RAF Wittering warns of night flying missions taking place over Peterborough

Night flying missions will be taking place from RAF Wittering next week.

The missions will be taking place between 10pm and midnight from Tuesday, August 16 until the evening of Thursday, August 18.

The missions will be to provide Night Vision Goggles (NVG) training for crews.

A spokesman for RAF WIttering said: “Night Vision Goggles are a real tactical advantage and enable our crews to land and take-off safely during the hours of darkness for combat, peacekeeping or humanitarian missions.

"NVG training is a method of conducting night flying without lights on an airfield. The RAF transport fleet is based at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, but training constantly in the same place would not be realistic, and so night flying is spread as widely and thinly as possible across suitable airfields the United Kingdom.

“The requirement for vital NVG training does not change with the seasons, but is driven by operational requirements and the UK’s interests overseas, and therefore NVG training continues on a year round basis.”

Wing Commander Case is the Station Commander at RAF Wittering, he said: “NVG training is vital to the operational output of the RAF; operational flying often must be conducted at night. Flying on NVG is a perishable skill that must be practiced regularly. Unfortunately, at this time of year, that means flying sorties late at night to ensure an adequate level of darkness. Therefore, I am grateful for the continued understanding and goodwill we receive from our neighbouring communities.”