Editor's Foreword

LC 24 RRC
HELICOPTERS
ATK/SPT 43: 6 Lynx AH MK7; 37 Sea King HC MK4
AD • SAM • SP HVM
RADAR • LAND 4 MAMBA (Arthur)
Air force 39,750; 140 active reservists (total 39,
890)
Air Command operates from a fully integrated HQ at High
Wycombe. Its role is to provide a fully operational and
flexible combat air force, comprising more than 500 aircraft
and 42 stations or units, and it supports operations in the
Gulf region and Afghanistan as well as maintaining an
RAF presence in Cyprus, Gibraltar, Ascension Island and
the Falkland Islands.
Air Comd operations are delegated to two operational
groups. No 1 Group, the Air Combat Group, controls the
combat fast jet aircraft (Typhoon, Tornado and Harrier), and
has eight airfields in the UK plus RAF Unit Goose Bay in
Canada. No 2 Group, the Combat Support Group, controls
Air Transport and Air-to-Air Refuelling (AT/AAR); ISTAR
and Force Protection assets. No 22 (Training) Gp recruits
RAF personnel and provides trained specialist personnel
to the RAF and other two Services.
RAF Expeditionary Air Wings, designed to generate
a structure better able to deploy units of agile, scaleable,
interoperable and capable air power, operate from RAF
Main Operating Bases as follows:
RAF Waddington – No 34 EAW (ISTAR); RAF Lyneham
– No 38 EAW (Air Transport); RAF Coningsby – No 121
EAW (Multi Role); RAF Cottesmore – No 122 EAW (Fighter
/Ground Attack); RAF Leuchars – No 125 EAW (Fighter);
RAF Leeming – No 135 EAW (Fighter); RAF Marham –
No 138 EAW (Fighter/Ground Attack); RAF Lossiemouth
– No 140 EAW (Fighter/Ground Attack); RAF Kinloss
– No 325 EAW (Maritime Patrol & Surveillance). The
deployable elements of each station form the core of each
EAW, reinforced by assigned Capability-based Module
Readiness System (CMRS) personnel and elements of the
Air Combat Support Units (ACSUs). EAWs enable the RAF
to train as cohesive air power units capable of transitioning
quickly from peacetime postures and deploying swiftly on
operations.
Flying hours 210/yr on fast jets; 290 on tpt ac; 240 on
support hels; 90 on Sea King
fORCEs By ROLE
Ftr 1 sqn with Tornado F-3
FGA 5 sqn with Tornado GR4; 2 sqn with Tornado
GR4A
Multirole 4 sqn (incl 1 Op Eval Unit) with Typhoon
Off support 2 sqn with Harrier GR7/ GR7A/GR9/ T10/T12;
ELINT 1 sqn with Nimrod R1
MR 2 sqn with Nimrod MR2*
ISTAR 2 sqn with E-3D Sentry; 1 sqn with Sentinel
RMK1/ 4 Beechcraft King Air 350 Shadow R1; 1
sqn with Predator A/B UAV
SAR 2 sqn with Sea King HAR-3A/Sea King HAR-3
naTO Europe
171
Tkr/tpt 1 sqn with Tristar C2; Tristar K1; Tristar
KC1; 1 sqn with VC-10C1K; VC-10K3/VC-
10K4
Tpt 4 sqn with C-130K/C-130J Hercules; 1 (comms)
sqn with BAe-125; BAe-146; AS-355 Squirrel;
2 BN-2A Islander CC2; 3; 1 sqn with 4 C-17
Globemaster
OCU 5 sqn with Typhoon, Tornado F-3; Tornado GR4;
Harrier GR7/T10; Nimrod MR2
CAL 1 sqn with Hawk T MK1A/Hawk T MK1W/
Hawk T MK1
Trg Units (including postgraduate training on
203(R) sqn) with Sea King HAR-3; Beech 200
Super King Air; Dominie T1; Grob 115E Tutor;
Hawk T MK1A/Hawk T MK1W/Hawk T MK1;
Tucano T MK1 (Shorts 312); T67M/M260
Firefly; Sea King HAR-3A
Hel 3 sqn with CH-47 Chinook; 2 sqn with Merlin
HC MK3; 2 sqn with SA-330 Puma; 1 sqn
Griffin; 3 sqn with Sea King HAR-3
EQUIPMENT By TyPE
AIRCRAFT 287 combat capable
FTR 40: 28 Typhoon (13 F2, 15 T1/1A); 12 Tornado F-3
MULTI-ROLE 30 Typhoon (28 FGR4, 2 T3)
STRIKE/FGA 168: 113 Tornado GR4; 55 Harrier GR7/
GR7A/GR9/GR9A
RECCE 29: 24 Tornado GR4A*
ISTAR 9: 5 Sentinel RMK1; 4 Beechcraft King Air 350
Shadow R1
MP 11 Nimrod MR2*
ELINT 3 Nimrod R1
AEW 7 E-3D Sentry
TPT 66: 6 C-17A Globemaster; 19 C1/C3 (3 C-130K; 16
C-130K-30 Hercules); 24 C4/C5 (14 C-130J-30; 10 C-130J
Hercules); 6 BAe-125 CC-3 5; 2 BAe-146 MKII; 7 Beech 200
Super King Air on lease; 2 BN-2A Islander CC2/3
TPT/TKR 25: 3 Tristar C2 (pax); 2 Tristar K1 (tkr/pax); 4
Tristar KC1 (tkr/pax/cgo); 10 VC-10C1K (tkr/cgo); 4 VC-
10K3; 2 VC-10K4
TRG 375: 38 Firefly M260 T67M; 9 Dominie T1; 101 Grob
115E Tutor; 117 Hawk T MK1/1A/1W; 6 Hawk 128 (28 on
order); 95 Tucano T1; 9 Harrier T10/T12*
HELICOPTERS
SPT 131: 40 CH-47 HC2/2A Chinook; 1 CH-47 HC3
Chinook in test; 28 HC MK3 Merlin; 34 SA-330 Puma HC1;
25 Sea King HAR-3A; 4 Bell 412EP Griffin HAR-2
TRG 43: 31 AS-355 Squirrel; 12 Bell 412EP Griffin HT1
UAV • RECCE/ATK 3 MQ-9 Predator B
MSL
AAM AIM-120B/AIM-120 C5 AMRAAM; AIM-132
ASRAAM; Skyflash; AIM-9L / AIM-9L/I Sidewinder
ARM ALARM
ASM Brimstone; Storm Shadow; AGM-65G2 Maverick
ASSM AGM-84D Harpoon; Stingray
BOMBS
Conventional Mk 82; CRV-7; BL/IBL/RBL755 (to be
withdrawn from service by end- 2009);
Laser-Guided/GPS: Paveway II; GBU-10 Paveway III;
Enhanced Paveway II/III; GBU-24 Paveway IV
Europe (naTO)