Some won't transmit on UHF Airband out of the box, but once you've messed with the software you can get them to do it very easily, and for a beginner it would be a very easy thing to accidentally do (although, as pointed out above, it doesn't sound like that's what happened here).

Both of the airports you've mentioned have runways longer than the one at Andrews Air Force Base. Lots of airports have weight limits for their runways, taxiways, and hard standings. Compared to the 747-200B, the -8 weighs up to around 100t more and will almost certainly be overweight for quite a fe...

As far as I recall, I don't think the capability has actually ever been used, let alone rarely! All the training and certification can be done on the E-4B which has an identical system.

DC7C59 wrote: ↑

Tue Mar 11, 2025 1:10 pm

Where's the Oil Spill Response 727,previously at Doncaster Robin Hood/Finningley,when it could be needed?

Current UK MCA contract is for two 737s with modular dispersant kits. The 727s are still around but operate for contracts worldwide.

surely we should be a little concerned with who the intended recipient of the fuel was as the US only uses these vessels in times of national emergency or armed conflict? That part isn't completely accurate, they can be used whenever required by US DoD operations in the same way that many US regist...

Open culdrose as a fast jet base, so we have one at the top, middle and bottom of the country. Look, as much as I'd love it, you can't just simply decide one day that a base is to be a frontline fast jet base when it's been a helicopter-focused base for decades. Culdrose is not equipped for the per...

As I understand it, AirTanker are not the ones vetoing any boom proposal, and have in fact been open to taking part in such an upgrade. The RAF, however, seemingly can't afford it.

And a related question, is the UKs nuclear deterrent actually fully independent? Could we theoretically fire a nuclear missile at New York? Or do we need to spend a lot of money on developing a truly independent sovereign deterrent? The question is can we even arm the nuclear missiles without USA a...

Unfortunately putting some more Astute class boats into the pipeline is not possible due to the build constraints at Barrow. All work will soon be focused on the Dreadnought class, and only when that's progressed far enough to allow capacity will work begin on the Astute's replacement (currently cod...

Ex RAF Tornado Pilot Tim Davies has had a lot to say about it recently on his youtube channel. I'm sure he does, in between racist and homophobic Twitter rants where he, currently, seems to be suggesting people like me (ie, of the LGBT community) should be put in an asylum. I don't think he's a par...

SingleSpey wrote: ↑

Tue Feb 18, 2025 11:57 am

F-35B certainly couldn’t operate from a dispersed pad such as Sid’s Strip used by the Harriers on the Falklands.

They are able to and have operated from AM-2 matting

HAS’ s offer next to no protection in todays World of advanced munitions. They offered blast protection nothing else in an age before GPS/INS, a direct hit and it would be reduced to a pile of rubble. Marham I don’t think use the HAS anymore and only the QRA at Lossie operate from them(2 Sqn I thin...

If the idea is avoiding vulnerability (ie avoiding all eggs in one basket), putting F-35Bs at an airfield with no HASs wouldn't seem a particularly logical move to me. They'd also be miles away from the North Sea areas now most commonly used for fighter aircraft training. Doing TDYs or practice dive...

The US-UK military and intelligence relationship has safely ridden out far worse diplomatic crises than whatever bone Trump wants to pick this week. Kissinger personally withdrew intelligence cooperation with the UK for a period of time and US agencies still tried to work around it as much as they c...

While I understand that from an enthusiast perspective the replacement of the BoB exhibit with the current interactive RAF history section was a downgrade, I must say based on feedback from non-aviation inclined friends and some younger family members it's frequently been noted as one of their favor...

Hold on, I prez..1 vice prez and they have 23 large helicopters at their personal disposal?...Gordon Bennet!!, I thought our bunch of politicos and royals took the pee In addition to having to provide at least 2 helicopters in D.C for POTUS and VPOTUS, they also have to provide 2 at each stop on an...

HMS Northumberland is beyond repair and not really seaworthy Pumas are close to end of life (HC2 upgrade was to see them through to the mid 2020s, and it's now the mid 2020s). It was only very recent plans which would've seen them serve to 2027/2028, before that the retirement date was already set a...

Surely Yeovilton and Culdrose must also be in the mix. I can see one base from each of the services potentially closing. Six flying bases for an ever dwindling rotary fleet is to excessive with current financial pressures. It might also be time to consolidate all helicopters to a single force, eg t...

I think it's often not understood also that simply because a base has no aircraft, or few aircraft, assigned to it that that doesn't mean it doesn't have other value to the overall MoD. RAF St Mawgan for example doesn't even have direct access to a runway anymore but still supports several thousand ...

As a ballistic missile it's not a hypersonic missile in the sense of how that term is generally used, otherwise we've had hypersonic missiles in our inventory for decades. Atmospheric hypersonic missiles are where lots of nations are piling money, though Russia's so far have not had a brilliant reco...