aviation - the past, present and future of flight

“W

olf, detonate!”, I called over

the radio and, as I looked

over at my wingman, I

could see the Tornado

GR4 rolling onto its back and pulling to get

down low. By using our low- ying skills, we

evaded a pair of F-16s attempting to ‘shoot

us down’ during a training sortie. I left the

RAF last year and, during my military  ying

career, this was one of many examples

where the much derided tactic of low  ying

saved the day.

Low  ying is an essential skill for most

military pilots. Next to air-to-air refuelling

on an Atlantic trail in cloud and at night, it’s

probably the greatest challenge a pilot will

ever face. Many nations wrongly believe the

need for low-level  ying is over, that there

are Surface-to-Air Missile (SAMs) systems

that will sanitise this arena and that the best

place for offensive air operations is up where

the airlines  y. But, many nations are wrong.

To keep pilots current in any one of the

many  ying disciplines they have to practise,

takes two things – time and money – as

many governments discover when they try to

fund defence on the cheap. This often leads

to a decision to dispense with low  ying; they

think, “After all, it’s not the Cold War anymore!”

However, it still has its value and is why

the RAF continues to train the skill. The

earlier mention of our low-level response

to evade a threat, happened when I was

participating in NATO’s Tactical Leadership

Programme  ying course, which normally

lasts four weeks. At the time it was held at

Florennes Air Base in Belgium.

This exercise brings together experienced

aircrew to get a better understanding and

experience of being a mission commander

of an international package of aircraft. It was

the second week and my Tornado and my

wingman’s aircraft were the only ones yet

to be ‘shot down’. My buddy  ying the other

Tornado said, “I was talking to those Italian

F-16 guys playing the enemy red air and

they said that today they are going to try and

shoot us down.” I replied, “Ok, if that’s the

case then we’ll have to do what the Tornado

does best.” Indeed, what the aircraft had

been designed for –  ying at low level.

As we walked out to our two GR4s we

all knew the only way we were going to

UK LOW-LEVUK LOW-LEVEL FLYINGUK LOW-LEVEL FLYING

HIDING BEHIND HILLSHIDING BEHIND HILLSHIDING BEHIND HILLSHIDING BEHIND HILLS

Flying tactically at low level is one of the

most challenging skills a pilot can ever master.

Former Tornado GR4 and Hawk T2 pilot,

Tim Davies, makes a compelling case

for ongoing low-level training in

a post-Cold War world.

24 Aviation News incorporating Jets September 2018

Main photo: A Tornado GR4 manoeuvring

in a valley using the terrain to mask it from

a potential foe’s radar. British fast jets are

permitted to  y at 250ft and 100ft in three

tactical training areas. Brian Hodgson

Below: A view from the cockpit from

a Hawk T2,  own at low level by the

author, approaching what pilots call the

A5 Pass in North Wales. Tim Davies/

FastJetPerformance.com