Originally Posted by
ASRAAMTOO
Are those restrictions truly what the RAFAT asks for. I completed the CFS course at Scampton when the Reds were there and I don't recall the restrictions being that bad.
Yes...they used them at Waddington when they boltholed there back in the 90s. They also used to demand a rolling runway closure when they were waiting for weather to improve, so even if you were able to plan a later ISTAR launch, you often discovered that it had changed when you crewed in and tried to taxi for a sortie (usually leading to all of the other assets that you were working with also having to delay - if you were able to ask them in time of course). Remember that ISTAR aircraft usually have to work with other units and it is not just Waddington aircraft and ground sites that get hacked off by the airfield closures! Changing ISTAR mission times at even a day's notice was not very simple! It would have helped had the display team fitted in with the Waddington ISTAR schedule, but that is not what happened, and the tail wagged the dog on many occasions.