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On sale February 15
Comment
ime is almost up for another classic- the final Lynx helicopters in service
with the UK’s armed forces. On
January 16, just days before this magazine hits
the shelves, 657 Squadron, Army Air Corps
(AAC), was due to fly a farewell tour with
its Westland Lynx AH9As. It seems almost
incredible that these machines are the last of
their kind on frontline operations in the UK.
The Royal Navy’s Fleet Air Arm bade
farewell to the Lynx in 2017, when 815
Naval Air Squadron withdrew its remaining
HMA8 helicopters from service, with a formal
decommissioning ceremony at Royal Naval
Air Station Yeovilton, Somerset on March 23.
Redelivery of the army’s Lynx AH9As
only began in November 2009 and the
AAC accepted the first four upgraded
helicopters the following month.
The result of an Urgent Operational
Requirement (UOR) to boost the performance
of the Lynx AH9, the AH9A was tailored for
the war in Afghanistan and was capable of
flying in tough ‘hot and high’ conditions.
The first four Lynx AH9As arrived at
Camp Bastion on April 24, 2010, to
join 9 Regiment’s 672 Squadron, and
the type was a major success.
Versatility has always been a hallmark of
the Lynx, and the AH9A was no exception,
taking on such missions as convoy overwatch,
counter IED, support helicopter escort
and reconnaissance and surveillance.
While the Wildcat represents a worthy
successor to the ‘battlefield Lynx’, the
future of the army’s aviation capability looks
precarious. The ACC loses its manned fixed-
wing surveillance aircraft to the Royal AirForce this year. The days of the Gazelle AH
are also numbered. Total frontline squadrons
planned to operate the AAC’s 32 Wildcats have
been cut from four to two and the demise of
the Lynx means the special forces airborne
support role is also being done away with.
While potentially damaging cuts to the
RAF and Royal Navy are rightly critiqued
by observers and the media, the AAC’s role
remains generally unsung. After all, apart from
reducing the army’s AH-64E order, there is little
left to cut within the UK’s army aviation branch.The last, last Lynx show
T
Last of an illustrious line. Army
Air Corps Lynx AH9A ZG
at work training for its special
forces airborne support role in
June last year. Rich Pittmanhttp://www.airforcesmonthly.com #359 FEBRUARY 2018 // 3