Royal Air Force A400M Atlas aircraft, based at RAF Brize Norton, demonstrated a series of multiple capabilities during Exercise Mobility Guardian 23.
Stationed in Guam, Western Pacific, the Atlas conducted an array of sorties as part of the US Air Mobility Command’s largest annual exercise.
The RAF Atlas started with the longest-ever flight by an aircraft of this type, aimed to “test and prove the concept of long-range insertion,” Squadron Leader Hedley Myers, the Atlas Detachment Commander for Ex Mobility Guardian 23, revealed.
This flight not only generated valuable data for future operations but was also the first time an RAF Atlas had been Air-to-Air refuelled to its maximum capacity while carrying a full load.
The Atlas’s initial flight transported approximately seven tons of freight, including a ground power generator, two Critical Care Air Support Team stretcher fits, aircraft spares, and general exercise freight, along with 17 passengers.
Once stationed at Anderson Air Base in Guam, the Atlas performed a series of sorties, transporting personnel and equipment from the United States Air Force from Guam to Palau in the Philippines. Its high capacity allowed it to complete tasks in half the number of sorties, which would usually require four C130J sorties, say the RAF.
Furthermore, the Atlas aircraft was involved in Tactical Medical Evacuation training missions. It conducted drills involving simulated casualties from a Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief scenario, partnering with Aero Medical specialists from New Zealand and the United States Air Force.
The versatility of the Atlas was further displayed through its participation in a simulated Large Force Air Drop of stores by parachute. Additionally, the aircraft demonstrated its maritime capabilities during a simulated Search and Rescue mission, reinforcing its critical role in multiple scenarios.
With three crews from the 30 and 70 squadrons deployed along with Ops Support staff, Engineers, and Technicians, the Atlas flew intensively throughout the exercise.
After completing Exercise Mobility Guardian 23, the Atlas is slated to fly westbound to RAF bases in the Middle East and Cyprus before returning to RAF Brize Norton three weeks after departing.
Bet it was a hoot being flown in a prop that far. Wonder what inflight entertainment there was…….!
As a kid my dad went to Canada on a propeller plane it took 18 hours. Worse flight ever he said. Had refuelling stops.
Inflight entertainment😂😂😂 maybe a bottle of water and the loadmaster doing a strip tease.
Doesn’t mean much now. Atlas cruises 100km/h fast than a Herc and 200km/h faster than the old Bristol Britannia. Only 90-100km/h off typical airliner cruise speed.
My late brother-in-law made several Herk trips to the Falklands.
In-flight refuelling added interest, especially the times when they couldn’t find the tanker.
Well done to the crew ,but are the MOD trying to prove something like bye bye Hurcules 🤔
Yeah, very simplistic of RAF. if they want to make evidence then they release the cargo sizes that C-130, A400 and C17 have transported by trip in last 5 years. That way we can see if C-130 was mostly fully loaded and same for A400 and C17 plus the flight hours and airport costs of them.
Possibly a message to the CCP that we can project power into the region very quickly if needed.
BZ to 30 and 70 squadrons and everyone at Brize! Brilliant aircraft, brilliant people
‘which would usually require four C130J sorties, say the RAF’ or one C-17 sortie!
you are so right did a hop to Aden and then back for xmas leave 1965 I think it was,I could see out of the aircraft between my feet.
Lyneham to Lagos in a Hastings- 3,100 miles, two days. Overnight stop RAF El Adem. The mozzies had a great meal!
John and Crabfat. Envy your wonderful military experiences from the last decade of real adventures as the world started to change rapidly. As a 12 year old in 1961, I did London to Salisbury via Rome and Nairobi in a dodgy Douglas DC7c, last of the piston engines before the DC8. We were delayed because of mechanical problems in London and Rome, and I still vividly remember the stop in Nairobi with two bright Union Jacks above the terminal building and two immaculate Askaris in stiff khaki and Fezs standing at ease, hands behind their backs but still in pose.… Read more »
I do believe we came back from Cyprus in one of these in 1961 as my father came back to the UK for his last 6 moths prior to discharge after a 27 year career. I still have a vivid memory of the smell of oil.
