Words can hardly do justice to the spectacle of witnessing the RAF’s most pointy aircraft in their natural habitat – just feet away in close formation at 300 miles-an-hour. A highlight of an unforgettable Guild visit to RAF Brize Norton in July this year.

Sqn Ldr Caterina Thompson, our host, warmly welcomed a good cross-section of Guild members on a damp summer’s day in Oxfordshire. An RAF coach then whisked the group to the 99Sqn lecture theatre where Wing Cdr Steve Foster-Bazin, OC Ops Wing, gave a brief on the activities at Brize Norton.

Home to No.2 Flying Training School upon its opening in 1937, the airfield subsequently housed the Heavy Glider Conversion Unit, acted as a base for successful D-Day missions, and the RAF’s Transport Command Development Unit. It was passed to the Americans in 1952, and developed from a modest post-war airbase into the expansive airport it is today. RAF Brize Norton is home to three main squadrons: 101 Squadron operating 15 VC10s, 216 Squadron running 9 TriStars and 99 Squadron with 6 constantly tasked Boeing C17s.

In addition to these core activities, more than 30 flights are provided annually by charter airlines. Even though heading for sun and (lots of) sand, these flights are no holiday trips. It’s a very busy airbase; as duty was rotated in Iraq, more than 22,000 troops would pass through Brize Norton in just 8 weeks. Currently the so-called “Air Bridge”, between the UK and Afghanistan, carries around 32000 tonnes of freight and a whopping 223,000 passengers annually.

As well as the three regular squadrons on site, other residents include the Joint Air Delivery and Test and Evaluation Unit, the Defence Movements School and No.1 Parachute Training School (who carry out around 13,000 descents a year) including the RAF Falcons parachute display team.

The 1st aircraft of the Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft (FSTA) will be delivered to Brize in October 2011, with a full capability of nine aircraft in May 2014. These A330 aircraft will be fitted with a defensive aids suite enabling use in operational theatres and are seven times quieter than the VC10 (restricted from flying into certain airfields due to noise) – a significant capability enhancement. A quarter of FSTA pilots will be civilians, acting as RAF Reserve Officers when operating the aircraft for the RAF.

The tactical and strategic airlift aircraft, A400M is also due to join the Brize Norton fleet – falling-in between the C130 and C17 aircraft. First aircraft delivery was planned for March 2014, with December 2014 as the ISD with 7 aircraft delivered – however with the programme around 3 years behind schedule this may well move ‘to the right’.

All these new aircraft represent a major increase in operations from the base, however most of these aircraft will be on deployed operations.

The Master led a vote of thanks to our hosts, concluding a very insightful presentation, and so we headed for the first aircraft visit of the day.

Immediately after their arrival ceremony in 2001, the first C17s to arrive at the base were filled with freight and promptly despatched for Iraq – a level of use that has not wavered since. As the Guild group approached a towering C17 being prepared for imminent flight to an exercise in the US, it became clear just how routinely these aircraft endure harsh environments – the leading edges visibly blasted from operations in hot sandy places.

Climbing up the internal staircase to the cockpit, Flight Lt Andy Crichton gave a tour of the flight deck. Andy highlighted the Heads-Up Display (HUD) as particularly useful, especially when landing in poor visibility. On approach, a horizontal line shows a representation of the runway threshold, and the flight path vector is shown by a circle with tick marks (the ‘pig’). So the idea is to use a little imagination and ‘get the pig on the dance floor’ by setting the Rate of Descent with power – the huge flaps directing engine thrust to provide a significant vertical thrust vector. Once the rate of descent and HUD picture are set, just a nudge of power is added on touch down, with no flare!

The C17’s performance is nothing short of remarkable – at a landing weight of 130,000lbs it has a landing roll of just 3000ft (915m).

Back in the hold, Sqn Ldr Stu Lindsell gave an overview of the C17 platform. It can carry 80 tonnes - eight times the payload of a Hercules. That equates to 2 Lynx helicopters, 3 apaches, one Chinook or a Challenger 2 tank. The C17 has a sporting turn around time too, allowing for offloading and post-flight servicing, in as little as eight hours.
Load master Flight Sergeant Jase Penn, the third member of crew (along with the two pilots) gave a demonstration of the flexibility of the cavernous C17 cargo hold. Quick change roller rails were shown to be rapidly and easily configured – in seconds, rather than hours on previous aircraft. The onboard winch is capable of hauling aboard a massive 100,000lbs.

With all of these impressive capabilities, the C17 is most publicly identified as the large grey aircraft seen at RAF Lyneham, carrying out the sad task of repatriating fallen service men and women.

