Fly Past

100 YEARS OF THE ROYAL AIR FORCE

PATROLLERS AND AIRLIFTERS RAF CENTENARY CELEBRATION 3

WELCOME

I

nside this latest publication in
Key Publishing’s RAF Centenary
Celebration series we examine
some of the unsung heroes from the
air arm’s first 100 years.
While fighters and bombers have
often grabbed the headlines, it is the
transports that keep the RAF fed,
supplied and active.
From the wood and fabric
biplanes of the inter-war period
to the modern-day Atlas and
Globemaster III, the RAF’s
transport fleet has long played an
active role supporting the military
and civilians alike. In the 1920s,
Vickers Victorias rescued British
embassy staff from the risk of
civil war in Afghanistan, and in
the 1980s Lockheed Hercules

famously delivered aid to famine-

stricken Ethiopians. Today the RAF

continues to provide much-needed

humanitarian aid wherever in the

world it is required.

Meanwhile, the RAF’s maritime

patrol aircraft have kept the

coastlines of British territories safe

for the last century. When bombers

and fighters took the fight to the

enemy’s doorstep, patrollers have

resolutely kept watch on UK shores

and bases around the globe during

war and peace. Whether searching

for hostile submarines, locating

downed aircrew or civilians, or

listening in on the transmissions

of terrorists, the RAF’s patrol

aircraft play a mostly unappreciated

role. Of course, it is impossible to

include descriptions and images of

all the transport and patrol aircraft

that served the RAF since 1918

within this publication. Tough

editorial choices have to be made

and machines such as the BAe 146

and Percival Pembroke are notable

absences. Likewise, other omissions,

such as the Consolidated Liberator

and Avro Lincoln, have already been

covered in the Bomber equivalent of

this publication.

Everybody will have their own

views on the types they feel have

contributed the most, but hopefully

the following pages will reveal more

about the development and service

careers of vitally important aircraft

that have served with the world’s

oldest air force.

Below

The RAF’s Lockheed

C-130 Hercules is

often fl own into areas

of confl ict and the

fl eet has long been

equipped with fl ares

to counter infra-red

homing missiles. The

mass fi ring of these

countermeasures is

a true spectacle and

sometimes likened

to the wings of an

angel. KEY