RAF News Edition 1531, 11 March 2022

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Friday March 11 2022 No. 1531 70p

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Lightning strikes twice at Edwards

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Hockey

Sanford 50

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Paralympics

Games on

F-35 holds NATO line

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Inters blow

U23s just miss out

GUARDING NATO’S FLANK: A pair of F-35 Lightning fighters join RAF Typhoons patrolling airspace in Eastern Europe (PHOTO: SAC TOMAS BARNARD).

Inset, Ukrainian families flee Russian onslaught

l See page 31

BRITISH F-35 stealth fighters launched Nato patrols over Poland for the first time in response to Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.

Marham-based F-35s joined Typhoons from Coningsby over Eastern Europe on enhanced vigilance air defence policing and intelligencegathering sorties on the Alliance’s eastern flank, supported by a Brize Norton-based Voyager tanker.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Canadian and Dutch premiers Justin Trudeau and Mark Rutte were due to meet at RAF Northolt as Britain announced it was pumping an extra $100m grant into Ukraine’s economy through the World Bank.

Mr Johnson said: “In the time since Russia’s illegal and brutal assault we have seen the world stand up tall in solidarity with the indomitable people of Ukraine.

“UK aid is already reaching those who need it most, delivering essential supplies and medical support.

“While only Putin can fully end the suffering in Ukraine, today’s new funding will continue to help those facing the deteriorating humanitarian situation.”

Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11 2022 P2

Ukraine briefing

Typhoons launch NATO mission as Putin pounds Kyiv Simon Mander BRITISH-BASED JETS and an extra four aircraft based in Cyprus have launched patrols to secure Alliance airspace over Romania and Poland.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said: “These deployments constitute a credible deterrent to stop Russian aggression threatening the territorial sovereignty of member states.

“I salute the bravery and sense of duty shared by all our personnel who have been deployed to support Nato.”

The fighters from Coningsby and Akrotiri are armed with stateof-the-art, airto-air missiles and a full suite of defensive aids backed up by Brize Norton-based Voyager tankers to extend their range and endurance.

The sorties are billed as a pre-planned Nato-led Enhanced Vigilance Activity to defend the region and a robust response to Russian aggression.

Air Officer Commanding 11 Gp, Air Vice Marshal Phil Robinson, said: “RAF Typhoons working in partnership with our allies are continuing to demonstrate our commitment to Nato.

“We stand ready to defend Europe and the Atlantic region against further aggression. I am incredibly proud of the courage and commitment of our aircrew operating across the region and of all our personnel who are supporting them.”

Meanwhile, other UK forces

DETERRENT: RAF Typhoons patrol NATO airspace in Eastern Europe; inset below, combat jets on standby at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus

have arrived in eastern Europe to bolster Nato’s eastern front.

In the eastern Mediterranean HMS Trent joined Type 45 destroyer HMS Diamond conducting Nato exercises with RAF P8 Poseidon Maritime Patrol Aircraft and Merlin helicopters.

And Challenger II tanks and armoured vehicles of the Royal Welsh battlegroup have arrived in Estonia from Germany, with further equipment and around 1,000 troops doubling the UK’s presence in the Baltic state.

The Defence Secretary held a virtual donor conference with more than 25 countries to coordinate humanitarian and military support, including ammunition and antitank weapons, to Ukraine.

At a Nato Heads of State and government meeting on February 25, all 30 member nations signed a statement reinforcing the pledge to

“

DEFIANT: Ukrainian President Zelensky speaking at an emergency session of the EU Parliament

SEA POWER: HMS Trent on NATO manoeuvres in the east Mediterranean

protect its borders.

It stated: “We will make all deployments necessary to ensure strong and credible deterrence and defence across the Alliance, now and in the future. Our measures are and remain preventive, proportionate and non-escalatory.”

These deployments are a credible deterrent to stop Russia threatening the territorial sovereignty of member states

” Defence Secretary Ben Wallace

UK and Denmark lead Force nations’ move to DEFENCE CHIEFS from Joint Expeditionary Force nations have met to discuss a shared security response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The group, that includes Estonia and Denmark, has agreed to increase measures to support the besieged government of Volodymyr Zelensky, alongside the latest Nato activity.

On a visit to Copenhagen Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said: “President Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is an attack on our freedoms, our values and the security of Europe.

He has sought to break our defensive alliances, which is why now, more than at any point in the history of the JEF, our partnership is so vital.

“We are united in our resolve across the JEF nations to support Ukraine.

Our values are Ukraine’s values, and we will continue to provide lethal and non-lethal aid, alongside sending additional forces to Estonia serving with our Danish allies.

Like Britain, the Tallinn government has sent Javelin antitank missiles and anti-aircraft ammunition as well as food and medical equipment to Kyiv.

And Danish Frigate HDMS Niels Juhl is supporting the deployment of its troops in Estonia, where they serve alongside the British Army as part of the recently strengthened Nato battlegroup.

Royal Navy frigate HMS Northumberland and Swedish corvette HSwMS Karlstad and an accompanying supply ship are to deliver specialist vehicles and equipment to the force.

British and Danish troops have been deployed together in Estonia alongside other Nato nations since 2018.

The JEF comprises 10 nations – Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and the UK working together to deliver high-

Royal Air Force News March 11, 2022 P3

CITY UNDER SIEGE: Russian missile strike rocks the outskirts of Ukraine capital Kyiv PHOTOS: ALAMY/PA

UK’s pledge to victims of Putin’s war PM Johnson’s refugee vow as Brize steps up NATO aid role

EVACUATION: Residents crowd onto trains at Pasazhyrskyi Station

joint Expeditionary o bolster Estonia border HUMANITARIAN CRISIS: Prime Minister Boris Johnson meets C-17 crews and station chiefs at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire

DEVASTATION: Residential buildings in the Borodyanka region destroyed by Russian artillery PHOTOS: ALAMY/PA

Simon Mander

readiness forces to bolster Nato and European security.

In the coming months, its militaries will be working together

across the North Atlantic, High North and Baltic Sea Region in a series of exercises demonstrating the group’s solidarity.

PRIME MINISTER Boris Johnson confirmed that the UK will take Ukrainian refugees and paid tribute to those who stayed behind to fight Russian forces, on a visit to Brize Norton.

And he said the invasion wasn’t going to plan. “Let’s be in no doubt, things are not going all the way of President Putin – very far from it.

“The Ukrainians are fighting heroically, and in some places with great successes, as many of us thought they would, because they’re a great country, a very brave country.

“We’ve got to do everything we can to change the heavy odds that Ukraine faces and to help them and so that’s why we’re sending humanitarian supplies.”

Mr Johnson was at the Oxfordshire airbase to observe the loading of military aid and to thank the RAF for its efforts.

“I think it’s very important that the UK was the first European country to send military aid to Ukraine,” he said.

“The UK is way out in front in our willingness to help with

refugees. We sent 1,000 troops to the theatre to be ready to help with the influx and, of course, we will help people fleeing in fear of their lives.”

He also called for other nations to follow Britain’s lead in calling for Russia to be excluded from the SWIFT bank payments system “It’s incredibly important for tightening the ligature, the economic ligature around the Putin regime and today you’ve seen more and more countries – France and others – coming forward to say that they will not block a banning, a boycott, of SWIFT.”

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Cosford lands Chinook icon Bravo November heads for Museum hangar

VETERAN CHINOOK ‘Bravo November’ is heading for a new home at the RAF Museum as the UK prepares to mark the 40th anniversary of the Falklands War. One of the original 30 Chinooks ordered by the Air Force in 1978, it has served in every major conflict of the last 40 years.

The illustrious airframe is a veteran of the Falklands, Iraq and Afghanistan campaigns and four pilots have earned DFCs at the helm.

Bravo November hit the headlines in 1982 when it was loaded onto the container ship Atlantic Conveyor bound for the Falklands.

It was airborne when the ship was destroyed by an Exocet missile and landed on the aircraft carrier HMS Hermes, earning its ‘Survivor’ nickname.

RAF Museum Cosford Head of Collections Dr Peter Johnston said: ‘The Chinook, and in particular Bravo November, is a significant addition to the RAF Museum’s collection in the Midlands.

“As we look ahead to Falklands 40, museum visitors will be able to appreciate the enormous efforts and sacrifices that were required for the campaign to be successful by seeing this most famous of airframes.

“Yet having also performed a variety of roles in worldwide

SURVIVOR: Bravo November in the South Atlantic during Falklands conflict

operations since 1982, this highly decorated aircraft has been involved in major moments in British and global history, and carries further extraordinary stories of service, sacrifice and heroism at home and abroad.

“The RAF Museum is delighted to welcome Bravo November into

our collection, ensuring an icon of British aviation is secured for future generations to enjoy.”

Bravo November will depart the frontline Hampshire airbase, which operates three Chinook squadrons, on March 16 by low-loader lorry.

The move is being carried out

by Joint Aircraft Recovery and Transportation Squadron (JARTS) specialists, whose Air Force and Royal Navy personnel are experts in

the road transportation of complete aircraft.

And among those expected to welcome Bravo November to the West Midlands is former Chinook pilot and Chief of the Air Staff Sir Andrew Pulford, who is the RAF Museum’s Chair of Trustees.

The Chinook will be on public display for the first time ahead of the nation’s Falklands 40 anniversary celebrations on April 2.

CHIEF OF the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Mike Wigston, was quizzed by students on a visit to the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies.

ACM Wigston was joined by Service personnel for a tour of the masjid, hosted by Imam Asim Hafiz.

The centre was founded in 1985 for the study of all aspects of Islamic culture and contemporary Muslim societies.

It is a registered educational charity and its patron is The Prince of Wales.

Jacob hits Honington

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News

MONACO OR BUST: RAF pair will join Olympic silver medallist Bryan Steel

Payback time for rehab pair AN INJURED RAF duo who battled back to fitness are joining an 850-mile charity cycle bid to support the Forces rehabilitation centre which helped them recover.

WO Jo Kearney and Sgt John Felton are among 20 riders, including an Olympic medallist, hoping to cover the distance and reach Monaco in just 10 days in the Pedal to the Principality event.

They will be joined by veteran cyclist Bryan Steel who clinched silver in the 2004 Olympic Games, and Mountain Rescue chief Sqn Ldr Ed Slater and his wife FS Cheryl.

Also taking up the challenge on April 1 are Gp Capt Nick Huntley and Cpls Simon Ford and Matthew Jacques, both nurses at the Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre.

WO Kearney suffered a serious injury in 2018 which left him bedbound for three months with a fractured lower spine and pelvis.

He said: “It’s been a long road back to fitness. I arrived on a Zimmer frame and left walking unaided with the ability to ride again. Without the support and encouragement of all the staff and fellow patients I would not have been able to return to active service.”

Physical Training Instructor John, who had several operations after being diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, is also taking on the gruelling Ironman challenge in Wales for the Fund just two weeks after the cycle to Monaco.

He said: “During my rehabilitation and recovery, I have been fortunate to receive priceless support and encouragement via the military and its hugely valuable charitable resources, including the DMRC Benevolent Fund.

“I want to show my family, friends and, more importantly, my wife and four-year-old son that no matter what struggles in life we may face, we must fight back and be strong.”

DMRC was established at Headley Court, Surrey in 1949 to treat injured pilots and aircrew.

It developed into a Tri-Service organisation, moving to Stanford Hall in 2018, with 120 patients a week being treated for a range of injuries, including significant lifechanging disabilities. l Go to: justgiving.com/dmrcbenevolentfund to donate.

Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 P7

News

Rocky campaigner Luke gets ringside for Celtic belt clash Staff Reporter

ENTER THE DRAGON: Welsh lightweight Craig Woodruff (left) in recent bout. PHOTO: ALAMY/PA

‘VC’ for bomb dog Hertz

er ertz with form HONOUR: HJonathan Tanner O W r le hand

RETIRED MILITARY working dog Hertz takes a bow after being presented with the animal kingdom’s ‘VC’ – the PDSA Dickin Medal for protecting Allied lives in Afghanistan. The shorthaired German pointer is the first dog to be trained to detect electronic equipment used to trigger IEDs.

WELSH BOXING ambassador Flt Lt Luke Pearce is stepping ringside for one of Britain’s biggest bouts, training Newport stablemate Craig Woodruff for his assault on the Celtic lightweight crown.

The RAF man, who hails from one of Wales’ proudest boxing dynasties boasting the highly-ranked 70s heavyweight Dave ‘Bomber’ Pearce, has been training his countryman for the last six years.

He has his sights set on the prestigious domestic prize when Woodruff takes on Scottish southpaw Ronnie Clark in Cardiff ’s Vale Arena this weekend.

