RAF Sentinel comes home

A RAF Sentinel surveillance aircraft has returned back to the UK after nearly four months on operations to return security and stability to Mali. The Sentinel R1 touched down at its home base at RAF Waddington to be welcomed by senior officers who paid… More information. If you are using a MOBILE DEVICE please use this link

Defence Secretary pays tribute to personnel tackling insurgents in West Africa

Defence Secretary pays tribute to personnel tackling insurgents in West Africa. Secretary of State for Defence Philip Hammond has paid tribute to the Armed Forces personnel helping to tackle insurgents in West Africa after a visit to Senegal and Mali. Mr Hammond was in the region to witness first hand the work of… More information. If you are using a MOBILE DEVICE please use this link

350 Military Personnel to deploy to Mali

Downing Street has announced that 350 UK military personnel are to deploy to Mali and West Africa to support French forces. Also offered were: the continued deployment of the RAF C17 and Sentinel aircraft; allowing the US to operate air refuelling platforms from the UK…The UK also offered to set up a combined joint logistics HQ in Mali but the French have declined this offer…More information »

RAF Sentinel deploys to Africa in support of Op in Mali

A Sentinel aircraft from No 5(AC) Sqn has deployed from RAF Waddington to an airbase in Africa, in support of French military operations in Mali. Defence Secretary Philip Hammond said: “Following discussions with the French, we have decided to deploy Sentinel, a surveillance capability that proved its worth in Libya and on an ongoing basis for counter-insurgency operations in Afghanistan. We have also agreed…More information »

Chief of the Air Staff in a frank interview with Martha Kearney

The Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Dalton, spoke this week to Martha Kearney of Radio 4 about what he termed ‘the most uncomfortable day of my time’ when he had to tell 170 trained aircrew that there were no longer jobs for them. He spoke about the RAF’s role in the Libya, Afghanistan, the spending cuts, RAF redundancies and rethinking on the scrapping of Sentinel. He said Prince William…More information »