RAF Fairford

Royal Air Force Fairford or more simply RAF Fairford (IATA: FFD, ICAO: EGVA) is a Royal Air Force (RAF) station in Gloucestershire, England which is currently a standby airfield and therefore not in everyday use. Its most prominent use in recent years has been as an airfield for United States Air Force B-52s during the 2003 Iraq War, Operation Allied Force in 1999, and the first Gulf War in 1991. It is the US Air Force's only European airfield for heavy bombers.[2]

RAF Fairford
Part of United States Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA)
Near Fairford, Gloucestershire in England
A Boeing B-52H Stratofortress taxis along the flight line at RAF Fairford
RAF Fairford
Shown within Gloucestershire
Coordinates51°40′56″N 001°47′24″W
TypeRAF station (US Visiting Forces)
Area470 hectares (1,200 acres)[1]
Site information
OwnerMinistry of Defence
OperatorUS Air Force
Controlled byUS Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa
ConditionOperational
Site history
Built1943 (1943)
In use1944–1950 (Royal Air Force)
1950 – present (US Air Force)
EventsRoyal International Air Tattoo (RIAT)
Garrison information
Garrison501st Combat Support Wing
Occupants422d Air Base Group
Airfield information
IdentifiersIATA: FFD, ICAO: EGVA, WMO: 036440
Elevation87 metres (285 ft) AMSL
Runways
Direction Length and surface
09/27 3,046 metres (9,993 ft) Asphalt

RAF Fairford was the only TransOceanic Abort Landing site for NASA's Space Shuttle in the UK. As well as having a sufficiently long runway for a shuttle landing (the runway is 3,046 m (9,993 ft) long), it also had NASA-trained fire and medical crews stationed on the airfield.[3] The runway is rated with an unrestricted load-bearing capacity, meaning that it can support any aircraft with any type of load.

RAF Fairford is also the home of the Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT), an annual air display. RIAT is one of the largest airshows in the world, with the 2003 show recognised by Guinness World Records as the largest military airshow ever, with an attendance of 535 aircraft.

History

Royal Air Force
Soldiers boarding planes for Operation Market Garden

RAF Fairford was constructed in 1944 to serve as an airfield for British and American troop carriers and gliders for the D-Day invasion of Normandy during World War II.[4] The RAF used it to lift British troops for Operation Market Garden during World War II.[5]

In the early years of the Cold War the British and American governments reached an agreement under which elements of the USAF Strategic Air Command (SAC) would be based in the UK. Bases had already been established in East Anglia, at RAF Mildenhall and RAF Lakenheath, but they were considered to be vulnerable to bomber attack and airfields further behind the RAF fighter defences were sought. Four RAF airfields were selected to receive SAC units: RAF Brize Norton, RAF Fairford, RAF Greenham Common and RAF Upper Heyford. In 1948 the Americans occupied RAF stations including Fairford, Brize Norton, Burtonwood, Greenham Common, Mildenhall, Lakenheath and Woodbridge to build up a deterrent in Europe against the Soviets.[6]

Aerial photograph of Fairford airfield, the bomb dump and ammunition dump are east (top) of the perimeter track, the technical site and barrack sites are on the north (lower left), 2 December 1943.

RAF Lyneham's position as the primary tactical transport base for the RAF was emphasised in February 1971 when Nos. 30 and 47 Squadrons were transferred from their old base at RAF Fairford. In 1965, RAF Fairford was the first home base of the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team The Red Arrows.[7]

U.S. Air Force

In 1950, as a result of the beginning of the Cold War, the airfield was transferred to the United States Air Force for strategic bomber operations. A 10,000-foot (3,000 m) runway was constructed for long-range bomber operations.[6]

The runway was completed in 1953, and served as a forward airbase for the first Convair B-36 Peacemaker aircraft from Carswell Air Force Base, Texas.[8] The airfield later received B-47s which were maintained at a heightened state of alert because of increased tensions with the Soviet Union.

