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George Leonard “Johnny” Johnson was the last surviving original member of the famous “Dambusters” raid of 1943The last surviving Dambuster has died at the age of 101. George Leonard “Johnny” Johnson was the last surviving original member of RAF 617 Squadron’s famous “Dambusters” raid of 1943. He died peacefully at his care home in Westbury on Trym, Bristol, on Wednesday night surrounded by his family, a source told PA. He was a bomb aimer during Operation Chastise, which was tasked with attacking German dams during the Second World War. Around a third of the RAF Bomber Command crew did not...

The silhouette of one of the British Army’s Apache attack helicopters in the skies over Afghanistan is a reassuring sight for coalition forces on the battlefield. Its ungainly shape projects a menacing power that foes are unlikely to stand up to – if they haven’t already fled at the sound of its approaching rotors. But this symbol of British military power won’t be quite so British in the future. It’s almost certain that a forthcoming order for 50 updated Apaches will go to Boeing, the latest in a spate of major defence deals to go to the US. Three weeks...

Britain could soon be launching air strikes against Isil in Syria within months. But as the defence budget won't be spared from the government's spending cuts drive, how easily could the RAF handle making this extra intervention? Using official figures, compiled by the Royal United Services Institute, we get a sense of how many planes Britain's air force has available to be called in for action at short notice. Some planes may not be immediately available for action though, being tied up in other engagements, or in other cases being repaired and upgraded. Here's how these planes break down in...

WASHINGTON — The F-35 Lightning II program made aviation history June 12 as Royal Air Force (RAF) Test Pilot Squadron Leader Andy Edgell released two inert 500-pound dual mode Paveway IV precision-guided bombs over the Atlantic Test Ranges, the U.S. Navy reported. The inaugural weapons separation test of the Paveway IV conducted by the F-35 Lightning II Patuxent River, Md., Integrated Test Force (ITF) was a major milestone for the U.K. Royal Navy and RAF F-35 program. The test brought together the multi-role short-takeoff-and-vertical-landing (STOVL) variant of the F-35 fifth-generation stealth fighter and the Paveway IV — an advanced weapon...

The U.K. Ministry of Defense has released an accounting of all the aircraft in Royal Air Force, Royal Navy and British Army service — and the overall tally is tiny … and getting tinier. As of March this year, the air forces of the United Kingdom possessed no more than 362 combat-ready warplanes and drones plus 249 helicopters — a mere 611 military aircraft. Britain’s air force, navy and army together have another 93 planes and copters that are in deep maintenance or rework plus 18 that are in storage. None of these 111 aircraft are immediately available for combat. It’s worth noting that...

Wing Commander Tom Neil DFC & Bar, AFC and AE recounts his days as a RAF pilot during WWII and his experiences during the Battle of Britain For the first time, the RAF Museum brings you this video in one complete, uninterrupted, video.

LONDON (AP) — Britain's defense secretary is ditching proposals to buy a particular type of F-35 Joint StrikeFighter — reverting to an original plan previously criticized by Prime Minister David Cameron. Defense Secretary Philip Hammond told lawmakers Thursday that Britain would no longer purchase F-35c variants of the Lockheed Martin Corp. fighter jet because the cost of modifications to ships needed to accommodate the plane would be about 2 billion pounds ($3.2 billion). The jet's design — which does not include vertical take-off and landing — means aircraft carriers would need to be fitted with catapults and arrester gears. Hammond...

WWII fighter plane hailed the 'aviation equivalent of Tutankhamun's Tomb' found preserved in the Sahara A Second World War aeroplane that crash landed in the Sahara Desert before the British pilot walked to his death has been found almost perfectly preserved 70 years later. Most of its cockpit instruments are intact and it still had it guns and ammunition before they were seized by the Egyptian military. There are also signs of the makeshift camp the pilot made alongside the fuselage. No human remains have been found but it is thought the pilot may lie within a 20 mile radius...

Vulcan bombers, designed for nuclear raids on Russia, trained night and day in Scotland and Canada for a low level attack hundreds of miles deep into Argentine sovereign territory, a new book has shown. The news is likely to further strain the poor relations between Britain and Argentina that have been at their lowest since in the Falklands War in the lead up to the 30th anniversary of the invasion. The plans were drawn up by Air Commodore Simon Baldwin, who was the wing commander in charge of the last remaining Vulcan squadron in 1982. The officer "was left in...

Key defence officials are meeting on Tuesday to thrash out the details of how to make immediate savings to the 2011/2012 budget. The RAF is bracing itself to its fleet of 134 Tornado GR4 fighter-bombers being slashed in half to just 60 jets to save up to £300 million a year. Despite challenging the previous government over the helicopter shortages in Afghanistan a key decision will be the likely announcement to cut 12 extra Chinooks that were part of a package ordered by Gordon Brown. Other important equipment programmes are going to be axed in what will be an embarrassing...