The memories that stick Cymbeline! I also flew from London to Belfast a few times in Viscounts and possibly Vikings but can’t remember exactly. Two Viscounts were also shot down by Zanu-PF terrorists during the Bush War, one of which was in the Kariba Dam area. Amazingly there were some survivors from the crash but they were all shot dead by these heroes-men, women and children, before help could arrive.
Ah! the old Viscounts. I used to be a bit of airplane spotter when I was a kid collecting aircraft registrations. They used to have a lovely observation deck at Southend Airport that I’d spend hours on, Channel Airways and BAF were the main carriers at the time. Hoping to get a few decent pics in August when the Lancaster and Spits/Hurricans are laying over for some airshows in Essex. We do also have a Vulcan at the airport (XL426) you always hear it when its on start up or doing a taxiway run.
https://avrovulcan.com/
A thing of beauty.
You might also recognise this scene from Goldfinger at Southend Airport. Funnily enough you get a glimpse of the control tower and observation deck and strangely I also worked there as a Customs/Immigration officer myself a few years back. Never met JB but did stamp a few very rich people into the UK on the privat jets.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8sjZ7QN6vo
A thing of beauty indeed and a beast of note as well! I also used to do a bit of spotting. As a kid in Ealing I saw my first French Caravelle. Here in SA over the years both delta and swept wing Mirages, Harvard with famous radial engine drone, Alouette choppers. Impala Trainers etc.
Dosen’t South Africa still have some active commercial Lightnings as well? That would be a dream come true to go up in one of those babies.
That was Thunder City in Capetown which closed a couple of years back. From memory they crashed one of their Lightnings but can’t remember the details. They had some two seaters and charged a considerable sum of money to take wealthy individuals up for a short(dangerous) blast around Capetown. A friend living in Durban, now deceased was an ex RAF mechanic who worked on Lightnings and was taken for a (test!!)spin in a two seater. He also met Douglas Bader as a child and said he was not a nice human being-reduced him to tears. Heroes with feet of clay!!
Very loud and headstrong, by all accounts
IT’S just the lack of of aircraft what the problem is ,not the capability 🇬🇧
Not related topic but seems the UK has managed to get Chieftans for Ukraine possibly from Jordan.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidaxe/2023/07/19/ukraine-could-get-60-year-old-ex-british-chieftan-tanks/?sh=bd6aba2dd07d
Not a hope in hell of keeping them running. Where do parts come from? Plus they don’t use standard NATO ammo. Seriously, that’s just adding a logistical nightmare.
Not us keeping them running, it’s the Ukrainians. I guess the amount of time the tank will survive in Ukraine is not a major consideration on logistics.
Better to have a tank than not have anything.
Keeping them Running is hard but not impossible,it’s the Guns and FCS that will be the problem – these Tanks have long been de-milled,and finding Ammunition would pose a challenge.
the main gun was also fitted to Challenger 1? Also Wiki is suggesting the later ammunition is backwards compatible.
Yes your right – digging further even some CR2 Ammunition is back compatible but the L30 Gun on CR2 runs higher Chamber pressures so Barrel life is reduced.
That is most likely an example bought/donated from a private collector ( of which there are many ) here in the UK,nothing to do with Jordan
That is astonishing. However Ukraine media do sometimes get things wrong (may be deliberate disinformation!).
Defence command paper is out, at first glance there is actually nothing in it which I suppose is a good thing when it comes to defence papers these days.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/defence-command-paper-2023-defences-response-to-a-more-contested-and-volatile-world
Future Soldier Next Steps paper is due in the Autumn. That should fill in some of the gaps as far as the army goes. We pretty much know the direction of travel for the RN and RAF.
fundamentally though there will be no big directional changes without a bigger budget.
Defence command paper revision was published yesterday. 94 pages completely devoid of facts. Mostly waffle around agility, co-operative force generation with and without allies and the defence industrial base.
All of which are relevant, but having read the entirety of the paper I’m still bemused by what exactly it means.
Trophy APS also ordered. £28 million including reloads and submunitions for 148 C3 tanks. Not too terrible if an active protection system costs around 350-500K per vehicle it begs the question of why the army isn’t fitting it to every armoured vehicle they have?
Your forgetting about cyber, please don’t forget about cyber 😀
Yeah and I also forgot about the space force. Aka UK Starfleet. Equipped with phasers and photon torpedoes. That’s why they had to scrap HMS Enterprise early. You can’t have a starship and a naval vessel called the same name.