RAF Tornados clocked 7,000 hours over Libya

Oct 07

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RAF Tornado’s have been operating at such a pace in support of NATO’s Operation UNIFIED PROTECTOR, aimed at protecting the civilian population of Libya from attack, they have now clocked up over 7000 flying hours; that’s the equivalent of approximately 2 years worth of training sorties back in the UK, at a much increased flying rate.

Operating from Gioia del Colle air base in southern Italy the tempo of operations has been relentless, and 9 Squadron has been at the forefront of the mission.

The Tornado Squadron was one of the first fast-jet squadrons to deploy to the area, Officer Commanding 9 Squadron, Wing Commander Andy Turk, explains how quickly they had to prepare.

“We deployed here at very rapid notice, we had returned from our pre deployment training exercise (Red Flag) in the United States. In fact, we got back on the Monday, by the Wednesday we were ‘spinning up’ for Ops and on the Friday we were prepared to launch; a historic 3000 mile storm shadow sortie, the first UK launched combat sortie since the Second World War.”

With nearly 30 years frontline Service, the Tornado aircraft have been proving their worth.

Over the skies of Libya they have integrated closely with the Typhoons; indeed with their combined, multi-role capabilities they have proven to be a ‘powerful and potent’ force. Wg Cdr Turk described how this integration has contributed to the success of the RAF’s air campaign and has earned the respect of the coalition.

But its not all about the aircrew, the engineers and Air Maintenance Mechanics (AMMs) of 9 Squadron have been working 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to keep the Tornado aircraft flying, allowing them to complete all their missions, it’s been a huge team effort. Wg Cdr Turk added.

“We’re a really tight team, from the engineers to the aircrew. With the rapidly changing environment that we’re operating in, we have frequently had to scramble aircraft to support the ground effort in Libya and protect their civilian population from attack.”

Despite the unyielding pace of operations, the Tornado force has never failed to deliver, reaching almost 1400 sorties in just over 6 months.

Source:Royal Air Force

RAF launched Tornados against targets in Libya

Aug 16

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The Royal Air Force has once again deployed Tornado GR4s from its base in Britain against targets in Libya using Storm Shadow missiles. The RAF Tornado aircraft launched from RAF Marham in East Anglia to conduct 8-hour round-trip missions over Libya. Armed with state-of-the-art Storm Shadow missiles, the six GR4 aircraft flew long distance sorties from the Norfolk base to target elements of Colonel Qadhafi’s military command and control facilities and air defence infrastructure.

The Tornado GR4s jets, some from RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland and some from Marham, were playing a crucial role in protecting Libyan civilians as authorised under United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1973. The involvement of the Tornados, together with the Typhoon fighters forward located in Italy, means that the UK can strike both air and ground targets as required by NATO.

The Tornado Squadrons have played a leading role in the military operations in Libya since operations began in March, carrying out precision strikes, making use of the GR4’s high-tech Litening 3 targeting pods and a variety of highly precise guided munitions.

“This mission has, once again, proved the GR4’s capability at long range. The engineers and crews comprised of personnel from Marham and Lossiemouth. I feel great pride in having the opportunity to command such an adaptable and capable Tornado force that proves its agility time and time again, “ said Group Captain Pete ‘Rocky’ Rochelle.

Source: Royal Air Force