The Gibraltar-based Staff Officer said: “I watched Craig lose a close points decision and believed I could help him.

“When we started coaching Craig, we said we would get him fighting for titles and make him the number one contender for the British belt.

“My vision was to train him back to title fights and obtain a 50/50 fight for the opportunity to go for the Lonsdale Belt.

“No one from Newport has won it for nearly 40 years, since Bomber Pearce.

“We wanted to train someone from Newport to become British champion and we are so close now.

“I am proud to work within elite professional sport and believe my service background has given me the skills to strive for excellence and succeed.”

Pearce boasts an impeccable fighting pedigree.

His uncle, Dave Pearce was one of British boxing’s brightest heavyweight prospects and tipped as a potential future world champion before his career was cut short in its prime by medical problems.

The hard-punching Welshman (right), who floored Joe Bugner and Trevor Berbick during sparring sessions, was one of seven brothers who fought on the professional circuit.

Luke has kept up the family tradition, previously training young Air Force prospects and local talent in his native Newport.

His heavyweight boxing

LOCAL HERO: Flt Lt Luke Pearce unveils a statue of his uncle, Newport heavyweight legend Dave Bomber Pearce, in 2020. Left, Luke and Craig in the gym

heritage and pride in his home city drove him to raise more than £100,000 to erect a statue of Bomber Pearce, dubbed Newport’s Rocky, which was unveiled in 2020 during a ceremony attended by some of Britain’s best boxing talent.

He set up the Dave Bomber Pearce Legacy with the spare funds to nurture homegrown talent and support local and Forces charities.

The 40-year-old joined the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards before moving to the RAF, where he commissioned as a Flight Lieutenant at Cranwell.

He added: “I have always believed you have to act on the hopes and ideas you have yourself.

“I started out as a Welsh Guardsman and now I am an officer in the RAF. “I want to be inspired by what I do and I want to help to inspire other people.”

Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 P9

News In Brief

CAS pledge on space security

Forces vets’ visa costs scrapped VISA FEES are to be waived for Commonwealth Forces veterans and Gurkhas who want to settle in the UK. From this spring there will be no charge for overseas personnel with at least six years’ service or who have been discharged due to illness or injury who wish to stay.

Currently, all non-UK servicemen and women, who have not regularised their immigration status, must pay £2,389 for indefinite leave to settle in the country after being discharged.

There are more than 9,000 non-British citizens serving from countries including Australia, Canada, India, Jamaica, Nepal, New Zealand, Nigeria, and South Africa.

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said: “It is only right that we have taken this important step to express our sincere gratitude to the brave men and women from outside the UK who have made such a valuable contribution to the defence of this country.”

COSMIC PROTOCOL: UK is a key player in Allied nations’ move to protect space assets like the MoD’s Carbonite II satellite, launched in 2018

ston ef Marshal Sir Mike Wig SPACE THREAT: Air Chiurity agreement sec ion nat outlined seven-

Simon Mander AIR CHIEFS have released details of an international commitment to defend allied military and commercial satellites and space vehicles against hostile activity from Russia and China.

The document – co-drafted by the sevennation Combined Space Operations Initiative – recognises space as integral to everyday life and modern military operations.

It sets out a shared desire by Australia, Canada, France, Germany, New Zealand, the

UK and the US to conduct combined military space operations to increase security.

Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Mike Wigston, said: “Vision 2031 sets out our commitment to the responsible and beneficial use of space for all. To achieve that aim, the United Kingdom will work with like-minded partners around the world to protect and defend our collective interests in space.”

It follows the Defence Space Strategy, released in February, that sets out how the UK will collaborate with Combined Space Operations, the Five Eyes partners, Nasa and

others in shared space operations to deter hostile activities, optimise resources and preserve Britain’s strategic advantage.

Air Vice-Marshal Harvey Smyth, director of the MOD Space Directorate, said: “Through the sharing of intelligence, information and training with allies and partners, we can be greater than the sum of our parts in our joint pursuit for a safe and secure space domain.”

Space chiefs last met at Cape Canaveral in Florida to build collaboration between national space operations centres, including the UK’s High Wycombe Space Command.

Resistance hero who saved Allied airmen dies aged 101 Simon Mander

P8 joins NATO sub drill POSEIDON CREWS teamed up with four Nato ships to hone their sub-hunting skills off the coast of Norway.

The Lossiemouth-based P-8As took part in Exercise Arctic Dolphin with ships from Norway, the Netherlands,

Denmark, and Germany. The RAF aircraft worked with Norwegian Frigates, including HNLMS Van Amstel, to hunt the Norwegian submarine HNLMS Zeeleeuw in a coastal estuary using advanced techniques and radar homing.

A RESISTANCE heroine who helped save 135 Allied airmen from Nazi occupied Europe has been honoured by serving RAF personnel.

Codenamed Monique, Belgian WWII resistance agent Henriette Hanotte –who was awarded an honorary MBE for her bravery – died on February 19 aged 101.

Born in the small village of Rumes, on the French border, she was just 19 years old in 1940 when she began guiding French and British airmen to safety as a member of the underground Comet Line.

Belgium and Luxembourg

Defence Attaché Gp Capt Justin Fowler, who attended her funeral, said: “Henriette’s daughter was delighted to have an RAF presence at the funeral, and we were surrounded by family, friends and representatives from France, the US and the Comet Line Association Schoolchildren lined the streets as the funeral procession passed by.”

In May 1944, denounced by a traitor, Henriette was recalled to the UK to avoid capture and continued her wartime role by training as a parachutist.

She missed the liberation of her village, the first to be freed in Belgium, by the US Army in September 1944.

BRAVERY: Henriette Hanotte guided downed aircrew to safety in France. Inset left, with her war medals

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News

Military honour for Spitfire pilot Ted A WARTIME Spitfire pilot who retrained as a doctor despite fracturing his spine in a crash has been buried with military honours.

Family, friends and serving personnel gathered in Truro to remember retired Flt Lt Dr Edmund James, who died three weeks short of his 100th birthday.

Known as Ted, he joined up at 18 and was immediately called into action.

His daughter April Panczak said: “Dad told me you needed three things

to survive as a Spitfire pilot – luck, luck and luck.”

On one scramble his fighter took a direct hit in its engine block. Ted was able to bank the aircraft, flying at a 45-degree angle to land safely.

In another crash, he broke his back and spent a year in a body cast.

After the war he was posted to an Allied Forces hospital in Germany and billeted in the palatial former residence of Luftwaffe chief Hermann Goering.

He went on to run maternity and

children’s services across Cornwall.

His funeral service was attended by 20 St Mawgan personnel, RAFA standard bearers and a bugler from Padstow sea cadets.

A former Queen’s Colour Squadron gunner escorted the coffin draped in the Union flag.

Following the service Mrs Panczak said: “Dad lived such an incredible life.

I’m just really grateful for everything the RAF has done to give him the sendoff he deserves.”

FINAL FAREWELL: St Mawgan personnel join mourners; above, Dr James

Bruce’s tears for Afghan Gunners g n i v o m s ’ Rocker d a e h a e tribut r u o t S U of

SIGNING OFF: FS Halliwell gets a send -off from Cranwell officer cadets. Inset below, with former Air Chief Sir Michael Graydon

Rugby ace Andy blows final whistle HOT SEAT: Air Force sup flight with 100 Sqn at RA porter Bruce grabs a F Leeming

Staff Reporter

AS BRIT rockers Iron Maiden prepare to take the US by storm with their anniversary tour, frontman Bruce Dickinson paid an emotional tribute to the RAF. Answering questions from fans in Kansas City the singer and qualified airline pilot recalled how he had to fight back tears after flying hundreds of RAF Gunners back to the UK from the Afghan frontline at the height of the conflict, in 2008.

His first taste of frontline duty followed the tragic deaths of RAF Regiment Gunners SACs Graham Livingstone and Gary Thompson, killed in an IED blast.

Dickinson said: “They had taken some casualties and they had lost some people but they were the best passengers you could ever have. As we blew the reverse thrusters we were looking out and the families and kids were holding up signs saying ‘You’re my hero’ and everything else.

“It was very emotional. We actually had to stop the aircraft because my co-pilot was

ON SONG: Bruce chats to Cadets at St Clement Danes’ charity concert PHOTO: ALAMY/PA

welling up and so was I. We were both trying so hard not to cry.

“I went, ‘okay, we’re gonna stop. We’re gonna blow our noses, make sure we can see where we’re going and then do the job because this is really exceptional.’

“The last thing you want to do is go, ‘it was

so emotional we ended up in a ditch’.”

The 63-year-old qualified as a pilot in the 1990s and flies his bandmates round the world on tours on board Iron Maiden’s private jet, dubbed Ed Force One – named in honour of the group’s zombie mascot Eddie.

The singer is a huge aviation enthusiast and owns and flies a vintage Fokker bi-plane, performing mock WWI dog fight displays.

He was forced to carry out an emergency landing on the runway at RAF Halton when his antique aircraft ran dangerously low on fuel.

Alongside his role in one of the world’s biggest and most enduring rock bands and the pressures of international tours, Bruce has maintained strong links with the RAF. The last Iron Maiden stage show featured a life-sized Spitfire and the rocker was given a flight in the backseat of a 100 Sqn Hawk at RAF Leeming. He gave a reading at the RAF Church St Clement Danes’ Christmas concert in 2019, alongside the PM’s father Stanley Johnson and was made an Honorary Group Captain in the Royal Air Force in 2020.

FS ANDY Halliwell took a final salute at the Officer Training Academy as he signed off after more than 30 years service.

The Air Force Rugby fanatic has served across the world during his Forces career and volunteered for duty on the touchline as a UK Armed Forces referee.

He said: “There have been many highlights and many low points, through it all there has been one constant presence, and that is the friendships I have made and formed over the years.”

Last year he scooped an award for inspiring the latest generation of recruits at Cranwell.

He was presented with the Jack Holt Memorial Trophy by former Chief of the Air Staff, ACM Sir Michael Graydon.

Andy added: “The RAF has been my school, master, mentor and friend and I am truly grateful for the time spent serving my Queen and country and it is now time to go and seek my fame and fortune in the world of commercial employment.”

Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 P15

News

In Brief

WWII secrets and Lys..

Simon Mander

MARATHON MAN: RAF medic Gp Capt Kristian Mears at Brize Norton

Cancer crusader CRUSADING MEDIC Gp Capt Kristian Mears is limbering up to run a marathon a month for 19 months in memory of his sisterin-law who died of ovarian cancer.

The RAF doctor said: “I have been driven to do anything I can so that no other family has to lose a mother, sister, daughter or partner to this insidious disease.

“Sadly, most women are diagnosed once the disease has spread, and one in five is diagnosed too late for any treatment at all. Without a boost in awareness women will continue to be diagnosed too late.”

The Cranwell-based NHS Clinical Director is in training to complete the Grizzly marathon challenge near his hometown in Seaton, Devon and the Cambridge Boundary Run to coincide with Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month. l Go to: justgiving.com/fundraising/ kristian-mears2

SKILLS DRIVE: Dr Arif Mustafa

Tech chief in CIVIL SERVANT Dr Arif Mustafa has been appointed the RAF’s first digital skills chief, to fast track training and improve data handling processes.

The Service’s new digital guru worked for oil giants Shell and BP and completed a PhD in technology innovation.

THE LAST remaining Lysander used to move Allied agents in and out of Nazi-occupied Europe has been restored and will go on display at the RAF Museum in London.

The WWII Westland Lysander III (SD), the only surviving variant of its type, has a new fabric outer skin and is painted in the No. 161 Squadron Special Ops colour scheme.

The airframe has been recovered in Irish linen, hand sewn by Museum experts and strengthened using original doping techniques.

RAF Museum surface finish technician Clive Roberts said: “Thousands of stitches were made attaching the linen to the fuselage, wings and tailplane followed by six coats of doping, a UV microwave protection layer, primer and then finally it was painted in its 161 Sqn Special Ops colour scheme.

“It’s a slow process but essential to preserving the aircraft for as long as possible. We sought the help of a Lysander expert based in Switzerland, who provided us with original photographs and technical drawings to help with the paint scheme.”

The aircraft, serial number R9125, first became operational with No. 225 Squadron in 1940

RESTORATION: The only surviving Westland Lysander used to fly secret agents into occupied Europe

conducting coastal patrol and photo reconnaissance missions along the south coast of England.

It took on the Special Duties role with 161 Sqn in 1944 and flew sorties for two years until the type became obsolete from the RAF in 1946.

The Lysander is famous for

infiltrating secret agents behind enemy lines but was originally designed for artillery spotting and reconnaissance – a role in which it sustained heavy casualties; of the 170 sent to France in 1939 only 50 came back.

