Night flying missions to take place at RAF Wittering next week

Exercise Swift Pirate will begin at RAF Wittering on Monday November 16 and continue until the end of Friday November 20.

During this period the Station is expected to be visited by C17, A400M and C130 aircraft. In addition, there will be night flying until 8pm as aircraft crews train with Night Vision Goggles (NVG).

Bad weather or other unforeseen circumstances may lead to a change in these times.

Operating under the cover of night is essential to modern military operations. NVG are a real tactical advantage and enable our crews to land and take-off safely during the hours of darkness.

No 1 Air Mobility Wing (1AMW) specialises in aircraft handling, passenger and cargo handling and the safe loading and unloading of military transport aircraft. 1AMW is based at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire but is part of the RAF A4 Force, which is has its headquarters at Royal Air Force Wittering.

During Exercise Swift Pirate RAF Wittering doubles as a primitive airfield in a foreign country so that 1AMW personnel can perfect the skills required for deployed operations. RAF personnel must adapt to harsh conditions, and airfields in other countries are not always well-equipped.

As transport aircraft produce different kinds of noise from the Station’s resident aeroplanes, RAF Wittering is reaching out to its neighbours and the nearby equestrian establishments to inform them of a change to the usual pattern of flying activity.