ORAC
2nd Aug 2008, 15:59
RAF Leuchars’ future secured for 40 years (http://www.thecourier.co.uk/output/2008/08/02/newsstory11745091t0.asp)
RAF LEUCHARS’ future is secure for the next four decades, and around £100 million will be invested in the Fife base within the next 10 years. In addition, it has been confirmed that three squadrons of Typhoons will be coming to Leuchars, the first arriving in September 2010.
The news brings job security to 1500 RAF and civilian personnel who maintain operations at the front line base, along with a massive shot in the arm for the local economy and business for contractors right through Scotland’s central belt.
It is understood that although assurances had been given over a number of years about the future of RAF Leuchars, the whole issue had been thrown back into doubt before the major expenditure was finally approved.
Station Commander and Air Officer Scotland Clive Bairsto gave the details to The Courier in an exclusive interview. The Air Commodore made it clear that a final decision, confirming earlier statements, was made only two months ago.
“Now we sit here about 28 months before the Tornado F3 goes out of service in March 2011, but it will start to be replaced by the new Eurofighter Typhoon in September 2010. The first squadron will be 6 Squadron, and it will probably come up here after being formed at Coningsby with something like six or eight crews and about 100 ground crew. They will effectively move up en masse, the F3 will continue to draw down, and the last Tornado will fly out of here six months later.”
It had originally been planned that the move would be made earlier, but the Air Commodore said the delay was caused by the purchase by the Saudis of 72 Typhoons, worth billions of pounds. This purchase had been hugely important, he said, because the RAF did not need all of the Typhoons that were ordered in 1997, and the life of the Tornado had been extended.
He said it had always been intended that the Typhoons would be split over two bases and one was certain to be Coningsby. He continued, “This is very good news for north-east Fife, and for RAF Leuchars."
“With the addition of what will be three squadrons coming to Leuchars, broadly with 16 and 18 pilots to a squadron, Leuchars will continue to operate as a fighter base for the next four decades up to 2050. The squadrons themselves will be slightly smaller, because the Typhoon is a modern era aeroplane, and much more technically fixable than the Tornado, which requires high manpower numbers.
“Secondly, we won’t have the depth of support on the station, as we currently have around 120 people who carry out either major or minor servicing. That won’t be done here in Leuchars, but at Coningsby by the civilian based contractual servicing construct."
“The upshot of it is that I expect we will see the overall service population at Leuchars come down from a total of around 1700 to around 1500 people. We will, though, retain the same number of civilians at around 200 and broadly the same number of contractors on base supporting various services such as catering, retail and leisure.”
Turning to the Typhoons, the Air Commodore said that when they arrive they will at first be purely confined to the air defence environment, and would not be the multi-role version. After about two years, however, the Leuchars Typhoons would “mutate”, and would be capable of the full range of tasks from air defence through to bombing and using pods for reconnaissance. “They will be much more eligible to be deployed around the world to existing conflict areas, be it Afghanistan, Iraq, or wherever.”
On the inevitable question of fast jets and noise, the Air Commodore said he was always asked about the Typhoon, but it would not be as noisy as the Tornado. “Ninety-five percent of the time it takes off in unreheated power, so the afterburners are off. I was recently down at Coningsby and saw the thing flying around the circuit. It was much quieter than the Tornado on take-off and landing.”
The Air Commodore said that over the next seven to eight years there would be something like £80-£100 million spent on rebuilding the station for the new “aircraft platform”. There would have to be major new provision to allow operation of the Typhoons, for example a highly sophisticated new interactive two-cockpit simulator, and a tank jettison facility. Also planned is an engine test centre, or “hush house”, to disperse noise.
On the back of all that, he said, there would be refurbishment of major buildings such as the officers’ mess, sergeants’ mess, airmen’s barrack blocks and the medical centre. A considerable sum has already been spent, with the £25 million worth of runway work completed last year due to last for 15 years, and capable of taking very heavy aircraft.
Yesterday North-East Fife MP Sir Menzies Campbell expressed his delight that there had been public confirmation of a confidential face to face briefing he had been given two months ago by the Chief of the Air Staff. He said that RAF Leuchars makes an enormous contribution to the defence of the UK and to the local economy and community.
