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http://www.airforcesmonthly.com #358 JANUARY 2018 // 9

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P-8A 169010 ‘LL-010’
piloted by Sqn Ldr Mark
Faulds is led by P-3C
163290 ‘LL-290’. Rich
Pittman

ASRAAM live fi ring at Lossiemouth

EUROFIGHTER

TYPHOONS of the RAF’s

No II (Army Cooperation)

Squadron at RAF

Lossiemouth, Scotland,

conducted live firings of

ASRAAM (Advanced Short-

Range Air-to-Air Missiles)

in November 2017. Over

a weeklong period, the

Typhoons initially launched

single ASRAAMs before

progressing to firing

two missiles per sortie

from each aircraft, first

observed on November 22.

Typhoon FGR4 ZJ947 ‘947’ in No 41(R) TES markings, callsign ‘Valkyrie 31’, in action during the dual-ASRAAM live-fi re

campaign on November 22, which also involved FGR4 ZK331 ‘331’ callsign ‘Vampire 21’. John Reid

RAF jets

continue

to strike IS

THE UK Ministry of

Defence announced

on November 9 that

terrorists of the so-called

Islamic State (IS) were

in “rapid retreat” as the

RAF continues air strikes

in Iraq and Syria. The

same month, RAF aircraft

hit IS command posts

in Al Qaim, in support

of Iraqi forces. They

eliminated mortar teams

and destroyed parts

of the terrorist’s tunnel

network in eastern Syria.

On November 1,

Tornado GR4s launched

two Paveway bombs

at the command post

near Al Qaim, destroying

the building, killing the

terrorists and wiping

out their vehicles. The

following day Tornados

bombed an IS observation

post attempting to direct

mortar fire in the same

area. On November 4

two Tornados destroyed

a mortar team northeast

of al Mayadin in Syria and

bombed the entrance to a

nearby IS tunnel network.

Typhoons have also

been active over eastern

Syria. On November 5,

they eliminated a mortar

team near Abu Kamal

and hit another tunnel

complex near Al Mayadin.

As of November 9,

RAF aircraft had struck

IS targets 1,348 times

in Iraq and on 262

occasions in Syria. Rick Ingham

Merlin HC4 prepares for delivery

MERLIN HC4 ZJ120 ‘D’

recently emerged from

the Leonardo Helicopters

factory at Yeovil,

Somerset. The helicopter

is apparently fully fitted

out ready for delivery. In

its operational ‘fit’, the

Merlin HC4 includes a

refuelling boom, various

additional antennas

and what appear to be

new countermeasures

dispensers above the

side door and below the

cockpit. Together with

ZJ127 ‘L’, ZJ120 is planned

to be one of the first two

HC4s to be delivered

to the Fleet Air Arm in

March 2018. A total of

25 Commando Merlins

are being converted.

Stephan Widmer

QinetiQ PC-21 in fi nal assembly

THE FIRST PC-21 for

QinetiQ (c/n 310, G-ETPA)

has entered final assembly.

It was seen outside the

Pilatus facility at Stans-

Buochs, Switzerland, on

November 14, 2017. Pilatus

Aircraft announced signature

of a contract to provide two

PC-21 turboprop trainers

to QinetiQ in December

last year. They will be

operated by the Empire

Test Pilots’ School (ETPS)

based at MOD Boscombe

Down, Wiltshire. The

PC-21s will feature modified

flight instruments to train

test pilots and flight test

engineers.