The C17 currently conducts operations to Afghanistan via an en route fuel stop, as it has no Air-to-Air Refuelling (AAR) capability. So this was not to be the Guild transport for the day; onwards to the next Squadron.


Lockheed L-1011 TriStar
216 Squadron dates back to 1917: as part of the Naval 16Sqn, inherited by a new RAF in 1918 as 216 Squadron, with the motto “Bearing Gifts”. Formed as a night bomber squadron, it flew DH10s, then in 1942 flying Dakotas until 1949. In 1955 the Comet joined the squadron, and finally in 1984 the Lockheed TriStar arrived, providing an air transport and AAR capability.

Of the TriStar Fleet (3 C2s, 4 KCs and 2 Ks), the C2s variants are ex Pan Am jets and used primarily for air transport. Operation Herrick is the squadron’s bread and butter, a 7hr15min flight into Kandahar five to seven times per week, with over 200 passengers on board. When asked about the biggest challenge faced on these missions? “Staying awake!” the crew responded.

Flight Lt Ed Johnson, Master Engineer Dave Simpson and Chief Tech Si Camm showed us aboard a TriStar KC1 (serial ZD950). What the C1 lacks in contrast to the C17, is a fuel tank inerting system – to prevent build up of combustible gases as fuel is used. This is however being fitted to the TriStar’s replacement, the FSTA.
Typically capable of donating about 40 of 110 tonnes take-off fuel - at a massive 3 tonnes per minute (faster than any other tanker) – the aircraft itself burns around 8 tonnes per hour. The traffic light system on the refuelling outlet gives refuelling status to ‘refuellees’: Red: Stand off, Amber: Stand by, Green: Fuel. At the front end the view is good, the TriStar boasting one of the biggest windshields of any airliner flight deck!


VC10 101 SQN:
The day culminated in a visit to 101 Squadron, home of the VC10. Formed in 1917, 101 Squadron suffered the highest casualty rate of WWII Bomber Command, as the largest squadron in the RAF. Spanning all but the inception of powered flight, the squadron has seen a vast array of aircraft from the Bristol Blenheim (1939-41) to the Vulcan (1957-82) and since 1984 the VC10. The youngest VC10 in the fleet is 39 years old!

The VC10 ‘K3’ and ‘K4’ are a “3-point” airframe, allowing refuelling from either wing or the fuselage. The wing hoses can transfer fuel at up to one tonne per minute and are used to refuel tactical fast-jet aircraft. The fuselage mounted Hose Drum Unit can transfer fuel twice as fast and is usually used to refuel ‘heavy’ strategic aircraft.

A primary duty is to support border patrol Tornado F3s, who see one or two nosey Russian Bears per month - not the cute furry kind - to which the RAF always responds.

In June, a VC10 from 101 Squadron returned from Iraq, to end the longest deployment in RAF history, with 19 years continual operational service in the gulf.


The ‘DOT sheet’ described our tasking. The sortie was to be flown in AAR Area 5. Typically the tanker sets up a racetrack pattern, 12nm wide, for a fuelling orbit. We were to practice Consolidation, AAR between two tanker aircraft. We would rendezvous with and fuel Tornado GR4s and Typhoons from RAF Conningsby, recovering to BZN, leading another tanker in to a visual landing, via a “let-down recovery”. This is an approach where an aircraft leads a ‘blind’ aircraft towards the runway, so that in case of navigation problems in poor weather, they can land safely.

After passing through the typical airport passenger terminal, we walked out to our aircraft, a VC10 C1K variant, APU running and all crew busy in preparation for the imminent sortie. As an original VC10, our transport, XV101, bears the name of a Victoria Cross recipient Major Lanoe Hawker VC DSO.

Boarding the aircraft's spacious cabin, large areas of shiny white flooring highlight the absence of most of the original seating. Just a few rows of seats immediately aft of the cockpit, three seats half way down the 92ft cabin and at the rear ten more rows of aft facing seats tucked into the tail. Aft facing seats for air transport were adopted by the RAF in 1945 to improve survivability in the event of an accident – a comforting thought.
The furthest aft two seats in the aircraft are manned by crew, monitoring the port engines visually during take-off – communicating to the Captain (Flt Lt David Hamilton) via headset.

Sgt Si Hey, Sgt Italy and SAC Danny Knowles prepared the cabin for departure – providing an entertaining standard passenger brief, in green flying suits.

At 1240Z a loud, piercing whine resounded through the cabin as the low bypass turbofans were wound up for take-off. Apart from the slightly unusual feeling of being pulled forwards as the 138 tonne aircraft accelerated along the runway, the take-off and climb was similar to any airline departure.