Due to the long runway Fairford was chosen in 1969 as the British test centre for the Concorde aircraft until 1977.[9]

The Shuttle Carrier carrying Enterprise on its way to the Paris Air Show in 1983

The U.S. Air Force returned with Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers deployed on rotation from the many KC-135 bases in the USA. On 15 November 1978 the 11th Strategic Group (11 SG) was activated at RAF Fairford. It was not manned until the following February and used KC-135 aircraft and crews from SAC, Air National Guard, and AF Reserve units until the 11 SG received its own aircraft in September 1979. It soon began aerial refueling support for all USAF operations, deployments and redeployments, as well as participating in NATO exercises.[10]

Operations staff and maintenance personnel were permanently assigned, but aircraft, aircrews and crew chiefs were temporarily assigned to the 11th Strategic Group for the European Tanker Task Force on rotation. Aircraft and crews operated from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; Keflavik, Iceland; Zaragosa, Spain; Lajes Field, Azores; Sigonella NAS, Italy; and Hellenikon, Greece. The unit retained the 11th Strategic Group designation, but was inactivated on 7 August 1990.

KC-135 and KC-10 tankers deployed to Fairford supported Operation El Dorado Canyon against Libya in 1986. The KC-135s and KC-10s were withdrawn in 1990 and the station was returned to standby status, upgraded to 'limited use' in the mid-1990s.[11] In 2010, military personnel were removed, leaving a civilian operating unit.

Crew members loading Mark 82 bombs onto a B-52

Due to RAF Fairford's location and infrastructure, the airfield is designated as a forward operating location for the US Air Force. It was used in the first Gulf War in 1991, with B-52s and KC-135s from Eaker AFB in Arkansas. It was later used during Operation Allied Force in 1999 when B-52s from Barksdale AFB, B-1Bs from Ellsworth AFB and KC-135s from Mountain Home AFB were used. During that conflict, Fairford-based bombers dropped 48% of the ordnance dropped by NATO on targets in the former Yugoslavia. In the 2003 Iraq War, Operation Iraqi Freedom included B-52s based at Minot AFB but flying from Fairford. In recent years the airfield has been occasionally used by American B-2 Spirit stealth bombers and is frequently visited by U-2 aircraft.[12]

Due to the deteriorating airfield facilities and its unique NATO heavy bomber mission, RAF Fairford underwent a $100 million upgrade of its runway and fuel systems in the largest NATO funded airfield construction project within a NATO country since the end of the Cold War. This work lasted from May 2000 through May 2002.[6] Additional improvements continued until 2008, including the construction of two climate-controlled hangars for B-2 stealth bombers and a low-observability maintenance dock.

On 14 January 2004, the 420th Air Base Group (420 ABG) was established at RAF Fairford to improve the control of its geographically separated units (GSUs) that had been aligned beneath the 100th Air Refueling Wing at RAF Mildenhall. These units are assigned to airfields at RAF Fairford, RAF Croughton, RAF Alconbury, and RAF Molesworth. The 420 ABG reported directly to Third Air Force until 26 May 2004, when the 38th Combat Support Wing (38 CSW) was established at Sembach Annex, Germany.[13]

On 12 May 2005, USAFE activated the 501st Combat Support Wing, with headquarters at RAF Alconbury, to provide support to its GSUs in the United Kingdom. The Airmen of the 501st CSW focus on units that, by their nature, are separated from main operating stations of RAFs Mildenhall and Lakenheath. A command staff of about 30 people is assigned.

In 2010 USAF withdrew all its uniformed staff from the station by September 2010 leaving a civilian operating unit to maintain the base on a "care and maintenance" basis. However the base remains a designated standby airfield for heavy bomber operations, capable of immediate reactivation within 24–48 hours and it continues to host the Royal International Air Tattoo every July.[14] From 2010 the 422d ABG at RAF Croughton and the 420th Air Base Squadron at RAF Fairford are responsible for the day-to-day operations of RAF Fairford, ensuring that it has adequate resources.

In September 2014 Fairford was used as the staging base for US President Obama's trip to the NATO conference held in Newport, Wales. VC-25A "Air Force 1" (AF1) aircraft carrying the President and his entourage and support aircraft arrived on 3 September, the US Secretary of State John Kerry also arrived in his own USAF C-32 aircraft. Air Force One with President Obama departed for Washington 5 September after an 'impromptu' visit to Stonehenge on his way from Newport back to RAF Fairford. Support aircraft temporarily based at Fairford for the visit included VC-22s, VH-60s other support aircraft, a significant number of C-17 cargo aircraft delivered equipment and vehicles.

