Royal Air Force

The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom’s air and space force. It was established on 1 April 1918 through the merger of the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service, making it one of the world’s earliest independent air forces. Its creation reflected the growing importance of aviation during the First World War and followed legislation based on recommendations associated with the Smuts Report. At formation, the RAF was the largest air force in the world, although post-war demobilisation rapidly reduced its size. During the inter-war period, the RAF developed an independent institutional identity and assumed responsibility for a range of imperial and overseas operations, including air control duties in Iraq and operations in other parts of the British Empire. It also became an important advocate of strategic bombing theory. Naval aviation was initially administered within the RAF, but the Fleet Air Arm returned to Admiralty control in 1939. The RAF’s most celebrated wartime achievement was the defence of Britain during the Battle of Britain in 1940. Fighter Command prevented the German Luftwaffe from securing air superiority over southern England and helped make a German invasion impracticable. During the Second World War, the RAF also conducted major offensive operations, including the strategic bombing campaign against Germany, precision attacks such as the Dambusters operation, reconnaissance, transport, air-sea rescue and support for Allied ground forces. Personnel and squadrons from Commonwealth air forces and occupied European countries served within RAF formations. After 1945, the RAF adapted to the jet age and the nuclear era. It supported the Berlin Airlift, participated in conflicts and colonial emergencies in the Middle East, Africa and Asia, and maintained a major presence in West Germany during the Cold War. Britain’s independent nuclear deterrent initially relied partly on RAF V-bombers, but the strategic role transferred to Royal Navy ballistic-missile submarines in 1969. The RAF retained a tactical nuclear role for several decades before the United Kingdom ended its air-delivered nuclear capability in the 1990s. The service took part in the 1982 Falklands War, using Ascension Island as a critical staging base and maintaining air-defence forces in the South Atlantic after the conflict. Since the end of the Cold War, its principal missions have become more expeditionary and joint. RAF aircraft have supported operations in the Gulf, the Balkans, Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and the campaign against Islamic State. The service also operates air transport, aerial refuelling, intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance, maritime patrol, signals intelligence, air defence and remotely piloted aircraft. Today the RAF operates alongside the Royal Navy and British Army within an integrated defence structure. Its inventory includes combat aircraft, airlift and tanker aircraft, airborne early-warning platforms, surveillance systems, helicopters and remotely piloted air systems. Most personnel and aircraft are based in the United Kingdom, while overseas facilities and detachments support defence commitments in locations including Cyprus, Gibraltar, the Falkland Islands and Ascension Island. The RAF presents itself as an agile, adaptable and technologically capable force able to project air and space power in support of UK defence and foreign-policy objectives.

The RAF emerged from the First World War’s recognition that aviation required an organisation capable of operating independently of both army and navy command structures. A government-commissioned review in 1917 supported the creation of a unified air service. The Royal Air Force was constituted on 1 April 1918 by combining the Royal Flying Corps, which had served with the Army, and the Royal Naval Air Service. The new service inherited aircraft, personnel and bases from both organisations and initially became the largest air force in the world. Demobilisation after the 1918 armistice sharply reduced the RAF. In the 1920s and 1930s it maintained a worldwide presence through imperial policing and air-control operations, while also developing doctrine, training and technology. Its naval aviation responsibilities were progressively separated, culminating in the Fleet Air Arm’s return to Admiralty administration in 1939. The RAF’s advocacy of strategic bombing shaped British planning before the Second World War, although the service also developed fighter defence, reconnaissance, transport and maritime roles. The Second World War transformed the RAF. Fighter Command’s integrated radar, observer and command system helped it defeat the Luftwaffe’s campaign during the Battle of Britain. Bomber Command conducted a sustained offensive against Germany, while Coastal Command, Transport Command and tactical air forces supported the wider Allied war effort. Commonwealth and exiled European personnel made a substantial contribution through RAF formations and the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan. Post-war technological change brought jet aircraft, guided weapons, long-range bombers and nuclear delivery systems. The RAF’s early Cold War duties included the Berlin Airlift, the defence of Western Europe and operations connected with the withdrawal or defence of British interests overseas. RAF squadrons were stationed in West Germany as part of NATO’s deterrence posture. The V-bomber force carried Britain’s strategic nuclear weapons until the Royal Navy assumed the strategic deterrent in 1969; the RAF continued a shorter-range nuclear role until the retirement of the WE.177 capability in the 1990s. The service continued to conduct operations during the Cold War in Malaya, Korea, the Middle East, Kenya, Oman, Aden and elsewhere. In the 1982 Falklands War, RAF aircraft operated from Ascension Island and supported the task force over exceptional distances. After the conflict, the RAF maintained air-defence forces at Mount Pleasant. The end of the Cold War led to repeated defence reviews, reductions in manpower and aircraft, and a shift toward deployable joint operations. RAF forces participated in the Gulf War, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya. The service expanded its use of precision weapons, networked surveillance, aerial refuelling, strategic transport and remotely piloted aircraft. In the twenty-first century it has also contributed to coalition operations against Islamic State and maintained Quick Reaction Alert duties in response to potential threats to UK airspace. Current force development centres on the gradual introduction of new combat-air, transport, surveillance and space-related capabilities while preserving readiness for national defence and overseas operations.

