The Secretary of State for Defence (Gavin
Williamson):...Let us take this opportunity to look
back to a century ago, when the Royal Air Force was mapping the
trenches and directing allied artillery to deliver victory in the
great war. In our darkest hour in the second world war, the RAF was
our last line of defence against the Luftwaffe. The battle of
Britain cemented the RAF’s reputation, the reputation of the few:
the dashing, daring, dogged determination of the Royal Air Force to
protect and preserve our values and our nation. Our debt to the RAF
continued throughout the chill of the cold war. Theirs were the
Vulcan bombers that carried our
ultimate deterrent and theirs were the transport
aircraft that delivered essential aid to the people of West Berlin
70 years ago in that famous airlift, which was the first major
humanitarian exercise in modern history. In 1982, the Royal Air
Force displayed incredible ingenuity to project strategic air power
over thousands of miles to help and support the liberation of the
Falkland Islands...
(East Lothian)
(Lab):...East Fortune is now part of the National Museum
of Scotland and is one of the best preserved wartime airfields from
the first world war across the world. The museum has plans for a
sympathetic extension next year to better tell the story of flight
in Scotland and around the world, and—more importantly—to tell the
history of the RAF. I give credit to the right hon. Member for New
Forest East (Dr Lewis) for reminding me of the Vulcan bomber,
because the Vulcan bomber that took part in
the Falklands conflict and spent
some of its time sitting in Brazil is now resident at the airfield,
and can be visited and touched by young children...
Dr (Sleaford and North Hykeham)
(Con):...I have visited the bases around my constituency,
but also others around the country, including Valley, Benson, Brize
Norton and Shrivenham, where we learnt about how all the forces
work together. I have visited Waddington, Coningsby, Marham—to see
the new F35—and Honington. We also travelled to
the Falklands and Cyprus, and visited the
air policing mission in Romania. I will not say more about those
visits, because I am aware of time and the fact that others wish to
speak...
(Stafford)
(Con):...Stafford has been a centre for the RAF for 80
years. It was in 1938-39 that 16 MU, a maintenance unit, moved to
the newly constructed RAF Stafford. It remained there for many
decades, until the RAF base became a Ministry of Defence base in
the mid-2000s. But we still have a strong RAF presence through
the tactical supply wing, which is based at MOD Stafford. That
wing goes all over the world to refuel rotary-wing helicopters—
whether in the Falklands, Cyprus or Kenya, where I came across it
a few years ago in Nanyuki on a training exercise with the armed
forces parliamentary scheme...
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