Since June 2014 RAF Fairford has seen regular heavy bomber exercises return with B-52H, B-2A and in September 2016, B-1B aircraft for short duration exercises by Air Force Global Strike Command and US Air Force Reserve units from Barksdale, Minot, Whiteman and Dyess Air Force Bases. These exercises include participation in NATO exercises Baltops, Saber Strike and Ample Strike. Baltops, mainly a maritime exercise, takes place off the Baltic States of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, while Saber Strike saw the B-52s flying close air support missions in Poland. Taking advantage of B-52 deployment in 2014 were two flights of two B-2 Spirits, which made brief visits to Fairford as part of Global Power training flights. The Ample Strike exercise in September 2016 was the first time that US Air Force Reserve had deployed two types of heavy bombers (B-1Bs and B-52Hs) under the same parent operating Wing (307BW).[15] March 2019 saw the largest deployment of B-52Hs to RAF Fairford since Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003, when six bombers arrived from the 2nd Bomb Wing.[16][17]

In November 2018, it was announced that the 95th Reconnaissance Squadron and 488th Intelligence Squadron would relocate to Fairford by 2024. The squadrons, based at RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk, are both part of the 55th Operations Group and support Boeing RC-135 surveillance aircraft when forward deployed on temporary duty to the UK from the United States. The move, part of the US Department of Defense's European Infrastructure Consolidation programme, was expected to see 500 personnel and RC-135 operations transfer to Fairford.[18] However, in December the proposal was cancelled and it was confirmed that Mildenhall would be retained as the RC-135's UK operating location.[19]

On 22 August 2020, six B-52H bombers from the 23rd Bomb Squadron, 5th Bomb Wing, Minot AFB deployed to RAF Fairford for a series of exercises with NATO and allied countries.[20][21] On 28 August 2020, in a single-day mission dubbed 'Allied Sky', B52s overflew all 30 NATO countries; four of the six B-52s deployed at RAF Fairford flew the European portion whilst two Minot-based B52s flew over the United States and Canada.[22]

Role and operations
A US Air Force B-2A Spirit taxis after landing at RAF Fairford in June 2015.

RAF Fairford is a Forward Operating Location made available to the United States by the UK Government. It is the only bomber forward operating location in Europe and is predominately used by US Air Force deployments of the B-1B Lancer, B-2A Spirit and B-52H Stratofortress aircraft taking part in Air Force Global Strike Command's Bomber Task Force missions.[23][24]

The base also hosts regular deployments of the US Air Force's U-2S Dragon Lady reconnaissance aircraft, operated by the 99th Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron.[25]

Base and mission support is provided by the 420th Air Base Squadron, a Geographically Separate Unit of the 501st Combat Support Wing based at RAF Alconbury in Cambridgeshire.[24]

Based units

Notable units based at RAF Fairford.[26][25]

United States Air Force

United States Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA)

Air Combat Command (ACC)

Royal International Air Tattoo
Main article: Royal International Air Tattoo

The Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT), the world's largest military air show, is held annually at Fairford over the third weekend in July. RIAT is held in support of The Royal Air Force Charitable Trust and has attracted an attendance of up to 185,000 spectators over the weekend, with several hundred military aircraft belonging to air-arms from around the world taking part in static and flying displays.[27]

Future

A £20m contract for repair and upgrade work to Fairford's taxiways and hard standings is expected to be awarded by the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) in the second quarter of 2019.[28]

RAF Fairford unit emblems
  • 420th Air Base Group
  • 424th Air Base Squadron
  • 7020th Air Base Group
  • 11th Strategic Group

See also

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from the Air Force Historical Research Agency website http://www.afhra.af.mil/.