RAF LEUCHARS’ future is secure for the next four decades, and around £100 million will be invested in the Fife base within the next 10 years. In addition, it has been confirmed that three squadrons of Typhoons will be coming to Leuchars, the first arriving in September 2010.
The news brings job security to 1500 RAF and civilian personnel who maintain operations at the front line base, along with a massive shot in the arm for the local economy and business for contractors right through Scotland’s central belt.
It is understood that although assurances had been given over a number of years about the future of RAF Leuchars, the whole issue had been thrown back into doubt before the major expenditure was finally approved.
Station Commander and Air Officer Scotland Clive Bairsto gave the details to The Courier in an exclusive interview. The Air Commodore made it clear that a final decision, confirming earlier statements, was made only two months ago.
“Now we sit here about 28 months before the Tornado F3 goes out of service in March 2011, but it will start to be replaced by the new Eurofighter Typhoon in September 2010. The first squadron will be 6 Squadron, and it will probably come up here after being formed at Coningsby with something like six or eight crews and about 100 ground crew. They will effectively move up en masse, the F3 will continue to draw down, and the last Tornado will fly out of here six months later.”
It had originally been planned that the move would be made earlier, but the Air Commodore said the delay was caused by the purchase by the Saudis of 72 Typhoons, worth billions of pounds. This purchase had been hugely important, he said, because the RAF did not need all of the Typhoons that were ordered in 1997, and the life of the Tornado had been extended.
He said it had always been intended that the Typhoons would be split over two bases and one was certain to be Coningsby. He continued, “This is very good news for north-east Fife, and for RAF Leuchars."
“With the addition of what will be three squadrons coming to Leuchars, broadly with 16 and 18 pilots to a squadron, Leuchars will continue to operate as a fighter base for the next four decades up to 2050. The squadrons themselves will be slightly smaller, because the Typhoon is a modern era aeroplane, and much more technically fixable than the Tornado, which requires high manpower numbers.
“Secondly, we won’t have the depth of support on the station, as we currently have around 120 people who carry out either major or minor servicing. That won’t be done here in Leuchars, but at Coningsby by the civilian based contractual servicing construct."
“The upshot of it is that I expect we will see the overall service population at Leuchars come down from a total of around 1700 to around 1500 people. We will, though, retain the same number of civilians at around 200 and broadly the same number of contractors on base supporting various services such as catering, retail and leisure.”
Turning to the Typhoons, the Air Commodore said that when they arrive they will at first be purely confined to the air defence environment, and would not be the multi-role version. After about two years, however, the Leuchars Typhoons would “mutate”, and would be capable of the full range of tasks from air defence through to bombing and using pods for reconnaissance. “They will be much more eligible to be deployed around the world to existing conflict areas, be it Afghanistan, Iraq, or wherever.”
On the inevitable question of fast jets and noise, the Air Commodore said he was always asked about the Typhoon, but it would not be as noisy as the Tornado. “Ninety-five percent of the time it takes off in unreheated power, so the afterburners are off. I was recently down at Coningsby and saw the thing flying around the circuit. It was much quieter than the Tornado on take-off and landing.”
The Air Commodore said that over the next seven to eight years there would be something like £80-£100 million spent on rebuilding the station for the new “aircraft platform”. There would have to be major new provision to allow operation of the Typhoons, for example a highly sophisticated new interactive two-cockpit simulator, and a tank jettison facility. Also planned is an engine test centre, or “hush house”, to disperse noise.
On the back of all that, he said, there would be refurbishment of major buildings such as the officers’ mess, sergeants’ mess, airmen’s barrack blocks and the medical centre. A considerable sum has already been spent, with the £25 million worth of runway work completed last year due to last for 15 years, and capable of taking very heavy aircraft.
Yesterday North-East Fife MP Sir Menzies Campbell expressed his delight that there had been public confirmation of a confidential face to face briefing he had been given two months ago by the Chief of the Air Staff. He said that RAF Leuchars makes an enormous contribution to the defence of the UK and to the local economy and community.