After an hour of stable flight, we hit what felt like light to moderate turbulence. It soon transpired that the yawing motions and lots of small rpm changes were in fact due to the ‘consolidation’ practice already taking place with another VC10 just feet ahead of us. The seat belt signs were turned off and in small groups we visited the cockpit. As we stooped into the flight deck an amazing sight greeted us– the 4 tail mounted engines of another VC10 filling the windshield, so close that the horizontal stabilizer of the aircraft ahead was out of view above. More discrete yet intense activity was taking place – a bead of sweat on the handling pilot’s forehead as he continually made adjustments to thrust, attitude and bank absolutely focussed on making the connection with the tanker ahead. Just beyond our refuelling probe, the wandering receptacle of the 80ft hose from the tanker in front - so close that one could imagine reaching out and touching it.

The pilot’s eyes still fixed on the probe, now just 5-10 feet ahead, quick adjustments of power and bank being applied, the rudder pedals being employed to accurately line up – then, a blast of power and immediately back on the throttle to edge up to and into the probe. Bleeding off the 5knots or so of overtake, the T-tail of the VC10 in front cast a shadow over our windscreen… at a zero-feet formation at 270knots!
Our position relative to the tanker ahead puts our aircraft’s tail plane in the downwash of the main wing in front, initially causing the oscillations in pitch that were felt earlier. The downwash is trimmed-out and the aircraft flies normally.

At 1400Z the excitement levels in the cabin are brought up a notch – 2 Typhoons appear behind the left wing, in echelon left formation, as we formate 100ft to the right of the VC10 ahead.

Tanker sorties typically operate in a cell, with two or more tankers working together, one about a nautical mile behind the lead tanker, which instructs jets in need of refuelling where to go.
We refuel one of the Typhoons from the left wing pod – just visible through the cabin windows, face pressed up against the Perspex. Refuelling doesn’t take long and the fighter breaks off overhead us to the right.

At 1430Z the rumble of turbulence begins again as Flying Pilot Sqn Ldr Al Scott slips the VC10 into the wake of the tanker ahead for more practice consolidation.

No sooner does the rumble stop then we are joined by two more Typhoons, looking sleek and agile in comparison to the 40 year old tanker. With a Typhoon just 10 feet from our left wing, lunch is served.

Now our fellow VC10 extends all three refuelling hoses and the two Typhoons move up to refuel simultaneously, one on each wing. They stay in position for about 20 minutes (enough to fill a Typhoon from near empty) and simultaneously break off from the feed to pull up and over us, again turning into specs in the distance punctuating a backdrop of beautiful blue sky underlined by a layer of scattered cloud.

At 15:43Z a Tornado F3 appears on the left side and formates just a few feet off the wingtip. The WSO waves back at us as the pilot drops a wing to slip underneath our fuselage to receive from the right side pod. A few minutes later a tandem seat Typhoon approaches our port side and starts to refuel from the left wing pod. Soon after, the Tornado, having had its fill, breaks off high and right with afterburners trailing cones of flame, loud enough to be heard in our cabin.

At 15:53Z Typhoon ZJ931formates on the right wingtip – close enough to read the name of the pilot stencilled below the canopy. “Flt Lt E Smith” put on a display of precision flying, just feet from our right wingtip, demonstrating the airbrake and even finding a free hand to wave!


At 15:59Z Tornado 018 formates on our left wingtip, and the Typhoon on the left pod breaks-off from the feed and formates as wing-man to the Typhoon still on our right wing, just as another Tornado comes in to receive from the right wing pod. It’s getting busy!


Ten minutes later the Typhoons still in close formation on the right wingtip break off to the right, with a friendly wave.
At 16:12Z a Tornado starts fuelling from our right-hand pod for just under ten minutes, studied by a smiling face at each cabin window.
As the Tornado detaches it is joined by a wingman and breaks up and over us to the left, again with waves from all four crew.

A short time later our fellow VC10 formates on our right wing for the let-down recovery back to Brize Norton, with comments in the cabin of “absolutely fantastic!” and “incredible!” we start to descend.

A friendly “Ladies and gents, could you please take your seats again now please!” from the cabin crew signifies the last few moments of an amazing trip. The final descent arrested with a great handful of power, letting in the VC10 on our wing before repositioning for our final approach.
Flaps and gear go down as we position downwind. The amount of power increases still and in the cabin, voices have to be raised in order to be heard.

At 17:29 the tyres touch down back at Brize Norton and strangely after several hours aboard an airliner we find ourselves back where we started – but what a day!