Air Power 2017

120 AIR POWER 2017

21 ST CENTURY CAPABILITIES

21 ST CENTURY PARTNERSHIPS

Each summer, the most evocative shapes seen in the skies over Britain

are the aircraft of the Royal Air Force Battle of Britain Memorial Flight,

which celebrates its 60th anniversary this year

THE BATTLE

OF BRITAIN

MEMORIAL FLIGHT

R

AF Coningsby in Lincolnshire is home

to the RAF’s most modern operational

combat aircraft, the Eurofighter Typhoon,

but it is also the proud home of the

service’s oldest combat aircraft, which belong to

the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. Occupying

full-time appointments are Squadron Leader

Andrew Millikin, the BBMF’s commanding

officer, and Flight Lieutenant Antony Parkinson,

the operations officer, both of whom fly

Spitfires and Hurricanes. All other aircrew

are volunteers, including about nine more

pilots, as well as a team of navigators,

flight engineers and air loadmasters.

At work in the BBMF hangar at Coningsby is a

dedicated full-time ground crew of 30 engineers,

The Avro Lancaster

of the BBMF

undergoing heavy

maintenance by the

Aircraft Restoration

Company at Duxford

(PHOTO: AIRCRAFT

RESTORATION COMPANY)

including five full-time reservists supervised by a

senior engineering officer in the rank of warrant officer.

These tradesmen are drawn from the mechanical and

avionics specialisations and handle the intricacies

of 12-cylinder Rolls-Royce engines, old-generation

aircraft hydraulic and electrical systems, and fabric-

covered control surfaces. The HQ staff consists of

a flight operations officer and flight operations

assistant, as well as a team of three people handling

administration and publicity. The Visitor Centre is run

by Lincolnshire Council, and tours can be arranged

into the hangar to see the aircraft close-up.

Throughout 2017, more than 1,000 aircraft

appearances are scheduled at places as far apart as

the Channel Islands and Northern Ireland. The BBMF

flies displays at air shows, commemorative events and

state occasions, where they are seen by an estimated

10 million people each year, together with thousands

more who see them during carefully planned aircraft

transits across Britain. The busy schedule usually

includes appearances at 100 air shows and displays

and more than 300 fly-pasts. Occasionally, the

Lancaster bomber is accompanied by a Spitfire and

Hurricane; sometimes a solo fighter is deployed or

the Dakota transport aircraft is sent out on display.

Earlier this year, Squadron Leader Millikin

announced a new style of formation: the Lancaster

being accompanied by four fighters displaying

at three venues. “This will feature a four-ship tail

chase and [synchronized] display. It will be a unique

spectacle and one well worth catching,” he says.