Red Arrows Thread

netcompsys wrote:

TerryClark wrote:

I flew in a Hawk of 4 FTS in 1979; I'm sure the Arrows had them before that 'cos I recall one of them hitting the mast of a boat in Brighton Marina in '78. (Precision pilots the red arrows; any other pilot would have missed that mast; at least that's what the RAF instructors at Leeming told me in early '79)

May 17th 1980 S\L Johnson XX262

Ah, must've been my Nav instuctor at Finningley in about '85 then.
(NB In case you're wondering, instructors in the ATC cadets whether civilian or uniformed were able to go on one week instructors courses to help teach the various aviation subjects to cadets; Leeming was Principles of Flight, Finningley was Air Navigation, Halton was airframes; I also did a range supervisor course at St Athan.)

This is not exactly new news now but I thought it was worth posting in this thread. The Reds will be away for a large portion of the airshow season next year as they tour North America during August & September.

This is not great news for all the many seaside airshows that take place during these months which are aimed at Family audiences.The Reds being the main draw for many.

---

News courtesy of - The Royal Air Force website - www.raf.mod.uk/display-teams/red-arrows/...es-on-landmark-tour/

The Red Arrows are set to carry out their largest ever tour of North America as they paint the skies of the US and Canada red, white and blue.

Announcing the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team’s historic nine-week programme, Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said the Red Arrows would display across the Americas, reaching millions of people and showcasing the very best of British aviation.

He said: “Our Red Arrows fly the flag for Britain across the globe, both in the skies and on the ground, and this tour will not only showcase their teamwork and aviation excellence, but also promote our great nation to billions of people across the world.

“After an incredible year celebrating RAF100, it seems only fitting that the Red Arrows prepare to illuminate the skies of our closest allies in 2019, celebrating and strengthening our incredible relationship with the US.”

The Red Arrows’ return to the US will mark the first significant deployment to North America in a generation, with the team last touring in the country in 1993.

And the start of the tour next year will see the first display the team has put on in the US in a decade, following a short visit by the Red Arrows to the east coast of the US in 2008.

As well as displaying at a range of shows and events, the team will also attend engagements promoting the UK Government’s GREAT campaign, visit local schools, meet with business leaders and showcase the very best of British culture.

The tour is expected to generate £2.5bn in direct foreign investment for the UK.

Air Vice-Marshal Warren James, the senior RAF officer responsible for the Red Arrows, said: “The deployment of the Red Arrows will demonstrate the global reach and capability of the RAF and our continuing support of the United Kingdom’s defence and commerce industries.

"We are very much looking forward to our visit in August and September of 2019.”

The US programme comes after the Red Arrows’ successful 2016 Asia-Pacific and the Middle East tour.

The nine-week, 20,000-mile deployment visited 17 countries and drew a global audience of a billion people, with the team displaying in China for the first time.

---

Steve

...& so the new home for the Reds following Scampton's closure will be Waddington, Wittering or Leeming. ...............

---

RED ARROWS TO MOVE TO FROM RAF SCAMPTON TO ONE OF THESE 3 SITES

Three air bases have been identified as a potential new home for the Red Arrows air display team, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has said.

They are RAF Leeming in North Yorkshire, RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire and RAF Wittering in Cambridgeshire.

RAF Scampton, the current home of the display team, is to close in 2022 it was announced in July.

The MoD is now to carry out detailed suitability studies of the three sites.

The Red Arrows' breathtaking airborne stunts with multicoloured vapour trails in distinctive single-engine red jets have become a familiar sight in the summer skies at air shows and military events.

The news of "potentially suitable future locations" for the team came in a letter from Tobias Ellwood, the Minister for Defence, to Karen Lee, the Labour MP for Lincoln.

RAF Scampton - also home to 617 Squadron as they prepared for the Dambusters mission in World War Two - has housed the Red Arrows since 2000.

Six hundred people currently work at the site near Lincoln.

The closure of Scampton was announced to Parliament as part of the MOD's plan to sell off about one-third of its estate to make nearly £3bn of savings by 2040.

Courtesy of the BBC News website -
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-47617062

stevie wrote:

...& so the new home for the Reds following Scampton's closure will be Waddington, Wittering or Leeming. ...............

---

RED ARROWS TO MOVE TO FROM RAF SCAMPTON TO ONE OF THESE 3 SITES

Three air bases have been identified as a potential new home for the Red Arrows air display team, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has said.

They are RAF Leeming in North Yorkshire, RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire and RAF Wittering in Cambridgeshire.

RAF Scampton, the current home of the display team, is to close in 2022 it was announced in July.

The MoD is now to carry out detailed suitability studies of the three sites.

The Red Arrows' breathtaking airborne stunts with multicoloured vapour trails in distinctive single-engine red jets have become a familiar sight in the summer skies at air shows and military events.

The news of "potentially suitable future locations" for the team came in a letter from Tobias Ellwood, the Minister for Defence, to Karen Lee, the Labour MP for Lincoln.

RAF Scampton - also home to 617 Squadron as they prepared for the Dambusters mission in World War Two - has housed the Red Arrows since 2000.

Six hundred people currently work at the site near Lincoln.

The closure of Scampton was announced to Parliament as part of the MOD's plan to sell off about one-third of its estate to make nearly £3bn of savings by 2040.

Courtesy of the BBC News website -
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-47617062

My "tenner" is on Waddington.

But where would all the 'intelligence' aircraft presently at Waddington move to? They wouldn't want to share the airfield.

Sentinel goes out of service 2023 I think. Rivet Joint goes to Fairford alongside the USAF ones, maybe around the same timeline. Leaves at least one hangar vacant....

Theyd be crazy to get rid of Sentinel, in this day and age you need all your ISTAR assets, I bet they still regret the PR9s going.

And back in 93 the contract monitoring team at Cranwell had phone call from HQ Support Command asking how many Hawks the hanger at Barkston could accomodate.

And wherever they go it causes problems for the other users of the airfield, during the winter workup they can fly up to six practice sessions, by my maths thats two hours maybe more that the airfield isnt available to anyone else.

Now that is the most sensible suggestion Ive ever heard. Maybe they should have stayed at Kemble?!