Citations
  1. "Defence Estates Development Plan 2009 – Annex A". GOV.UK. Ministry of Defence. 3 July 2009. p. 43. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
  2. USAF Yearbook 2000 p.13
  3. "Key Facts About Defence: Did You Know..." Ministry of Defence. Archived from the original on 13 September 2012. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  4. Woolfoot, Andy (16 September 2009). "Timeline of the history of RAF Fairford". Wilts & Gloucestershire Standard. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
  5. "Arnhem: The Surprise Survivor". Britain at war. Archived from the original on 12 November 2017. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
  6. "RAF Fairford". Airforce Technology. Archived from the original on 3 July 2017. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
  7. "Red Arrows". Royal Air Force. Archived from the original on 28 June 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
  8. "RAF Fairford, UK". Global Security. Archived from the original on 19 January 2020. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
  9. "The story of Concorde". Aerospace Bristol. Archived from the original on 24 October 2019. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
  10. 11th Strategic Group Lineage,8th AF History Office,7 Apr 1982
  11. "USAF Visiting Forces in the UK" (PDF). USAF. Archived (PDF) from the original on 15 December 2016. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
  12. Norris, Phil; Chipperfield, Daniel. "Why U-2 spy plane from the USA has been seen flying over the South West". Bristol Post. Archived from the original on 30 September 2019. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
  13. "RAF Fairford takes next step in its rich history". 501st Combat Support Wing. Archived from the original on 21 November 2016. Retrieved 17 July 2020.
  14. "US Air Force to pull out of base". BBC News. 15 September 2009. Retrieved 25 February 2011.
  15. "Bombers in Britain". Aviation Week. 22 June 2015. Archived from the original on 10 September 2017. Retrieved 22 June 2015.
  16. "US B-52 bombers conduct training in Europe". North Atlantic Treaty Organization. 14 March 2019. Archived from the original on 20 March 2019. Retrieved 20 March 2019.
  17. "U.S. Air Force B-52s deploy to RAF Fairford". Ellsworth Air Force Base. 14 March 2019. Archived from the original on 20 March 2019. Retrieved 20 March 2019.
  18. Howard, William (19 November 2018). "US Air Force surveillance mission moving to RAF Fairford by 2024". Stars and Stripes. Archived from the original on 14 February 2019. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  19. "USAF To Maintain Rivet Joint Operating Location At UK's Mildenhall | Aviation Week Network". Aviation Week Network. 16 December 2020. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
  20. "U.S. Air Force B-52s return to Europe for ally, partner training". 501csw.usafe.af.mil. 24 August 2020. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  21. "USAF's 5th BW takes part in B-52 training mission at RAF Fairford". airforce-technology.com. 27 August 2020. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  22. "U.S. Bombers & Allied Aircraft Integrate to Fly Over All 30 NATO Nations in a Day". thecaterer.com. 31 August 2020. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  23. "B-52H Bomber Missions Begin at RAF Fairford". Royal Air Force Mildenhall. US Air Force. 26 August 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  24. "420th Air Base Squadron". 501st Combat Support Wing. US Air Force. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  25. Oliver, Senior Airman Eugene (14 July 2020). "U-2 Dragon Lady supports U.S, NATO objectives". Royal Air Force Mildenhall. US Air Force. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
  26. "Units". 501st Combat Support Wing. Archived from the original on 14 February 2019. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  27. "The Airshow". Royal Air Force Charitable Trust. Archived from the original on 17 February 2018. Retrieved 14 February 2018.
  28. "DIO Procurement Plan (2018-2019)". GOV.UK. Ministry of Defence and Defence Infrastructure Organisation. 8 November 2018. p. 20. Archived from the original on 17 February 2019. Retrieved 16 February 2019.

Bibliography
  • Maurer, Maurer. Air Force Combat Units of World War II. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office 1961 (republished 1983, Office of Air Force History, ISBN 0-912799-02-1).
  • Ravenstein, Charles A. Air Force Combat Wings Lineage and Honors Histories 1947–1977. Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama: Office of Air Force History 1984. ISBN 0-912799-12-9.
  • Fletcher, Harry R. (1989) Air Force Bases Volume II, Active Air Force Bases outside the United States of America on 17 September 1982. Maxwell AFB, Alabama: Office of Air Force History. ISBN 0-912799-53-6
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