Following their withdrawal,

they carried out anti-invasion reconnaissance and, later, air-sea rescue duties in the Channel and North Sea. Visitors to the RAF Museum London will get the first glimpse of the aircraft in Hangar 5 this spring.

Gunner Mac goes with the SWO STATION WARRANT Officer ‘Mac’ Macdonald has lowered the RAF ensign for the last time as he retires following 39 years service.

The Honington Voluntary Band played The Great Escape and personnel lined the streets to wave him off as he was driven to the Main Gate in a Foxhound armoured car.

He said: “Believe it or not, 39 years goes by in a flash. There are highs and lows to any job, but I have loved it, every minute, and would do it all again in a heartbeat.”

WO Macdonald joined the RAF in 1983 as a Gunner but retrained as a chef after an eye injury.

He met RAF stewardess Sue and they married in the Falklands in 1989 – the first Forces couple to do so.

After rejoining the RAF Regiment he served with The Queen’s Colour Sqn and completed a tour in Northern Ireland, and Afghanistan with the Gurkhas.

Station Commander Gp Capt Dutch Holland said: “Mac leaves us after 39 years of stellar and selfless service.

“He’s been each day the epitome of the career professional and the bastion of standards and professionalism.”

BOWLED OVER: SWO Macdonald bows out after 39 years with the Service

Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 P16

Feature

Lightni POWER COUPLE: F-35 and Typhoon

RAF Test and Evaluation Sqn putting F-35 through its paces at Edwards AFB Simon Mander

RAF AND Navy personnel are conducting intensive tests on F-35 Lightnings at the second-largest USAF base in America as British Defence chiefs continue to ramp up the UK’s fifth-generation fighter programme.

More than 70 RAF and Royal Navy members of 17 Test and Evaluation Squadron (TES) at Edwards Air Force base have spent the last year ensuring the F-35Bs can work with the world’s best fighters.

The trials prepared the Joint Strike Fighter ahead of its first operational mission with US Marine Corps jets on board the Carrier Strike Group last year.

Lieutenant Tommy Brownlee RN said: “In the future, highly integrated UK/US missions like these will offer immense opportunity to develop tactics and test capabilities to ensure that the UK’s frontline Lightning squadrons have the sharpest edge possible when operating anywhere in the world.”

Living side by side in California with VX-9 – the US Navy’s F-35C Operational Test Squadron – allowed the British to work up to the deployment by exercising with the F/A-18 Super Hornet.

“In the summer of 2021, F-35s and F/A-18s went up against multiple air and surface threats of different types to

STOVL: Lightning

evaluate tactics in mission sets including from HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales,” said Lt Brownlee.

And later, 17 TES supported by the Mississippi National Guard underwent F-35/Typhoon interoperability trials with 41 TES, the RAF’s Typhoon Test and Evaluation Squadron, on Bulldog Storm.

OC 17 TES Cdr Matthew FooksBale said: “Bulldog Storm was intensive test and evaluation – the ability of UK Lightning and Typhoon to work together is central to UK aspirations; without that working well, it is much harder to beat the modern threats that we might need to face.”

On a normal working day the 30,000 personnel at Edwards AFB can see all types of aircraft operating including F-22, F-18, F-16, B-1, B-2, and B-52.

And at least once a day the buildings shake from sonic booms high up above the airfield, often caused by the crews of the USAF Test Pilot School.

And although the squadron and families are based in the Mojave Desert on a three-year tour, where daily temperatures can climb to over 45˚C in summer, the posting has its attractions.

RAF Cpl Chris ‘Ringo’ MaCartney said: “Working on 17 Sqn presents the same sort of challenges as any other fast jet squadron in the RAF I’ve been on

before but being overseas means that we operate a closer-knit team than if we were back home.

“Being a Test and Evaluation Squadron keeps the workload varied

Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 P17

ing conductors

THROWING DOWN THE GAUNTLET: Right, 17 Test and Evaluation Squadron personnel at Edwards Air Force Base in California are showing just what F-35 (left and top) can do

and interesting, especially working in the summer heat! Being just over an hour away from the many beaches on the west coast and a couple of hours drive from the many mountain areas

in the State mean that I’m never found wanting when it comes to planning my weekends.

“It’s definitely one of the better postings to get.”

Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 P19

Books

By Tracey Allen

Military family life seen through eyes of a child K

ATIE KYLE knows all about the ups and downs of being in a military family – and now she’s written a book about it.

The former criminal solicitor has just published her first novel, The Life of Millie Tori Child, beginning from the unusual perspective of a newly-born baby.

Money from sales of the book will go to charity and Katie said she hopes the story will bring ‘a sense of solidarity’ to anyone who identifies with the difficulties – marriage, parenting, mental health issues and military life – that her heroine, new mum Anna, experiences.

She admitted that, “I am Anna, only more flawed… some of Anna’s struggles are based on my own.”

The Oxfordshire-based mum of three, whose husband is a RAF Chinook pilot, said: “The book began life as a round robin for family and friends at Christmas, told through the eyes of a child growing up in a military family.

“I wanted it to speak to my community of military mums,

AUTHOR: Katie Kyle is a RAF wife

charting the highs and lows of this strange way of life we lead. It could have been a heavy read but using a child as the narrator allowed for a comic take on things.”

Anna’s husband Will is deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan – as Katie’s husband Jack was.

Jack, a Wing Commander, served two tours in Iraq and five in Afghanistan, for three to four months at a time. His longest posting away from his wife and

children was for six months in Qatar during the coronavirus pandemic. The family have also been based in Saudi Arabia, RAF Benson, Odiham and Yeovilton.

Katie said: “Along with umpteen exercises that have taken place abroad, Jack has probably been away for about a third of our marriage, around five years. Sometimes it’s like being a single parent.

“The hardest part is probably the lack of certainty about things, from when they’re going away on deployment to when they’re coming back – it can be hard to plan around.”

She added candidly: “The times we’ve operated least well are when Jack had to live away during the week and came back at weekends, because we’d been living different lives and then had to adjust.”

A paperback and Kindle version of the book is available to buy through Amazon – all proceeds will be donated to the Afghanistan Crisis Appeal of the British Red Cross and to the RAF Benevolent

RAF FAMILY: Katie with Chinook pilot husband Wg Cdr Jack Kyle and, inset, her new book

Fund. Sales have raised £200 for both charities since the novel came out in January.

The author’s note at the back of the book – for which Jack designed the cover – includes details of useful organisations such as Relate, The Marriage Foundation and Care for the Family.

Katie is proud that her first novel reached the finals of the Impress Prize for New Writers 2014. It

was due to be published online

by HarperCollins but the deal fell through due to the Covid-19 crisis.

She has her own website: eagletswings.com and won Blogger of the Year 2019 at the Premier Digital Awards.

She’s now contemplating her second novel. She said: “I’d love to write a continuation of Millie’s story, I’ve got lots of material for that.”

Theatre’s perfect gentleman: Frith Banbury

H

E WORKED with many of theatre’s biggest stars, from Terence Rattigan to Celia Johnson, Michael Redgrave to Peggy Ashcroft. But director and actor Frith Banbury’s name is less well known – and author Charles Duff wants to change that.

He has just released an updated

version of his biography, The Best of the West End: The Life and Work of Frith Banbury (Zuleika Books) that re-evaluates British theatre in the mid to late 20th-century and Frith’s role in it.

Duff, an actor and lecturer in Shakespeare and theatre history, said: “The popular myth is that there was nothing of any worth in

THE DEEP BLUE SEA: Rattigan classic starring Peggy Ashcroft and Kenneth More

the mid-century British theatre until 1956, when John Osborne and the Angry Young Men at the Royal Court Theatre stormed the stage.

“In fact, the West End of the Thirties, Forties and Fifties was remarkable both for its actors – such as Sybil Thorndike, Edith Evans, Ralph Richardson – and its playwrights, including Terence Rattigan, John Whiting and Robert Bolt.”

Bolt famously wrote the play A Man For All Seasons and was an Oscar-winning screenwriter.

He described Frith as ‘more of a gentleman than any other person I have met.’

Rattigan, who knew Frith when they were both students at Oxford University, served in the RAF in World War II and two of his bestknown plays, The Deep Blue Sea and Flare Path, feature Air Force characters. Rattigan’s work has had a recent revival, including an acclaimed 2016 National Theatre production of The Deep Blue Sea starring Peaky Blinders’ Helen McCrory.

Frith was a conscientious objector during WWII and, said Duff, was lucky to keep acting professionally throughout the war.

He explained: “I think he was unique in that his tribunal said he would be let off active service on the condition that DUFF: he continued to work Author as an actor.”

INFLUENTIAL CAREER: Frith Banbury

Frith, born in 1912, was a pacifist from a young age, although he came from a military family – his father was a Rear Admiral who saw active service at the Battle of Jutland.

Aged 14 his rebellious son refused to join the Officer Training Corps and when former Army chaplain the Rev Dick Sheppard formed the Peace Pledge Union in 1935, Frith became one of its original members. But despite his beliefs, Duff said, Frith had no qualms about being involved professionally in work that dealt with wartime themes and although he considered himself to be the antithesis of his father,

he inherited a lot of his qualities, including being a strict disciplinarian and expecting others to obey orders.

Duff said: “Frith made his first appearance as an actor in 1933 and directed his last production in 2003. He worked with nearly all the great actors and writers of his time, who respected and liked him. He was a personal friend of every important theatrical figure of the 20th century – Gielgud gave him one of his first acting jobs.

“Frith was that last generation of directors who did not really have a career as a film and television director whereas his slightly younger contemporaries like Peter Brook and Peter Hall did, and are therefore better known.”

Duff, who was a friend of Frith, described him as “very optimistic and curious – his catchphrase was ‘I want to see around the next corner’ – I think that contributed to him living such a long life.”

He died in 2008 aged 96. Duff said: “He was always on the lookout for new writers and he had a great eye, he could spot talent.

“He semi-produced Alan Bennett’s first West End play, Forty Years On, and got Gielgud to star in it – so Bennett really owes his career to Frith.”

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The three-day exhibition will take place at ExCeL, London in 26-28 April 2022, and promises to be the meeting point of the brightest minds of the European training and simulation world. Providing the ideal networking platform, show organisers expect to welcome more than 75 exhibitors and 2,000 attendees representing over 45 nations.

Exploring evolving technologies The event will be led by an overarching theme which will focus on evolving technologies for training and education data and explores modelling and algorithms. Under this theme, the show’s conference will investigate the notion of Digital Twins, the risks of AI and the applications of Machine Learning for training. This will include topics such as “Train, Reflect, Learn and Train Again” and the Reality-Simulation-Reality cycle which have become fundamental enablers for robust training systems.

This year’s exciting agenda includes discussions about augmented reality prototypes, simulator-based military training and education, the role of commercial gaming in training multidomain leaders, data visualisation, and

digital twins. The show will welcome UK and international panellists from organisations such as the US Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division, Finnish Defence Forces and the Joint Warfare Centre of Qatar.

NATO will also have a strong presence at the show, as the organisation aims to explore new avenues in military training.

A key discussion includes a panel on Wednesday 27th April featuring Lars Jansson, Project Engineer, FMV; and Captain Peter Lindskog, Developer of Simulation Systems for Military Training, Swedish Armed Forces, who will discuss Exercise VIKING 22: Leveraging MSaaS Technology and Process. RAF Wing Commander, Ruari Henderson-Begg, and Dr Robert Siegfried, Chair of the NATO Modelling and Simulation Group, will also join forces on Thursday 28th April to discuss Distributed Synthetic Training: Roadmap towards a Future NATO Capability.

What can visitors expect to see on site?

IT2EC 2022 visitors will find exciting features on site which aim to explore ambitious new solutions that could reshape the future of training and military and civil domains. These include, a new Technology Lounge and the return of the Disruptive Technology Theatre (DisTec), where exhibitors will host live demos of wearable tech, AI/Machine Learning, Robotics and 5G networking. The lounge is entirely free-of-charge and will give visitors a hands-on experience of real-life applications, such as arson investigation, firefighter training and armed police response.

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IT2EC’s bustling show floor will host leading training and simulation organisations of all sizes. The long list of exhibitors includes; Lockheed Martin who unveiled a new training simulator in November 2021 for the F-35 joint strike fighter, as well as SAAB who is set to deliver a number of live tactical engagement simulation training systems to multiple international partners, such as Poland and the Netherlands.

Reflection on the immense value that SMEs bring to the industry, IT2EC will also welcome a range of small and medium innovative companies and offer a dedicated platform for them to showcase their advances in simulation technology.

