C-130 final flight around UK Wednesday

[Lost property]

For those who may be interested, a 3 ship C-130 formation will be flying around the UK on Wednesday, 14th June.

Details here (I hope).

A flypast to mark the forthcoming retirement of the Hercules from RAF service

A flypast to mark the forthcoming retirement of the Hercules from RAF service will take place across all four nations of the United Kingdom on Wednesday 14 June.

www.raf.mod.uk

 

[EC Traveller]

Thanks for the heads up.

 

[172007]

It's a little frustrating. It's all very good for the C130 to fly past all It's old bases etc to wave goodbye but completely avoids the 95% of the population that actually paid for them through taxes. Would be nice if a few of the countries larger cities could have been slotted in along the way or the day before or another flight at the same time.

 

[mpthomson]

It's a little frustrating. It's all very good for the C130 to fly past all It's old bases etc to wave goodbye but completely avoids the 95% of the population that actually paid for them through taxes. Would be nice if a few of the countries larger cities could have been slotted in along the way or the day before or another flight at the same time.

I suspect that the large majority of the 95% don't care about them in the slightest. They're of far more interest to those who live near or on the bases where they were active or along some of the more common training routes and who saw or worked on them frequently. And that's exactly what they've done with the flight routing.

 

[ainsworth74]

Meanwhile I'm just hacked off at the continued hacking away at what's left of our military capability. We've hacked away at the actually fighting edge so I guess now have to start in on the logistical enabling side of things.

 

[8A Rail]

Meanwhile I'm just hacked off at the continued hacking away at what's left of our military capability. We've hacked away at the actually fighting edge so I guess now have to start in on the logistical enabling side of things.

Why you say that? Not if they have not replaced the C130 with something else - slightly larger (bigger payload), more powerful (4 x 11000 bhp engines), namely the A400M 'Atlas' and I think there is twenty two of them too. The C130 has been going for 56 years with the RAF so I think retiring them is justified and deserved.

 

[Sm5]

Meanwhile I'm just hacked off at the continued hacking away at what's left of our military capability. We've hacked away at the actually fighting edge so I guess now have to start in on the logistical enabling side of things.

As the Americans say… The US supplies the ships Britain supplies the Admirals.

we are becoming dependant on NATO, but will be keen to supply the leadership from the rear.

 

[8A Rail]

As the Americans say… The US supplies the ships Britain supplies the Admirals.

we are becoming dependant on NATO, but will be keen to supply the leadership from the rear.

With the exception of of the US, every other country depends on NATO otherwise why have the organisation in the first place.

 

[ainsworth74]

Why you say that? Not if they have not replaced the C130 with something else - slightly larger (bigger payload), more powerful (4 x 11000 bhp engines), namely the A400M 'Atlas' and I think there is twenty two of them too. The C130 has been going for 56 years with the RAF so I think retiring them is justified and deserved.

As of today we have 22 A400Ms and 14 C-130s along with the 8 C-17s (alright a number of the C-130s are probably not in flying condition, but that's due to the fleet being retired no doubt). On the 30 June we will have 22 A400Ms and 8 C-17s. By any stretch of the imagination that's cut. Particularly as the C-130s were supposed to remain in service until the early 2030s and it was only in 2021 the decision was made to cut the fleet entirely in 2023. Whilst the A400M comes with advantages (I don't dispute that, I think it's an excellent aircraft now its in service) it still isn't ready to fulfil all the roles that the C-130 does particularly around special forces and air drop missions and doesn't seem to be likely to do so until 2025 at the earliest. Plus we've been promised "up to 6" more A400Ms but that's still means a smaller overall fleet and those aircraft haven't been ordered yet so we probably won't see them until late the 2020s at the earliest. The C-130 has been flying with the RAF since the 1960s but the C-130Js that are being retired were comprehensive upgrades of the aircraft and were built brand new in the late 1990s. They are not 56 years old.

The RAF's strategic airlift capability will be considerably less in July than it was in June and to my mind that's a cut in capabilities.

 

[JamesT]

As of today we have 22 A400Ms and 14 C-130s along with the 8 C-17s (alright a number of the C-130s are probably not in flying condition, but that's due to the fleet being retired no doubt). On the 30 June we will have 22 A400Ms and 8 C-17s. By any stretch of the imagination that's cut. Particularly as the C-130s were supposed to remain in service until the early 2030s and it was only in 2021 the decision was made to cut the fleet entirely in 2023. Whilst the A400M comes with advantages (I don't dispute that, I think it's an excellent aircraft now its in service) it still isn't ready to fulfil all the roles that the C-130 does particularly around special forces and air drop missions and doesn't seem to be likely to do so until 2025 at the earliest. Plus we've been promised "up to 6" more A400Ms but that's still means a smaller overall fleet and those aircraft haven't been ordered yet so we probably won't see them until late the 2020s at the earliest. The C-130 has been flying with the RAF since the 1960s but the C-130Js that are being retired were comprehensive upgrades of the aircraft and were built brand new in the late 1990s. They are not 56 years old.

The RAF's strategic airlift capability will be considerably less in July than it was in June and to my mind that's a cut in capabilities.