.K. military officials are preparing plans to bridge capability gaps that have emerged out of last year’s Strategic Defense and Security Review (SDSR) even as they brace for further cuts to plug remaining funding shortfalls. On the agenda for a Jan. 25 meeting are issues such as how to transition carrier strike capability in the absence of a fully operational aircraft carrier, and whether the planned Scavenger medium-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aircraft program can take on missions associated with the canceled Nimrod MRA4 maritime patrol aircraft and R1 Sentinel. The latter is due to be withdrawn from service once Afghanistan operations...

'Blow up all soldiers' the pair shouted during attack A former serviceman was left bloodied and bruised when two drunken thugs beat him up for wearing an RAF blazer and poppy.Anthony O'Brien, 69, was attacked by the thugs, aged between 17 and 20, after meeting friends to plan the funeral of a former colleague. Mr O'Brien said today that as they attacked him they shouted: 'Blow up all soldiers. F****** shoot all you b*******s - death to all soldiers.' The pair - described as being of Asian or mixed race - then headbutted and punched him to the floor...

Royal Navy and RAF Harrier pilots face an uncertain future after the government revealed it is still reviewing the number it will retain following the decision to scrap the aircraft. The decision to scrap the aircraft was made as part of the Strategic Defence and Security Review in October, with the Harrier being taken out of service and numbers of Tornado aircraft set to be reduced. There are 135 Harrier pilots in the Royal Air Force and 53 in the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm. Responding to a question from New Forest MP Julian Lewis, defence Minister Andrew Robathan said...

Since October last year, RAF Tornado GR4 squadrons have been flying over the landscape of Afghanistan providing support to troops on the ground. But it is not just awesome firepower that these fast jets can deliver. RAF Marham, which operates four Tornado squadrons, put on a capability demonstration at the Norfolk-based airfield on Friday 26 November 2010 to show off the jets' capabilities. RAF Marham's Station Commander and Tornado Force Commander, Group Captain Pete Rochelle, said: "The Tornado GR4 is providing support to ground forces when they come under attack and its sophisticated intelligence and surveillance capabilities are playing a...

The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] delivered the United Kingdom’s seventh C-17 Globemaster III to the Royal Air Force (RAF) today during a ceremony at Boeing’s final assembly facility in Long Beach. "The addition of a seventh C-17 to our fleet is a significant milestone that strengthens our support of operations worldwide, especially in Afghanistan," said Peter Luff, UK Minister for Defence Equipment, Support and Technology. "And next year, in May, we’ll mark the 10th anniversary of the delivery of the RAF's first C-17, which continues to perform superbly -- anytime and anywhere." The United Kingdom's fleet of C-17s has logged...

The development of next generation combat UAVs along with the health of the Royal Air Force’s current fighter fleet will be key factors in determining how many F-35C Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters the United Kingdom buys in the coming years, a senior British defense official said today. “We know the number of F-35s we need” for a carrier air wing but have yet to decide on how many ground based JSFs are needed to perform “deep and persistent” missions, Gen. Nicholas Houghton, vice chief of the British defense staff said during a presentation in Washington sponsored by the Center...

bureaucratic dogfight between supporters of different combat jets as the UK draws up defence cuts could lead to changes in the way aircraft carriers are designed and how British forces operate, defence sources said. Options being studied by military planners include delaying the deployment of new carriers to convert them to use conventional traps and catapults instead of the unmechanised decks envisaged for Lockheed Martin F-35 jets to be ordered by Britain. The move, which sources briefed on the matter said is one of several options as the UK prepares defence cutbacks, would involve other changes to Britain's role in...

Britain's Royal Air Force is sending its best pilots and a squadron of its latest Eurofighter Typhoon jets into war games in India, shortly before the emerging economy decides whether to buy the Eurofighter or one of four rival planes. The 17-day aerial war games, due to start next week in West Bengal, pit the Eurofighter jets against Sukhoi Su-30 multi-role combat jets of the Indian air force. The last war games ended in a bitter "defeat" for Britain after it had sent its aging Tornado jets into air combat with the sleek and mobile Sukhoi models. This time, it's...

A terminally ill RAF hero who spent a year in a World War II prisoner-of-war camp has been denied NHS nursing care because he is 'not ill enough' - despite having just weeks to live with three cancers and dementia. Former RAF sergeant Bernard Warren, 86, was diagnosed with cancer of the stomach, liver and lungs two weeks ago and given two months to live. His wife Tricia, 69, has dutifully nursed him at home for six years as he fell victim to dementia but is now unable to cope with his failing health.   (edit)   Bernard's son...

The Eurofighter Typhoon only entered regular service in the last three years. Now, Britain is planning to phase out a third of those it has, in the next five years. Germany is also cancelling Typhoon orders. Last year, Britain decided to not take all of its third batch (or "tranche", as they like to call it in Europe) of 88 Eurofighter Typhoon fighters. Britain had decided to take 40 of the fighters from the third batch, and resell another 24 to Saudi Arabia. In effect, Britain was pulling out of the Eurofighter program, and cancelling 16 of the aircraft it...