Examples include professional-grade VR/XR hardware and software specialist, Varjo, who recently introduced a new Aero Headset to the market, and SimCentric who has expanded the capabilities of its SAF-FORESIGHT live range planning system with additional risk assessment, analysis and safety intervention tools to support live-fire collective training.

Visitors will also have the opportunity to meet MAK Technologies, the Winner of the 2021 DisTec Challenge, a competition which invited progressive organisations to showcase solutions that can disrupt training, education and simulation as we know it. Legion, the Grand Final winning entry by MAK Technologies, is a next-gen scalability and comms framework which enables distributed simulation exercises to scale into millions of entities.

In response to COVID-19, IT2EC 2022 will follow government health and safety guidelines to ensure that social distancing and hygiene measures are in place to protect attendees.

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Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 P21

Feature

From Cairo to Cape Town, 1926 Air Cdre Graham Pitchfork

I

N THE years following the end of World War I, the RAF embarked on a number of long-distance flights that captured the imagination of the increasingly air-minded British population. One that was particularly noteworthy involved a formation of four aircraft that took off from Cairo 96 years ago to fly to Cape Town in South Africa.

The aircraft chosen was the Fairey F.IIID, powered by a single Napier Lion engine. The four aircraft were prepared at Northolt, west London, and shipped to Egypt in January 1926. The aircraft normally carried a crew of three but were converted to two-seaters so they had room to carry spares. The four pilots were accompanied by a navigator, an engineering officer and two sergeants, one a fitter and the other a rigger, with Wg Cdr CWH Pulford in command.

After a major overhaul and a series of test flights to assess petrol consumption, the aircraft were ready to depart. At 7.10am on March 1, 1926 the four aircraft took off in formation from the RAF airfield at Heliopolis, near Cairo, and headed south on their 5,289mile flight to South Africa.

RAF ground support parties and stores had been positioned at the main landing strips with more comprehensive servicing available at Khartoum in Sudan and Pretoria in South Africa. For the remaining landing grounds, petrol and mooring facilities were all that were available.

Khartoum After landing, on every stage each aircraft hoisted the RAF ensign as they taxied to their parking area.

Having completed five stages, the aircraft reached Khartoum on March 4, where they were serviced by the resident 47 Squadron. Two days later the aircraft left and followed the River Nile. The desert was left behind in southern Sudan when grasslands and thick bush emerged. After leaving the Nile, the navigator used rivers, lakes and solitary railways as the main points of reference.

The aircraft flew through heavy rain en route to Kisumu in northern Kenya and the wooden propellers were damaged and had to be stripped and varnished during a four-day stay to service the aircraft. The formation left on March 17 and headed towards Tabora in Tanganyika, where they were greeted by the Governor and a large crowd of local people. Due to the soft ground, the aircraft were manhandled by men of the King’s African Rifles to a better area. The following day they left for Abercorn in Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia).

Thick forests would have made a forced landing impossible but

ADAPTABLE AND CAPABLE: Wg Cdr Pulford’s Fairey F.IIID fitted with floats prior to the return trip to the UK in June, 1926 and aircraft at Kisumu, Kenya, during the Cairo-Cape Town leg

the Napier engines never missed a beat. The crews described Lake Tanganyika as “a beautiful sight” and 15 miles south was the landing strip at Abercorn. On March 21 the formation set off for N’Dola, a fourhour flight and where the whole European population gathered to greet them.

Over the next few days, the formation headed south, reaching Livingstone on March 29. The spray from the nearby Victoria Falls could be seen 40 miles away and, on arrival, they were met by the Governor and Lady Stanley. Taking off in formation the next morning, they saluted the Governor with a flypast, flew over Victoria Falls and headed for Bulawayo.

Welcome

By April 2 the aircraft had arrived at Pretoria where they received “an immense welcome” and where an RAF servicing party was there to greet them. The aircraft were wheeled into hangars where only a few minor adjustments were needed, otherwise they were in perfect order. On April 5, accompanied by 14 aircraft of the South African Air Force, the team flew to Johannesburg where they were received by the Lord Mayor and a large crowd.

The next stage was to Blomfontein, where it was discovered that the oil tank of S 1102 had split and had to be replaced.

After refuelling at Beaufort, the

had such faith in their engines and aircraft that the idea seldom, if ever, crossed their minds.

The four aircraft flew to the RAF base at Aboukir near Alexandria on May 29 where they were overhauled and fitted with floats for the onward journey to England.

The flight left on June 9. Less exciting than the flight to Cape Town, stops were made in Greece, Italy and France before arriving at Lee-on-Solent, Portsmouth on June 21,where they were received

by Air Vice-Marshal Sir Geoffrey Salmond representing the Air Council.

formation took off on the morning of April 12 and headed for Cape Town, where they were welcomed by the Minister of Defence and Chief of the General Staff.

The Flight received the greatest assistance from the Cape Garrison and from a local engineering company that manufactured four new oil tanks, which they fitted to each aircraft.

Oil tanks A week was spent in Cape Town servicing the aircraft. The return flight began on April 19 and followed the same route, except for

a visit to Nairobi, arriving back at Heliopolis on May 27, one day ahead of the timetable. Each aircraft had flown for 141 hours and very little trouble was experienced. Beyond having to replace one magneto, two propellers and four oil tanks, no major repairs were necessary. This is testimony to the reliability of the Napier engines, the robust airframe and, in particular, the efficient ground organisation prepared by the RAF personnel who had to be sent to the landing grounds in advance. The country flown over between Kenya to Pretoria was bad for a forced landing, but the pilots

Triumph At the end of the epic flight, each aircraft had flown for approximately 185 hours and covered almost 14,000 miles. The aviation magazine Flight described the feat as “a triumph of British organisation and achievement.”

The official RAF report of the Cape Flight stated: “The flight has been of great value to the Royal Air Force, as it has provided experience in long-distance flying over new country and through changing climates. It should clearly show to the world the reliability and the efficiency of British aircraft and engines, the objects of the flight having been completely achieved.”

For such a flight to be undertaken and be so successful just over seven years after the end of WWI was indeed remarkable.

Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 P23

Sir Erik Bennett KBE, CB, CVO Obituary

The RAF officer who was behind Omani Air Force A

IR VICE-MARSHAL Sir Erik Bennett, who has died in Oman aged 95, was an experienced RAF fighter pilot when, in 1974, he became the Commander of the Sultan of Oman’s Air Force (SOAF), a post he held for the next 16 years.

He joined the RAF as an airman in July 1943 and served in administrative posts in Lincolnshire before being commissioned into the Secretarial Branch in 1948.

In 1950 he transferred into the General Duties (Flying) Branch and trained as a pilot. After gaining his wings in June 1951 he joined 249 Squadron based at Deversoir in the Canal Zone of Egypt, where the squadron was equipped with the fighter-bomber version of the Vampire jet.

After training as a pilot attack instructor at West Raynham, he returned to his squadron in Egypt and after a brief spell with 32 Squadron he was back in England in 1954, where he joined 111 (Treble One) Squadron at North Weald in Essex, flying the Meteor day fighter.

For his service in the Middle East he was awarded a Queen’s Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air. He later transferred to 64 Squadron as a flight commander, based at Duxford. By the summer of 1956 he was an experienced and accomplished fighter pilot, and he became an instructor at the Day Fighter Leader’s School at West Raynham.

In November 1958 Bennett was loaned to the Royal Jordanian Air Force (RJAF), which had been formed three years earlier.

The RAF had assisted in the development of the fledgling air force and, when Bennett arrived, Britain was beginning to supply 12 ex-RAF Hunter fighters to form the RJAF’s No 1 Squadron, which he established along RAF lines. By the time he left Jordan towards the end of 1962, a second squadron of Hunters had been formed.

For the final two years of his time in Jordan, he served as the UK’s Defence Advisor. He had formed a close relationship during his time as air adviser to King Hussein, a qualified fighter pilot, and on his departure in November 1962, the King invested him with the Order of Istiqlal (Independence).

A

TOUGH COMMANDER: Sir Erik Bennett

fter attending the RAF Staff College, Bennett served in the operations division of the MO D, where he was the project officer for the US-built

Phantom fighter, which was to enter RAF service in 1968.

He converted to the supersonic Lightning before taking up the appointment of officer commanding the Flying Wing at Tengah in Singapore, one of the RAF’s busiest overseas operational bases, where he remained in current flying practice. Colleagues remember him for his aggressive driving style in a yellow Ferrari, a gift from King Hussein.

Six months after returning to England in January 1972 he became the Station Commander at Boulmer, a key radar station in the UK’s Air Defence network.

During this period, he led a British military team on a visit to Oman, where he wrote a proposal for an Omani air defence system.

On leaving Boulmer after two years in command, he headed for Oman.

When Sultan Qaboos bin Said ascended to the Omani throne after overthrowing his father in a coup d’état in 1970, he began implementing a policy of modernisation, instigating major social, educational and military reforms including the creation of an autonomous air force. Julian Amery, a minister at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, recommended Bennett to the young Sultan.

Bennett’s arrival in November 1974 to take up the post with the SOAF coincided with the late stages of the Dhofar rebellion where the Strikemasters, flown by RAF pilots on loan and contract pilots, had performed well, but a more advanced aircraft was needed.

He was able to negotiate the transfer of 16 surplus Hunters from the Royal Jordanian Air Force. He also acquired several ex-RAF aircraft to create a modern and effective fighter ground-attack force for the Sultan.

In 1977 the Anglo-French Jaguar, with its improved navigation and weapons-aiming system, began to arrive, and transport aircraft joined the

SOAF inventory. As well as arranging these new acquisitions, Bennett masterminded the training, tactics and operational efficiency of his force. In addition, he ensured that capable young Omanis were gradually taking on the appointments and responsibilities previously filled

by RAF exchange and contract officers.

In 1990, the SOAF was renamed the Royal Air Force of Oman (RAFO) and the new Hawk fighter began to replace the ageing Hunters. By the time Bennett retired from his post as commander of the RAFO, the small organisation of 1974 had expanded and modernised into one of the most formidable air forces in the region.

B

ennett remained in Oman as a close friend, confidant and advisor to Sultan Qaboos. He was able to strengthen the links with the UK by assisting with regular and discreet meetings between the Sultan and some top UK officials for confidential reviews of world and regional affairs.

He continued to run the Sultan’s London office, which provided a special link with politics, government and Buckingham Palace.

Bennett, who loyally served two monarchs, divided his life between Oman, the UK, and the Ireland he loved. He was a caring man who attracted devoted loyalty. He encouraged young Omanis and followed their development and careers with keen interest. He was known as a tough commander, but all who worked for him held him in high regard. A cultured, private man, he was the epitome of discretion and a charming and attentive host.

In addition to his Jordanian and Omani honours, Bennett was appointed CB in 1984 and KBE in 1990. In November 2010, on a Royal visit to Muscat, at a small ceremony The Queen appointed him CVO. He died on January 28 and was buried in his native Ireland.

Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 P24

Feature

Jacob Gunning for fundraising glory with Regt YOUNGSTER JACOB Newson was put through his paces on Honington’s assault course as he prepares for his latest fundraising feat for the RAF Benevolent Fund.

The Air Force’s number one fan completed each obstacle on the Service’s toughest assault course, with occasionally a little help from some Gunners, and in his words he ‘smashed it!’

Station Commander Gp Capt Dutch Holland said: “We value determination, courage and selflessness in the face of adversity above all else, and Jacob demonstrates these qualities every day.

“We provided him with a fun day of new experiences to stretch and challenge this most impressive of young men.”

The eight-year-old fundraiser, who uses the Twitter handle ‘Jacob the Pilot’ sampled some virtualreality training before tucking into a ration pack for lunch.

He then toured a few of the armoured vehicles used by the

Regiment, before finishing the day at the station’s Paramotor Club.

RAF Benevolent Fund regional fundraiser Lisa Hunt said: “Jacob has been fundraising on our behalf since 2019 and it’s heartwarming that his passion for all things RAF remains sky-high three years on.

“Later this year, Jacob will be completing a 25km walk to Dunkirk in aid of the Fund and St Gemma’s Hospice, so it’s wonderful to see the serving community here at RAF Honington sharing his enthusiasm.”

ON THE PACE: Jacob gets some military-style training ahead of his next charity challenge

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Boris Defence bonanza fuels UK space race MAY THE FORCES BE WITH YOU: Boris Johnson has pledged extra funding for military

space defence technology

£16.5bn to combat Russia & China 'Star Wars' threat Simon Mander DeFeNCe Is set for the biggest funding lift since the end of the Cold War government budget boost of £16.5 with a to transform the Armed Forces. billion PM Boris Johnson announced the spending spree to counter the growing threat Russia and China in space and the cyber from realm.

