Well I'll be blowed…. 207 Squadron returns
IDENTITY OF F-35 LIGHTNING TRAINING SQUADRON ANNOUNCED
The squadron which will train future Royal Air Force and Royal Navy F-35B Lightning pilots at RAF Marham has been announced as 207 Squadron.
The announcement was made during a visit to RAF Marham by the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Hillier, and the First Sea Lord, Admiral Sir Philip Jones, to view the progress being made to prepare for the arrival of the fifth generation fighter at the Norfolk base next summer.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Hillier said:
“I am very pleased to announce that the Operational Conversion Unit for the UK’s F-35B Lightning fleet will be 207 Squadron. The squadron has a proud and distinguished history, not only as an RAF squadron but as one of the earliest squadrons of the Royal Naval Air Service which, with the Royal Flying Corps, came together to form the Royal Air Force on 1 April 1918.
“Preparations for the arrival of the first UK Lightnings next year are progressing well. The investment of £250m in infrastructure here at RAF Marham will ensure the station has the facilities to match this world-class aircraft when it arrives next year. As the home of the UK Lightning Force the station will be at the heart of UK airpower for decades to come.”
Admiral Sir Philip Jones First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff said:
“207 Squadron will play an important part in the future of both the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy, and rightly reflects our shared aviation heritage. I was in the United States earlier this month to meet some of the pilots and maintainers who are getting to grips with the F-35B. They’re working brilliantly together and today I’ve seen the same sense of purpose from those readying RAF Marham for their arrival.
“HMS Queen Elizabeth is the first carrier in the world designed from the outset to operate a fifth generation combat aircraft. Crucially, a second ship - HMS Prince of Wales - is on its way, which will give the UK a continuous Carrier Strike capability. I have every expectation that, in time, this combination of carriers and jets will represent a powerful and important strategic conventional deterrent.”
The new infrastructure currently being built at RAF Marham includes vertical landing pads, the renewal of runways and taxiways and new technical and training facilities, offices and hangars.
The first Lightnings will arrive at RAF Marham in summer next year when the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy pilots currently training in the United States, will return as 617 Squadron, the Dambusters. The Lightning OCU will stand up as 207 Squadron on 1 July 2019.
ENDS
Notes to editors:
The fifth generation F-35 Lightning jets are the most advanced aircraft ever built for the UK and will be operated initially by 617 ‘The Dambusters’ Squadron, Royal Air Force, followed by 809 Naval Air Squadron, in 2023. Combined, they will transform the UK’s ability to project UK influence overseas. Initial flight trials for F-35 jets from HMS Queen Elizabeth Class are on track to begin in 2018, building towards delivering a Carrier Strike capability for the UK from 2020.
Overall, the F-35 Lightning programme continues to make good progress and to date 10 aircraft have been delivered. The UK programme remains on track to deliver Initial Operating Capability in December 2018 with 48 F-35Bs fully delivered by Jan 25. The UK is fully committed to the F-35 programme. The current planning assumption is that the UK will buy 138 F-35B Lightning aircraft over the life of the programme.
UK industry will provide approximately 15% by value of every F-35 Lightning to be built. There are a huge variety of UK companies involved in the programme situated across the country.
SDSR15 announced an uplift of an additional F-35B Lightning squadron as part of the wider growth of the RAF combat jet fleet. It was considered appropriate for the Operational Conversion Unit, which will train Lightning pilots from both services, to have a numberplate with a joint RAF/RN history. The Royal Air Force formed in 1918 from the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Naval Air Service. The Navy squadrons’ lineage was retained by allocating them squadron numberplates in the ‘200’ range. Accordingly 207 Sqn, which has a rich RN history as 7 RNAS, and an equally rich RAF history subsequently, has been chosen.