Pressed into service at short notice during the Gulf War, the Buccaneer and its aircrews finally proved in the most spectacular manner what many had been saying for years, - that the Buccaneer was a truly outstanding machine that could only be replaced by another Buccaneer.
As a tribute to the mighty Buccaneer, artist Michael Rondot has painted a striking and powerful image of a Buccaneer "smoking" at 540 knots at low level.
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