Among the projects to receive extra funding are a national Cyber Force and RAF Space Command, to safeguard military and commercial satellites from attack by adversaries.

Senior Air chiefs this week warned the next major conflict could be won or lost in space and that a move away from traditional military war fighting is vital to protect the UK and its allies.

Mr Johnson said: “I have taken this decision in the teeth of the pandemic because the defence of the realm must come first.

“The international situation is more perilous and intensely competitive than at any time since the Cold War and Britain must be true to our history and stand alongside our allies. To achieve this, we need to upgrade our capabilities across the board.

“This is our chance to end the era of retreat, transform our Armed Forces, bolster our global influence, unite and level up our country, pioneer new technology and defend our people and way of life.” ● Continued p3

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Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 P26

Motoring

Kia Stonic

STONKING: Small SUV crossover the Kia Stonic comes with the marque’s 7-year warranty

Rio’s big brother BACK IN the day – when a moustache was for life, not just for Movember, and the bar in the Officers’ Mess looked like a scene from Top Gun – the motoring market was easy to understand.

If you had an ego the size of Cumbria, you drove a sports car.

For short city hops you’d buy a small hatchback and if you needed to round up the odd wayward cow you’d have a 4x4.

Not so these days however because buyers increasingly want cars that sit high but have the economy of a moped. With fuel at more than £1.50 per litre, who could blame them.

This is where the Kia Stonic fits in, a higher-riding small car with beefy wheels and SUV styling. Our test car came in sporty GT-Line trim with the option of snazzy twotone paint.

On the Road The Stonic is based on the chassis of a Kia Rio hatchback. It comes with a choice of two 1.0-litre petrol engines that average around

TIM MORRIS Motoring Correspondent 50mpg. Both engines are pretty punchy too, delivering 99bhp or 120bhp, respectively. You can opt for either a six-speed manual or a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox.

It’s agile enough through the bends. The front end has largely retained the nimble characteristics of the Rio and the steering is quick to respond. It’s agile around town and relatively sharp on winding roads so it’s a good balance, even if there is relatively little feedback through the steering wheel. The ride is nice and firm, which suits me, but it won’t be for everyone buying in this segment.

Another slightly odd feature is the clutch. It’s electronic rather than being connected to the gearbox by a mechanical linkage. Kia says that it’s designed to allow the engine to shut down faster, but I’m not a fan.

There’s no resistance as you lift your

foot off the pedal so holding the car on the ‘biting point’ takes some getting used to.

Once you are on the move however it punches above its weight. 0–62mph takes 10 seconds, with a top speed of 115mph. The only downside is the large flat spot caused by turbo-lag.

It flies for a small engine once your revs are up but using the turbo to compensate for the lack of horsepower doesn’t always cut it.

We found fuel economy to be in the mid-40s under real-world driving conditions.

Inside The Stonic’s driving position isn’t quite what you’d expect from an SUV crossover. I loved it because you sit low with your legs stretched out, but here’s the thing; if you’ve gone to the time and trouble to buy an SUV crossover the chances are

that you wanted to sit higher up.

That’s one you’ll have to decide for yourself.

There’s no doubt that you’ll find a comfortable driving position in every other respect however because there’s plenty of seat and steering wheel adjustment.

The dashboard is well laid out, with everything easily to hand. The infotainment system is slick and pips many rivals thanks to a sharp 8.0in touchscreen display that’s positioned high on the dashboard.

It features large icons that are simple to hit on the move and it’s responsive to commands.

The only downside is that most surfaces are made from hard, scratchy plastics, including the upper door trims. This gives it an economy feel that could easily have been avoided but, being fair, the vast majority of small SUVs in this price bracket suffer from a similar problem.

Verdict Pros l Handles well for an SUV cross l Feisty turbo petrol engine l Looks smart l Plenty of kit as standard Cons l Noticeable flat spot l Scratchy plastics visible l Other small SUVs possibly more versatile Overall The Kia Stonic looks smart and handles well for a car in this class. Once you’ve learnt to spool up the turbo in advance it goes well too. It has a few downsides, such as restricted space in the rear seats and those cheap-looking surfaces, but it’s well-equipped for the price (starts from under £19k).

Better yet, it comes with Kia’s stonking 7-year warranty, so you’ll certainly have peace of mind.

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Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 P27

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Sport

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pages of RAF Sport start here ● Ladies end Inter-Services drought in style: p30

Veterans gunning for the Inter-Services title FOOTBALL

Competition back after two years hit

by Covid pandemic

HOCKEY

50 caps for England's Sanford RAF HOCKEY sensation Liam Sanford celebrated his 50th England cap recently in a hard-fought game against Argentina.

The landmark came during the Serviceman’s first trip to the South American country to represent his nation.

Unfortunately, the defender and his teammates

found themselves on the wrong end of a 3-1 scoreline, their second loss to Argentina in as many days.

England stalwart Sanford was also part of the Team GB hockey team at last year’s Tokyo Olympics. They went out in the quarter-finals after being beaten by India.

THE RAF’S veteran footballers will be going all out to win the Inter-Services this month after Covid saw the last two tournaments cancelled.

In 2020-2021 the blue-riband event didn’t even get started, and the previous season it had been looking good for the military men with a 1-0 victory over the Army under their belts before the plug was once again pulled on the competition because of the pandemic.

So gaffer FS (Ret’d) Matt Beattie and his charges have a point to prove and are raring to go this time around.

The RAF Football Association Veterans Football Club was founded in the mid-1990s. Flt Lt Mark Mallinson made it his mission to provide greater playing opportunities and engagement for personnel and veterans over the age of 35.

The first RAF Veterans InterServices match was against the Royal Navy at Portsmouth and it included a certain Seaman called Chris Kamara in their ranks.

He, of course, went on to play professionally and then find greater fame as a sports pundit.

When WO (Ret’d) Tony Dunn took over the team played three or four fixtures a year, culminating at the end of the season with a fixture against the Royal Navy.

In 2012 Dunn handed over the reins to Beattie, and he continued where his predecessor left off, gradually arranging fixtures against higher-class opposition.

Now the Over-35s team has been joined by an Over-50s outfit, each based at the FA’s prestigious St George’s Park national football centre in Staffordshire.

The RAF Over-35s are one of the top veterans sides in the UK boasting ex-pro and ex semi-pro players including Gareth Seddon (ex-Bury and Salford City), Steve Thompson (Wycombe and Woking), Neil Thomas (Llanelli),

GAFFER: FS (Ret'd) Matt Beattie

Darren Robinson (Newport), Craig Gill (Yeovil Town and Barry Town) and David (Geordie) Salkeld (Elgin City).

Serving and retired RAF personnel now travel from across Europe to meet up, play football and socialise post-match.

The 2018/19 season proved to be hugely successful for the team.

They played games around the UK and competed in the Akrotiri 7-a-side competition in Cyprus.

Having won 15 of their 19 fixtures the season culminated in the InterServices games in March, with the first hurdle being the Army at Aldershot.

The RAF triumphed, delivering a 4-0 victory. The next game saw the RAF host the Royal Navy at TNS FC’s ground near Oswestry.

The RAF were again well-drilled and beat the Navy 5-1 to take the IS title.

With the worst of Covid-19 now past and sport back in full swing, the future looks bright for the RAF FA Veterans under the stewardship of Matt Beattie.

First up in the Inter-Services are the Navy at St George’s on March 17, then the Army at Aldershot on March 23.

Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 P28

Sport

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ALPINE SPORTS

Olympics know-how a boost for the Service Daniel Abrahams HAVING TAMED the bobsleigh runs of the Beijing Olympics for Team Jamaica, L/Cpl Shanwayne Stephens arrived in Austria for the Festival of Ice, this year’s adapted Inter-Services championship.

Stephens said: “It’s been fantastic to have been at the Games and performed, which I did to the best of my ability and the team produced their best also.”

Up against teams with state-ofthe-art equipment, Stephens had to use a six-year-old sled for his twoman bobsleigh runs, finishing 30th, and an even more ancient 20-yearold four-man bob, finishing 28th at the Yanqing National Sliding Centre in China.

He added: “We can only grow and get better and, despite the old equipment, we got to China and

Games experience to benefit the RAF at IS Festival of Ice

TEAM: L/Cpl Stephens (r) with Team GB coach Chf Tech Mark Silva at the Games

I cannot wait to push for the next Games. More immediately, my focus is here in Innsbruck for this year’s IS event.”

He added: “I have been able to pass on things that I learned from Beijing and the whole experience will not only help me massively in my career in the sport, it will, and is, benefiting the Service team as well.”

Sqn Ldr Heather Ratnage-Black,

COOL RUNNINGS: L/Cpl Shanwayne Stephens in the driving seat for Jamaica at Beijing

RAF BLSA chairperson, said: “Recognising that the Royal Navy and Army were unable to hold novice ice events this winter due to European covid restrictions, the UKAF WSA Chairs for the three disciplines agreed to allow all teams to bring athletes that meet their future development needs.

“For the first time the event will run two races, Development and Senior, to allow emerging talent to be recognised while maintaining a senior race day.

“There are very few sports where you can be a week one beginner mixing on ice and in location with athletes who have just returned from an Olympic Games.”

Cpl Luke Farrer, luge team manager for the 2022 championships, said: “Things are going well here preparing for the racing, it’s a good mix of novice and experienced sliders.”

Stephens added: “The whole aim of getting in a bob is to race, so here the training is going well. The atmosphere is great and although it’s more a collective atmosphere this year, to get people back on the ice the racing will be serious between the Services, that’s for sure.” n Follow the RAF ice sports association on Twitter @ RAFBLSA.

Air Force personnel bossing it in Beijing SQN LDR GAV ARNOLD COACH: Sqn Ldr Arnold at the Yanqing National Sliding Centre in Beijing

COACHING GB luge star Rupert Staudinger, who finished 23rd in the luge, Sqn Ldr Gav Arnold said: “The whole event was really positive. We met our target aims and we are already aiming to be back at the next games in four years’ time.

“Rob had a great Games,

earning the nickname King of Curve 13 for his efforts as the only slider to conquer the corner fully. For me it was odd, but exciting. Sitting in GB HQ chewing the fat with Stu Benson and Mark Silva was great, when you think it was at a Winter Olympics it was a bit surreal as well.”

CHF TECH MARK SILVA

CHF TECH STU BENSON

CHIEF TECH Mark Silva worked as part of Team GB along with overseeing Team Jamaica and its RAF driver L/ Cpl Shanwayne Stephens. Silva said: “It was great to be involved.

It was always going to be tough for Shan and the team, but we finished where we thought we would. Shan competed in his first elite four-man race at an Olympic Games, that is the reality of what was achieved, and he performed well versus the other competitors.

“As a Service we must utilise the fact that we have the first RAF driver to qualify for a Winter Olympics for more than 40 years and to have had the GB backroom team we had, these are serious achievements.

“I feel we were chosen to be part of the GB and Jamaican set-ups because military people deliver and across the board with the finishes and performances

CHF TECH Stu Benson, who worked at the Games with sixth-placed bobsleigh driver Brad Hall and his team, said: “Initially I was a bit worried that attending an Olympics as part of the coaching staff rather than as an athlete would be a duller and less fulfilling experience.

“It turns out it was just as thrilling. I had the space to take more in and utilise lessons learned from my previous Games.”

Benson, who won bronze in the sport at the Sochi Games in 2014, added: “The team around us were incredible, the venues were spectacular, and the athletes should be proud of what they have achieved.”

CHILLING: Chf Tech Silva (left) watches Games ice hockey with L/Cpl Stephens

everyone delivered.”

He added: “There was no standard at the Games that shocked me, we can deliver at these levels, and we will be pushing on with that in mind now.”

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Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 P29

@rafnewssport

Email: sports@rafnews.co.uk PARALYMPICS

Sport

Shona hopes to Cruise to Paralympics gold TOP HUM

Musician Brownlee feels the need…. the need for speed Daniel Abrahams SAC SHONA Brownlee may well be thanking the Tom Cruise film Top Gun for part of her success if she medals at this year’s Paralympics.

Brownlee burst onto the world stage in her sport of sit-ski last year, winning World Cup medals in Giant Slalom (bronze) and Super G (silver) in Lillehammer, Norway in January, before being selected to represent Team GB at the Beijing Games.

She revealed details of an, until now, unknown secret weapon in her sporting arsenal – she hums the tune of the film Top Gun to fire herself up as she sits at the start gate before a race.

She said: “I have qualified and been selected – it’s so exciting and so odd at the same time, as I have not really taken it all in.