Surely the comparison should be with the fleet size before the A400s were introduced? For once someone has managed to introduce a replacement before the need to retire all the old kit, so there's been a temporary increase in size. If you're comparing the month after some have been retired then every single aircraft being retired is a cut which would be ridiculous.

 

[80073]

Thanks for the heads up.

Is the formation likely to be trackable on FR24? I live in mid Essex and it would be great to see them going from Colchester Garrison to MoD Boscombe Down. If not on FR24 I'll just have to rely on the times given in article .. or their noise!

Excuse my ignorance, but what's the C-130's connection with Colchester?

And, there's the King's Birthday Flypast to look forward to on Saturday!

 

[Lost property]

Thanks for the heads up.

Is the formation likely to be trackable on FR24? I live in mid Essex and it would be great to see them going from Colchester Garrison to MoD Boscombe Down. If not on FR24 I'll just have to rely on the times given in article .. or their noise!

Excuse my ignorance, but what's the C-130's connection with Colchester?

And, there's the King's Birthday Flypast to look forward to on Saturday!

I would think it's safe to say they will be on FR24...the connection with Colchester Garrison is, that, it's the base of the Air Assault Brigade including a couple of Para Regt's who would be very familiar with the Herc.

I would agree, in part, about the 95% of the population not being really interested, only to see a 3 ship formation which, unless you live in a training area, isn't that common a sight, and their interest would be aroused in the same way as " we saw an old steam train / diesel today " does.

Be interesting so see what height they transit around at and over the various locations. 3 Hercs at low(ish) level is an impressive sight for anybody to view.

 

[chipbury]

I’ve just seen three C-130 fly over the east side of Bath (@1520) heading southwest. They were all shown on Flight Radar.

 

[8A Rail]

As of today we have 22 A400Ms and 14 C-130s along with the 8 C-17s (alright a number of the C-130s are probably not in flying condition, but that's due to the fleet being retired no doubt). On the 30 June we will have 22 A400Ms and 8 C-17s. By any stretch of the imagination that's cut. Particularly as the C-130s were supposed to remain in service until the early 2030s and it was only in 2021 the decision was made to cut the fleet entirely in 2023. Whilst the A400M comes with advantages (I don't dispute that, I think it's an excellent aircraft now its in service) it still isn't ready to fulfil all the roles that the C-130 does particularly around special forces and air drop missions and doesn't seem to be likely to do so until 2025 at the earliest. Plus we've been promised "up to 6" more A400Ms but that's still means a smaller overall fleet and those aircraft haven't been ordered yet so we probably won't see them until late the 2020s at the earliest. The C-130 has been flying with the RAF since the 1960s but the C-130Js that are being retired were comprehensive upgrades of the aircraft and were built brand new in the late 1990s. They are not 56 years old.

The RAF's strategic airlift capability will be considerably less in July than it was in June and to my mind that's a cut in capabilities.

Well the A400M's would have to be ordered and in service before the C130's were withdrawn. Anything else would be very questionable and therefore have in theory no aircraft! Likewise the A400M's as I mentioned previously, are larger aircraft / bigger payload so would not need the same amount of aircraft with the C130 being smaller / less payload.

As for another six A400M's hopefully being ordered, that depends on the Government and currently, they don't wish to spend money (other than line their own pockets) and I am not sure any future Government (2024 onwards) will do either!

The C130 has been operational with the RAF for 56 years, I did not suggest or intended those presently flying where 56 years old!

Surely the comparison should be with the fleet size before the A400s were introduced? For once someone has managed to introduce a replacement before the need to retire all the old kit, so there's been a temporary increase in size. If you're comparing the month after some have been retired then every single aircraft being retired is a cut which would be ridiculous.

Spot on!

 

[80073]

Just to confirm that tracking data for the C130 flight is at FR24 Currently en route for Aldergrove, Belfast.

 

[spyinthesky]

Will be nice to see them this afternoon, as for removing capability, when was the last time paras were dropped into a battle zone?
Having flown in them several times without the need to use the back ramp exit they were certainly not pleasant experiences.

 

[mpthomson]

Will be nice to see them this afternoon, as for removing capability, when was the last time paras were dropped into a battle zone?
Having flown in them several times without the need to use the back ramp exit they were certainly not pleasant experiences.

For the UK the was the replacement CO of 2 PARA in the Falklands, Lt Col (later Brigadier) David Chaundler, who was parachuted into the South Atlantic from a Herc after the death of Lt Col H Jones, so 41 years ago. It's possible to jump from both A400 and C17 so it's not a capability loss from that pov.

I was fortunate enough to be on the now CGS battlefield study to the Falklands in 2018 where there were a large number of the more senior veterans (now all very old men, obviously) acting as Directing Staff and Chaundler was one of them. He was saying that he parachuted in wearing an orange survival suit, but that the Navy lost him for 40 mins, which he spent floating in the very cold South Atlantic. During which the suit started leaking...

I've spent many noisy and uncomfortable hours in the back of a Herc, sad to see them go but not that I won't get to travel in one again!

 

[william.martin]

It was great to see them land at my local airbase (Cosford) however it would have been better if they did a flypast of some of the cities that they didn't do.