“When I called my parents to tell them my news, my mum [Anne] said ‘I expected you go to the Games’. She might have expected it, but I didn’t.

IN TUNE: RAF musician and Top Gun fan SAC Shona Brownlee

GOING FOR GOLD: GB star Shona

PHOTO: LUC PERCIVAL

“She must have thought if I had won a World Cup medal then it followed the Games was next, but the truth is this time last year I could not have been further from the qualification goal.”

Brownlee, an RAF musician playing French horn, had the bottom half of her right leg amputated in 2018.

She added: “As soon as I began

sit-ski I noticed similarities between my musical background. There is a lot of repetition and going over small things to get them perfect. You also have one chance to perform a run right in a competition, the same with a piece of music in a solo recital.

“It was at the start gate I noticed I felt wobbly, in a

similar way I do before a recital.

To help, one of my coaches hummed the theme tune to Top Gun Anthem [composed by Harold Faltermeyer and Steve Stevens] in my ear.

“It started as a : joke, but it is such a N U G P O T proud bit of music Cruise it really boosted

my confidence and now it is part of every run I perform.”

Brownlee, who will compete in two speed events and two technical events at the Paralympics, added: “In many cases the Top Gun theme is played on the French horn, add the Air Force connection and, of course, add the catchphrase from the film ‘I feel the need, the need for speed’ and it all seemed to fit.”

Ski guide Smith owes his success to the RAF SGT GARY SMITH has thanked his Service for the skiing skills that see him take to the slopes as a guide to Paralympic Alpine skier Menna Fitzgerald.

ICT Technician and Elite Scheme Athlete Smith, 38, began working with visually impaired Fitzgerald in 2019, competing with the Welsh star at the World Championships in Norway last year.

The pairing’s biggest challenge now lies ahead at the Beijing Games, and Smith told RAF News how the Air Force began his love of all things ski in 2002.

“I had never skied before joining the RAF,” he said: “I was lucky enough to go away on a visit to Les Arcs, France with 81 Signals Unit in March 2002. We spent a few days on the beginner lifts learning the basics before I chucked myself down the blue run in the snowplough.”

Having developed in the sport

TEAM: SAC Smith and Menna, also left

Smith went on to be crowned RAF men’s individual champion in 2011 and was selected as the men’s team captain for the Combined Services Championships, his notable roll call culminating in CS success in 2014 and 2015.

His time as a guide began in 2016, when he was asked to trial

for visually-impaired skier Kelly Gallagher. Having supported her at the Pyeongchang Paralympic Games and over countless World Cup races before she stepped away from the sport in 2019, he joined forces with Fitzgerald.

When on the slopes, Smith, wearing a bright orange jacket, skis in front of Fitzgerald and then gives verbal instructions via two-way Bluetooth in their helmets – all at 100mph, skiing down a mountain.

Smith said: “Menna and me are so excited to be selected for Paralympics GB and to represent our country in Beijing 2022.

“Walking out at the opening ceremony for the Paralympic Games representing Great Britain and the RAF is something I will never forgot. It truly wouldn’t be possible without the support of the Royal Air Force and everyone back home.”

Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 P30

Sport

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CROSS COUNTRY

ON YOUR MARKS: Women ready for the off at Halton and, inset, RAF Ladies celebrate taking the Inter-Services title

Ladies end 30 years of hurt Inter-Services glory at Halton

WE WON THE CUP: Cpl Helena Schofield (left) & SAC Chloe Richardson

THE RAF ran away with it at the Inter-Services Cross Country Championships at Halton.

The light blues won all four individual titles and three of the four team golds at the event, held at their home course.

On an outstanding day for the Service the ladies took the women’s team title for the first time in 34 years – last achieving the feat way back in 1988.

They were ably captained by RAF Waddington’s Cpl Helena Schofield, and teammate SAC Chloe Richardson took the individual women’s title.

Following up their recent success in the RAF Championships, Brize Norton runners led the way for the Service. As well as Richardson, the station was represented by Fg Off Mike Kallenberg, who took the men’s title, and SAC Tom Thayre, who won the U23 gold.

The RAF runners also included Brize athletes SAC Aleksander (U23 team), Flt

MEN'S GOLD: Fg Off Mike Kallenberg

Lt Kim Adams (ladies) and SAC Simon Birch (men).

The Masters race was won for the RAF by WO Paul Vernon.

The Navy took the U23 team title.

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Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 P31

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Sport

FOOTBALL

Foul play as Army 'ringer' hands Navy Inters crown

GOALLLLLL: Elated scorer SAC Henry Jordan lifts SAC Matt Hendry as SAC Tom Burbeary joins in the celebration, left, in the Army match

BOXING

Elite boxers fight it out THE SERVICE’S pugilists will be hoping to pack a punch at this year’s UK Armed Forces Boxing Association Elite Championships, which will return for the first time since 2019.

There will be extra motivation this year for the men and women in light blue, because the event will be hosted by the RAF for the first time in more than 15 years.

The semi-finals will take place on Monday, March 14 at Aldershot Garrison, with the finals held two days later at RAF Halton.

A RAF Boxing spokesperson said: “The UKAFBA Elite Championships allows the

best boxers from each Service to stand toe to toe against one another to battle it out for the title of UK Armed Forces Champion and for a place on the UKAFBA Elite Squad.

“Boxers must have had a minimum of 20 bouts to enter the championships. Winners at each weight category will not only be crowned a UKAF Champion, but they will proceed to the pre-quarter finals of the England Boxing National Championships.”

A limited number of tickets for the event are still available.

Contact Project Officer Sqn Ldr Natasha Sirley on: natasha. sirley100@mod.gov.uk for further details.

IN A highly-controversial InterServices U23s championship the Army’s fielding of an ineligible player decided the outcome of the trophy.

As defending champions, new RAF team manager Sgt Danny Bartley was chomping at the bit to show what his untried team, with no previous IS experience, had in its locker.

Having lost their opening match 2-0 to the Army at Aldershot, the Navy ran out 2-1 winners

SCORER: SAC Logan Buick levelled things

RAF U23s Army U23s

2 2

over Bartley’s team – leaving the championship wide open.

The RAF expected to be going into the final match knowing a healthy win against the Army could give them the title, but then the Navy appealed against the Army fielding an ineligible player in their game and the result was overturned – meaning the IS title went to the mariners.

Bartley said: “Although not the overall result that we wanted, it’s been a positive season, working with a new squad with zero InterService experience.

“After a disappointing performance against the Navy, we produced an exceptional game at Rayners Lane against the Army that saw us respond with an outstanding performance and were unlucky not to win the game.”

The RAF left it late to spark into action in their opening game against the Navy at Barnaby Road, Portsmouth. A slip in midfield saw the hosts take the lead after 59 minutes, before making it two 10 minutes later. SAC Matt Hendry’s goal lit the fuse for a torrid closing quarter of RAF attacks, but they simply couldn’t find a way through.

Despite knowing the tournament outcome before a ball had been kicked the RAF played out a fullblooded clash against the Army at Rayners Lane FC in Harrow.

The men in red led after nine minutes, but a terrific turn and shot

by SAC Logan Buick after the break levelled things up. Buick went close again minutes later from 18 yards and SAC Henry Jordan’s wellworked, deflected 15-yard shot gave them the lead with 20 minutes left.

The visitors levelled in the closing stages, with both sides having chances to win the game before the final whistle.

66p ISSN 0035-8614 10 >

9 770035 861037

Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 R'n'R 1

Win!

R'n'R

Win Monty Don's new series on DVD l p8

Private Peaceful on tour – l p4-5 Announcements l P6-7

Puzzles l P8

Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 R'n'R 3

R'n'R Film review

Macfadyen and Hawes in real-life Stonehouse MP drama R

EAL-LIFE husband and wife Matthew Macfadyen (Succession) and Keeley Hawes (It’s a Sin) are the big names heading the cast as disgraced MP John Stonehouse and his wife Barbara in ITV’s new real-life drama Stonehouse.

The life and times of the former Labour minister and RAF veteran, who famously faked his own death in order to seek a new life in Australia, will be a threepart series penned by acclaimed writer John Preston, author of the recent award-winning biography Fall, about media tycoon Robert Maxwell.

Macfadyen said: “What happened to John Stonehouse is the stuff of legend. I’ve always been intrigued by what motivated him to fake his own death, and leave behind the family he loved and doted upon and a promising political career.”

DESPAIR: As well as his grief, Eric (Tom Hughes) has to contend with an ominous boat captain (Kate Dickie, left) and hallucinations about his mother (played by Greta Scacchi, below)

Shepherd (15)

Blu-ray and digital download now

S

TRUGGLING TO cope after the death of his pregnant wife, Eric (Tom Hughes, Red Joan, Victoria) escapes to a job as a shepherd on a remote Scottish island, becoming a prisoner of his own grief and guilt.

Taken to the uninhabited island on a small boat captained by an ominous, one-eyed woman (Kate Dickie, Game of Thrones) with a penchant for taxidermy, the ensuing horror couldn’t be more signposted until they reach his accommodation: a ramshackle cottage on the coast with no power or running water.

Eric must come to terms with what happened to his unfaithful wife (Gaia Weiss, Vikings) and the sense of the story through these impact it had on his relationship visions, it is a simple story gradually with his mother (Greta Scacchi, told, but its power comes through the The Player) with only a journal atmosphere and cinematography. and his dog Baxter for company.

The island itself is caught in Eric’s repressed emotions will breathtaking wide shots that capture have him lose his grip on reality the desolation, the hilly landscape as dark hallucinations take shape becoming positively Martian in – clues to the untold story that moments, whilst the interiors led him here. Thrown into the become creakier and crumbling. aftermath and having to make The locations perfectly reflect the

Island's the real star in this dark thriller Desolate, remote location reflects Eric's state of mind

STONEHOUSE: Macfadyen

The MP for Walsall North left behind his loving wife Barbara and three young children as a shocked public and media presumed he had drowned or been eaten by sharks.

Charismatic and brimming with confidence, Stonehouse had impressed Prime Minister Harold Wilson and Labour stalwarts from an early stage in his parliamentary career. From a working-class background, he’d graduated from the London School of Economics, served in the RAF during World War II and seemed the ideal candidate for a life in politics.

As the drama unfolds, it becomes apparent his reputation as a devoted family man masked the truth, as he’d embarked on an extra-marital affair with his secretary, Sheila Buckley, and acted as a spy for the Czech Secret Service in the 1960s.

His complex financial status and relationships eventually took their toll, with Stonehouse deliberately stealing the identity of a recently deceased constituent and fleeing to Australia, where police thought he was the fugitive peer Lord Lucan.

The drama will also star Emer Heatley (Showtrial) as Buckley, Kevin R McNally (The Crown, Unforgotten) as Wilson and Dorothy Atkinson (All Creatures Great and Small, Mum) as Betty Boothroyd).

Competitions

The Responder (15)

themes of the film, and continue to do so as Eric spirals.

Much like recent maritime nightmare The Lighthouse, it uses the isolation as a springboard into grief and past trauma, with certain horrific images punctuating the routine in a rather shocking and inventive manner.

Chaptered like Eric’s

journal, the film jumps to certain days on the island, although this stop-start rhythm does interrupt the momentum towards the end.

As it builds to a close, you realise that there wasn’t too much story to be revealed anyhow, and yet it manages to do a lot with such a simple idea.

3 roundels out of 5 Review by Sam Cooney

Competitions

Win! Dear Evan Hansen (12)

On Blu-ray, DVD and digital now (Dazzler Media)

Win!

On Blu-ray, DVD and 4K Ultra HD now (Dazzler Media)

Gritty police series and hit musical up for grabs H

OT ON the heels of its TV Adedayo, The Capture) both soon premiere on BBC One, The discover that survival in this highResponder has quickly become one pressure, relentless, twilight world of the most popular and highly- depends on them either helping or acclaimed police dramas of recent destroying each other. times, and is now available to own.

We have copies of this top telly Chris Carson (BAFTA and cop drama on DVD to add to Emmy award-winner Martin your collection. For your Freeman, Sherlock) drives a chance to own one, simply frontline response vehicle in tell us: his fragmented home town Who plays Chris Carson of Liverpool. Night after in The Responder? night he faces crime, Email your answer, violence and addiction marked The Responder on the streets, whilst DVD competition battling against personal to: competitions@ demons that threaten to rafnews.co.uk or destabilise his work, his post it to: RAF marriage and his mental News, Room 68, health.

Lancaster Building, When Chris is forced HQ Air Command, High 'CARSON': to take on new rookie Wycombe, HP14 4UE, to Freeman partner Rachel (Adelayo arrive by March 25.

n WE ALSO have DVD copies of the hit musical Dear Evan Hansen up for grabs. The Broadway phenomenon becomes a cinematic event as Tony, Grammy and Emmy award-winner Ben Platt (Pitch Perfect) reprises his role as an anxious, isolated high schooler aching for understanding and belonging amid the chaos and cruelty of the social media age.

Co-starring Julianne Moore (Still Alice) and Amy Adams (Arrival), and directed by acclaimed filmmaker Stephen Chbosky (Wonder), Dear Evan Hansen features music and lyrics by the Oscar, Grammy and Tonywinning songwriting team of Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (La La Land, The Greatest Showman), including two brand new songs and the iconic anthem You Will Be Found.

DEAR EVAN: Kaitlyn Dever and Ben Platt

To be in with a chance of winning a copy, just answer this question correctly: Who wrote the music and lyrics for Dear Evan Hansen?

Email your answer, marked Evan Hansen DVD competition, to the email address opposite or send it to our postal address by March 25.

Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 R'n'R 4

R'n'R

STRAIGHT FROM WAR HORSE'S M Morpurgo's timely reminder of horror & futility of conflict

I

T STARTED with a letter.

Twenty years ago Michael Morpurgo, author of some of the most popular children’s books of all time, including War Horse, was visiting a museum dedicated to World War I in Ypres, Belgium.

As he was leaving a framed letter caught his eye, its envelope addressed to a woman in Manchester.

“This typed letter was so stark,” he remembered. “It said: ‘We regret to inform you that your son was shot at dawn on such-and-such a date. Yours sincerely.’ I looked at the envelope and could see it had been ripped open – there was a huge tear along it. What that tear told me was the moment that this woman’s life had fallen apart. She opened it, and the rest of her life was grief and shame.”

The man who ran the museum explained that during WWI around 300 British men had been executed at dawn for various acts including desertion, cowardice, even two who had been shot for falling asleep at their post.

They found some old files containing details of the trials.

“One of them lasted less than 20 minutes,” said Morpurgo (pictured below). “Many were not represented by a lawyer. The vast majority were suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder, or shell shock as it was called. They were unable to cope. There were far too many Irish people shot, far too many black people. I walked out of that building thinking this was a part of history people did not know enough about. This was not justice.”

Moved by that framed letter, he started writing about two brothers, Tommo and Charlie, who are wrenched from their rural life to fight in the war, with the story of these executions playing a major part. It became Private Peaceful, published in 2003, and it was an instant, award-winning success.

It caught writer and director Simon Reade’s attention. He was so moved by the book’s message of fraternity, rivalry, redemption and the horror of war he told Morpurgo he would turn it into a play. But he wanted something small-scale for just one actor playing all the parts, and to change the ending.

Morpurgo agreed and the show opened in 2004. For more than 15 years it toured the world then in 2019 Reade decided to expand the play. He wanted a bigger cast and to reinstate the original ending.

Everything was set for a premiere at Nottingham Playhouse in 2020.

“Then the theatres all shut down,” said Morpurgo. “I thought that by the time they could reopen they would be interested in other things.”

“

You learn about happiness when you've been through the darkness. And then there is a time when we can sing and laugh again

N

”

ow, the new version of Private Peaceful is on an extensive UK tour, visiting venues including Oxford, Hull, Birmingham and High Wycombe. Morpurgo is delighted.

War Horse, his 1982 novel, has sold more than a million copies, with the stage show seen by more than seven million people. The film directed by Steven Spielberg was nominated for six Oscars.

Morpurgo is certain War Horse would never have happened without Private Peaceful.

After Private Peaceful had been playing at Bristol Old Vic, the National Theatre contacted the author. “They had clearly seen the

POW Rainfo star i

PHOTO

play and thought, ‘I wonder what else this fellow has got.’ They asked if they could adapt War Horse for the stage,” he said.

War Horse went into development for two years. Two weeks before it was due to open, Morpurgo went to see a run-through of the show. “It was disappointing,” he recalled. “Things were all over the place. It was a crisis.”

The team reworked it, desperately trying to get it right.

Morpurgo was nervous on opening night, remembering the

mess he had seen two weeks earlier.

He said: “I looked around me and every film director I’d ever known was sitting in the audience. All these film directors, all these important people…I heard them crying. At the end there was a huge standing ovation.”

T

here are similarities between the two books, of course: not just the WWI setting, but also the way the author confronts difficult themes unflinchingly.

For Morpurgo, that’s a necessary

part of writing for young people.

“My first profession was as a teacher,” he said. “I got used to explaining the world in a way that interested children but was not traumatic. You can tell them things at the right moment in the right way. That’s very important. But it’s also important that they have to know.

“Children grow up so much more savvy now than I did. We didn’t have television, smart phones. We knew nothing that wasn’t filtered, either by our parents or by our teachers. We

Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 R'n'R 5

Theatre

M THE MOUTH

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: Even the creepy dinner lady is after Billionaire Boy's money

Boy, Walliams wishes he owned a water slide

B

ESTSELLING CHILDREN’S author David Walliams and Birmingham Stage Company have teamed up for a new tour of their hit West End production of Billionaire Boy. The show goes to various venues this spring and summer including Woking, Sunderland, Bristol, Liverpool and Milton Keynes before arriving in Aberdeen on August 10.

The comedian, actor, writer and TV personality said: “What a magnificent show – if this production was on Britain’s Got Talent, I’d be giving it the Golden Buzzer. It couldn’t be better.”

He described seeing his books come to life as “the most brilliant thing…You feel like a magician because what was in your head is somehow now all real, right in front of you, so it is a very exciting thing.”

Billionaire Boy tells the story of 12-year-old Joe Spud, the richest boy in the country. He has his own sports car, two crocodiles as pets and £100,000 a week pocket money. But what Joe doesn’t have is a friend.

So he decides to leave his posh school and start at the local comprehensive.

But things don’t go as WRITER: planned for Joe and life Walliams

WERFUL: Daniel ord and Daniel Boyd in Private Peaceful

OS: MANUEL HARLAN

becomes a rollercoaster as he tries to find what money can’t buy.

Walliams explained: “My favourite character (apart from Joe Spud) is Mrs Trafe, the dinner lady, and I actually played her in the TV adaption. Basically in the story she asks Joe for money and she says she needs it for a hip operation but spends it on plastic surgery.

“So it was a lot of fun creating her horrible school dinners and also a lot of fun giving her the surgery in the book and seeing what she does with the money. It highlights the fact that Joe’s in a pretty difficult predicament because everyone is asking him for money and they all have good reasons why they need it.

“But at the same time money is quite a corrupting thing and it makes people do bad things and lie to him. So Mrs Trafe is really a side character but she does something pretty important in the story.”

H

e revealed that for this production, BSC have even created a helicopter.

He said: “When I write the books, I’m not thinking much beyond them being books. And, of course, in children’s books you want to have lots of really exciting

things happening like helicopters and fast cars and I know that does create problems for people staging it. But BSC are brilliant at bringing my books to life.

“They have already done two incredible adaptations of my books, Gangsta Granny and Awful Auntie, both of which went round the country quite a few times, then came into the West End and got great reviews and a fabulous response from the public. So I was really excited that a third book of mine was in their hands.”

He added: “It’s a really fun show because in a way this is the most comic book. It’s a story with an emphasis on jokes and silly situations and obviously the whole thing is quite surreal with someone having so much money. So it’s turned into a really fun theatre show and I loved seeing it on stage.”

Walliams admitted to coveting the water slide the billionaire boy has that goes down from his bedroom to a swimming pool.

He said: “He just gets out of bed and goes straight down a water slide. That is something I don’t have and it really pains me. So if I had a billion pounds to spend today I’d get that water slide, because water slides are so much fun. I love them.” n Go to: birminghamstage.com for more details.

Oh, pardon my French

were presented with a sanitised world, there was a slowness and gentleness about growing up.

“But for a long time children have grown up knowing there are these difficult things in the world. There are wars going on, there are terrible stories.

Now children can see the world at its cruellest broadcast directly to them.

What you do not do is avoid talking about these things. It’s so important to know what happens when the world falls apart.”

He added: “Stories like Private

Peaceful are more important than ever. They teach us about the hardness of living, how to live in a world that’s gone wrong, just as it has in the last two years.”

Morpurgo promised that the play ends with a glimmer of hope.

“You have to ease your way out of sadness,” he said. “You learn about happiness when you’ve been through the darkness. And then there is a time when we can sing and laugh again.” n Visit: privatepeacefulonstage.com for tour dates and tickets.

D

UBBED ‘THE Queen of British comedy,’ Dawn French returns to the stage this autumn with a brand new solo show Dawn French is a Huge Tw*t.

The Vicar of Dibley star will tour the UK from September 15, opening at Peterborough’s New Theatre and will then perform a further 19 shows across the country until October 16.

The award-winning actor and bestselling novelist explained: “This show is so named because,

unfortunately, it’s horribly accurate. There have been far too many times I have made stupid mistakes or misunderstood something vital or jumped the gun in a spectacular display of tw*ttery.

“I thought I might tell some of these buttock-clenching embarrassing stories to give the audience a peek behind the scenes of my work life…” n Go to: DawnFrenchOnTour for further information.

HUGE TW*T: Self-denigrating Dawn French

Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 R'n'R 6

R'n'R Your Announcements

You can email photos for announcements on this page to: tracey.allen@rafnews.co.uk

Seeking I am trying to contact the next of kin of Pilot Officer Denys Bellerby who, on January 4, 1941, was one of a crew of four on a training flight aboard a Wellington L7783 from 99 Squadron Bomber Command when the plane crashed and two of the crew died.

I would also like to contact the next of kin of Wing Commander Walter Hutton (26036, later Air Commodore) of 210 Squadron Coastal Command.

I would like to reproduce their letters of condolence when a colleague died in 1940 and 1942 respectively.

I would be extremely grateful if anyone with any information could contact me: ccecil@carolinececil. co.uk.

I am trying to find anyone who remembers or has information about an RAF chap who served in Wunstorf, near Hannover in the 1950s. His name is/was John Penford. I am an RBL member living in Germany.

Please email: nigel.capel@ yahoo.co.uk LOOKING for any of the class of IFN4/66, nav inst fitters course held at RAF Newton from April 1966 to March 1967. Please contact Malcolm Hodgson on: hodgson8448@gmail.com I am interested in contacting any ex-40th entry 1 Squadron, C Flight, Boy Entrants, at RAF Hereford 1960-61. Are there any still about? Please contact Ken Tinker on: KenMckean100@ gmail.com or call: 01722 790344 or 07377 03054.

LOOKING for anyone stationed at RAF Safi, in Malta, and RAF Idris, in Libya, between June 1963 and December 1965. Also, anyone on the RAF flight

on Floriana parade ground for Independence Day in September 1964, in Malta.

Please contact Geoff Stevens, on: moomin33@hotmail. co.uk or (01795) 479803.

THE RAF Mountain Rescue Association was formed in 1993 and since then has built up a large e-archive and website telling the story of RAF MR since it was officially recognised in 1943.

The amount of information about the various teams varies widely and very little is known about RAF Harrowbeer, which had a team for only a few months in 1944. In common with all the other RAF MRTs at that time the Team Leader was the Senior Medical Officer, in Harrowbeer's case Sqn Ldr Frank Constable.

The RAF Harrowbeer Operational Record Book Form 540 indicates that there were approximately 30 to 50 airmen serving on RAF Harrowbeer Mountain Rescue Team, which had been in service for at least four months. There may have been an unofficial RAF Mountain Rescue on this station prior to 1944.

RAF Harrowbeer Mountain Rescue Team may have been the first search and rescue unit to be formed on Dartmoor.

RAF Harrowbeer Mountain Rescue veterans are entitled to join the Royal Air Force Mountain Rescue Association.

If any readers can throw any light on this team or have information about Sqn Ldr Constable please contact Philip Rose at: philiprose3321@gmail. com. Philip is co-ordinating research into the team.

Reunions RAF Admin Apprentice Association Annual General Meeting and Reunion June 17-19, Northampton Marriott Hotel. For full

details and options please contact the association’s social secretary on: 01403 581324 or email: socialsecretary@ rafadappassn.org. This will be our first reunion since lockdown and will be a great chance to catch up with old friends and indeed make new ones.

THE RAF Changi Association (inc. HQFEAF) founded May 1996 welcomes new members from all ranks, ex RAF/WRAF/WAAF and civilian personnel who served at RAF Changi (inc.

HQFEAF ) during 1946-72.

For more information please contact our Membership Secretary: Malcolm Flack on: 01494 728562 or email: MemSecChangi@outlook. com or visit: www.rafchangi. com for more details.

RAF Bawdsey Reunion Association.

Having cancelled our 2020 reunion, we have provisionally planned the next reunion for Saturday, May 21 before The Queen’s Jubilee celebrations and the extended public holidays in early June, and we look forward to seeing our friends again then. Any queries please email: doreen. bawdseyreunion@btinternet. com or call: 07513 301723.

Catering Association RAF Catering Warrant Officers’ and Seniors’ Association (RAF CWO&SA): All serving or retired TG19 WO or FS and all former Catering Branch Officers are invited to join the RAF CWO&SA. We meet twice yearly. For more information or a membership application form, please send an email to davescott10@ hotmail.co.uk

RAFAA Association IF you trained as an RAF Administrative Apprentice (or are related to one)

How to use our service There is no charge for conventionally-worded birth, engagement, marriage, anniversary, death, in memoriam seeking and reunion notices. For commercial small ads contact Edwin Rodrigues on: 07482 571535.

We cannot, under any circumstances, take announcements over the telephone. They can be sent by email to: tracey.allen@rafnews.co.uk. Please note that due to the coronavirus pandemic we are currently unable to accept notices submitted by post.

Important Notice The publishers of RAF News cannot accept responsibility for the quality, safe delivery or operation of any products advertised or mentioned in this publication.

Reasonable precautions are taken before advertisements are accepted but such acceptance does not imply any form of approval or recommendation. Advertisements (or other inserted material) are accepted subject to the approval of the publishers and their current terms and conditions. The publishers will accept an advertisement or other inserted material only on the condition that the advertiser warrants that such advertisement does not in any way contravene the provisions of the Trade Descriptions Act. All copy is subject to the approval of the publishers, who reserve the right to refuse, amend, withdraw or otherwise deal with advertisements submitted to them at their absolute discretion and without explanation.

All advertisements must comply with the British Code of Advertising Practice. Mail order advertisers are required to state in advertisements their true surname or full company name, together with an address from which the business is managed.

we would be delighted to welcome you to the RAFAAA. Our aim is to promote friendship and general wellbeing among our veterans, via social gatherings and assorted activities, as devised by an elected committee, and a regular newsletter. See :rafadappassn.org or contact the Membership Secretary on: 07866 085834 or Chairman on: 01933 443673.

We we want to hear from you.

Veteran has his eyes on the skies

Thanksgiving service A thanksgiving service will be held for Sir Michael Oswald GCVO on Friday, March 25 at 11am at St Clement Danes, London WC2R 1DH. There will be an opportunity to meet up afterwards, for which an admission card will be required. Please email: michaeloswald1934@gmail. com or contact a member of the family for an admission card and further details.

Building courses PLACES are available on the Foundation in Property Maintenance courses in Birmingham, the West Midlands and around the UK, run by charity Building Heroes.

The five-week, fully-funded and practical courses are exclusively for military Service leavers, veterans, and reservists of all ranks and their immediate family members (spouse/child over 19). No experience of course subject matter is needed.

The Birmingham course dates are: April 25 – May 27, June 11– July 15, September 12 – October 15 and November 14 – December 16.

A Building Heroes spokesperson said courses are provided in brickwork, blockwork, plastering, painting and decorating, tiling, domestic plumbing and carpentry/joinery and learners graduate with a new pathway into employment/ self-employment (or enjoy a new and useful hobby).

The Construction Skills Certification Scheme – Health and Safety in the Construction Environment essential to enter a construction site – is also included.

Courses are also available in Colchester, Nantwich, Aldershot, Trowbridge, Salisbury, Cardiff, Blaydon, Gateshead, Wandsworth, London and Sherford, Devon Go to: buildingheroes.org.uk for more information.

UP AND AWAY: One of Ian's aviation action shots

RAF VETERAN Ian Cave has set up a website featuring his aviation photography devoted to civil and military aircraft.

Ian said: “I first became interested in aircraft aged eight when a DH.82A Tiger Moth regularly flew over my parents' house towing a glider from nearby Twinwoods in Bedfordshire, which I later found out belonged to a small group as part of the Royal Aircraft Establishment Thurleigh.

“I took a real interest knowing there was a research airfield nearby, jumped on my bicycle and cycled seven miles to RAE Thurleigh and watched from the boundary

many varied types of aircraft test flying. Later on, I started to attend such airshows at Chelveston, Upwood and Waterbeach and started aircraft spotting.

"Along with a notebook and pen I needed to record evidence of my visit and so bought a Kodak camera to capture what I had seen.

“Because of my love of aircraft, my ambition was to join the RAF and so I enlisted into Air Traffic Control and completed 22 years.

“Most of my military photographs were taken in their operational role.” n Go to the website: caviationphotography.com for more details.

FAB FROCKS: Dresses belonging to Dame Vera Lynn

Showstoppers on display GORGEOUS GOWNS worn

by Forces’ Sweetheart Dame Vera Lynn are among the exhibits on display in a major exhibition celebrating the popular performer.

Dame Vera Lynn: An Extraordinary Life is at Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft until April 18 and features more than 100 objects from the singer’s estate, including many previously unseen personal items.

Spectacular dresses on

show include the orange billow-sleeve creation worn for an appearance on the Morecambe and Wise Christmas Show in 1972 and a purple maxi dress she wore to meet the Queen Mother.

Dame Vera lived in the Sussex village on Ditchling from the 1940s until her death in 2020 aged 103. n Go to the website: ditchlingmusuemartcraft. org.uk for details and for a virtual tour.

Royal R oyal Air F Force orce N News ews Fr Friday, iday, M March arch 11, 202 2022 22 R'n'R 7

R'n'R R 'n' nR Your Y our u Announcements Announcements

You Y o ou can email email photos photos for for announcements announcements on on this this page page tto: o: tracey.allen@rafnews.co.uk tracey..allen@rafnews.co.uk SHOWTIME: Classic aircraft will star at Duxford this summer

Duxford D uxfford shows s ows are sh are back baack IWM DUXFORD’S DUXFORD’S SSummer um mmer A Air ir SShow how iiss b back ack – ttickets ickets e are are n ow o n ssale ale ffor or the the event even nt on on June June 18-19. now on A nd tthe he aannual nnual B attle l o ritain A ir SShow how w ill return retur u n on on And Battle off B Britain Air will SSeptember eptember 10-11 offering offer e ing visitors visitors an an immersion immersion into into the the 1940s w hen R AF Duxford Duxfford played played a pivotal pivotal role role in the the Battle Battle of of when RAF B Britain, ritain, helping helping tto o def defend feen nd tthe he U United nited Kingdom Kingdom against against Nazi Nazi aair ir aattacks. ttacks.

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factory. fac tor y. I went went up up to to the the Air Air F Force orce aand nd ssaid aid ‘‘II wa want nt tto o jjoin oin u p’.” up’ SShe he ttrained rained as as a driver, driver, aand nd wa wass ggiven iven b basic asicc vehicle vehicle which ccare are instructions, in i structio i ns, w hi h ssaw h hic aw h er ggo o in to tthe he p it tto o ggrease rease her into pit aand nd maintain maintain tthem. hem. She She had had h hoped oped tto o ssee ee tthe he world, world, b but ut wa wasn’t sn’t aable ble tto. o. added: SShe he adde d: “They “They didn’t didn’t ssend end w women omen dr drivers ivers aabroad. broad.

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WARTIME SERVICE: Florence as a young WAAF, main and far left.

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SStar tar & Garter Garter home home in High High W Wycombe, ycombe, aand nd H Hilda ild l a Toth, Toth, a rresident esident o off the the charity’s charity’ss SSolihull olihull home. home.

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in 1950 on on a short-term short-term commission co mmission aand nd w worked orked in meteorology m eteorology aatt R Royal oyal N Naval avval Air A ir SStations. tations.

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They Th ey p played layed a vvital ital role role in the the Armed Armed Forces Forces and and sserved er ved our our co country un ntr y w with ith distinction. di stinction.”

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Royal Air Force News Friday, March 11, 2022 R'n'R 8

R'n'R Crossword

Prize Su Doku

No. 311

No. 321

Solve the crossword, then rearrange the nine letters in yellow squares to find an RAF term

Fill in all the squares in the grid so that each row, each column and each 3x3 square contains all the digits from 1 to 9.

Across 1. RAF plane given the bird? (4) 8. Cosy appeal results in terrible destruction (10) 9. Time of year Ant’s partner uses glowing coal (8) 10. Light Infantry party at swimming-pool (4) 12. In area personnel use RAF aircraft (6) 14. Oil-rich seeds opened by Ali Baba? (6) 15. Five use backstreet to reach station (6) 17. Graduates start to question some women’s clothing (6) 18. About National Theatre charter (4) 19. Hardy’s partner almost consumed leading poet (8) 21. Fly with indecent courage (10) 22. Gunners quieten deluge (4)

Down 2. Speed up to create lace badly (10) 3. England striker kicks Arsenal’s number Eight, at first (4) 4. And 5 Down. Harrier’s bomb confuses RAF Marshal (6,6) 5. See 4 Down 6. They used to be sidelined, now they are middle of the road (8) 7. The girl’s duck is a shining example (4) 11. Beards must be sculpted in 617 Squadron (10) 13. Father left Frenchman spruce perhaps but evergreen (4,4) 16. The old-fashioned beginners inside town are cowardly (6) 17. Reward with chocolate treat (6) 18. Precious stone for Tuesday? (4) 20. Original woman right as always (4)

Solution to Su Doku No: 320

Solution to Crossword No 310: Across – 7. Others 8. Thrash 10. Gondola 11. Tiger 12. Grob 13. Skill 17. Fairy 18. Moth 22. Tutor 23. Enhance 24. Flimsy 25. Appeal Down –1. Long Ago 2. Chinook 3. Crook 4. Whittle 5. Badge 6.

Charm 9. Valkyries 14. Fairest 15. Dornier 16. Chiefly 19. Stiff 20.

Aviation Term – Air Traffic Control Stain 21. Chips

2-for-1 tickets to top shows

Competition

Monty Don's Adriatic Gardens On DVD and download-to-own from March 14 (Dazzler Media)

F

Win!

The full Monty M

ONTY DON’S latest series for the BBC comes to DVD and download this month and we have copies to give away.

In the three-part series Monty Don’s Adriatic Gardens he travels to Europe and explores the influence of the Venetians from their home city of Venice down the Adriatic coast, through Croatia and on to Greece. From visiting a range of public and private gardens, Monty learns about the impact that history, climate change and culture have had on the people who live there.

In the first episode he explores Venice by barge, stepping out to

VARIED SPLENDOUR: Monty in the Corfu countryside and formal Venice gardens, inset left

visit green spaces large and small.

In episode 2, starting in Trieste, he heads down Croatia’s coast in the footsteps of the Venetians and in the final episode Monty travels from the Venetian-influenced island of Corfu to Greece’s capital, Athens.

The much-loved writer, gardener and broadcaster has been the lead presenter of the BBC’s Gardeners’

World since 2003 and since 2011 the programme has come from his own garden, Longmeadow, in Herefordshire.

His website: montydon.com features monthly gardening tips and advice.

To be in with a chance of winning a copy of Monty Don’s Adriatic Gardens on DVD, just send us the correct answer to this question:

What is the name of Monty Don’s own garden?

Email your answer, marked Monty Don DVD competition, to: competitions@rafnews.co.uk or post it to: RAF News, Room 68, Lancaster Building, HQ Air Command, High Wycombe, HP14 4UE, to arrive by March 25. Please include your full postal address with all entries.

ANCY GETTING two tickets to top shows for the price of one? UK Theatre has launched Love Your Local Theatre, a new campaign encouraging the public to support their local playhouses as they begin to recover from the impact of Covid-19.

Milton Keynes Theatre has joined more than 100 venues UK-wide for a 2-for-1 ticket offer to National Lottery players who attend a show during March. The campaign is providing up to £2 million to subsidise an estimated 150,000 tickets nationwide.

National Lottery players are being offered the chance to buy one ticket and get another free for participating shows as a thank you for the £30 million they raise every week for good causes, including support for the performing arts and theatres during the pandemic.

Theatres taking part in the campaign include the Waterside, Aylesbury, the Alexandra Birmingham, Brighton’s Theatre Royal, Edinburgh Playhouse, New Theatre Oxford and York’s Grand Opera House.

Among the shows eligible for the offer are an evening with Chris Packham, the musical Hairspray, James Morrison in concert, Firedance starring Gorka Marquez and Karen Hauer, Peppa Pig’s Best Day Ever and The Rocky Horror Show. n Go to: atgtickets.com/ loveyourlocaltheatre