• 2007

  Dedicated Reaper squadron formed

  [8]Dedicated Reaper squadron formeden.wikipedia.org

  No. 39 Squadron was established as an RAF remotely piloted aircraft unit operating MQ-9A Reaper systems.

• 1982

  Falklands War

  [7]Falklands Waren.wikipedia.org

  RAF airlift, tanker and combat-support operations enabled the British campaign in the South Atlantic.

• 1948

  Berlin Airlift

  [6]Berlin Airliften.wikipedia.org

  RAF aircraft helped sustain West Berlin during the Soviet blockade.

• 1940

  Battle of Britain

  [5]Battle of Britainen.wikipedia.org

  RAF Fighter Command prevented Germany from gaining air superiority over Britain.

• 1925

  Pink’s War

  [4]Pink’s Waren.wikipedia.org

  The RAF conducted an independent air campaign against Mahsud tribesmen in Waziristan.

• 1918

  Royal Air Force established

  [1]Royal Air Forceen.wikipedia.org

  The RAF was created on 1 April by merging the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Naval Air Service.

The United Kingdom’s principal air and space warfare service, positioned around readiness, expeditionary reach, technological capability and integration with allied and joint forces.

• Combat aircraft · 2003

  Eurofighter Typhoon

  A multirole fighter operated for air defence, air superiority and precision strike. RAF Typhoons provide Quick Reaction Alert coverage for UK airspace and support expeditionary operations. The type replaced earlier Tornado and Phantom roles in the RAF’s combat-air structure and is being upgraded through successive avionics, radar and weapons improvements.

• Combat aircraft · 2018

  F-35B Lightning

  A short-takeoff and vertical-landing multirole combat aircraft operated jointly with the Royal Navy. RAF personnel fly and maintain the aircraft from land bases and in carrier operations, providing low-observable strike, reconnaissance and networked combat capability.

• Air transport · 2014

  A400M Atlas

  A turboprop transport aircraft used for tactical and strategic air mobility. It supports the movement of personnel, vehicles and cargo, as well as humanitarian assistance and operational resupply, and complements the RAF’s larger C-17 and smaller transport fleets.

• Remotely piloted air system · 2007

  MQ-9A Reaper

  A remotely piloted system used primarily for persistent intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and precision strike. RAF Reaper operations began in Afghanistan and Iraq before being organised through dedicated RAF units.

• Aerial refuelling and transport · 2012

  Voyager

  The RAF’s principal air-to-air refuelling and strategic passenger-transport platform. Voyager aircraft extend the range and endurance of combat aircraft and can also move personnel and cargo over long distances.

• Airborne early warning · 1991

  E-3D Sentry

  An airborne early-warning and control aircraft that provided wide-area surveillance and command support for RAF and coalition operations. The type was retired from RAF service as newer surveillance capabilities were introduced.

• 2014Operation Shader

  Iraq · Syria

  RAF aircraft contributed strike, reconnaissance, refuelling and support missions to the international campaign against Islamic State.

  Outcome. Continued as part of the coalition’s counter-Islamic-State effort.

  Source
• 1982Falklands War

  South Atlantic

  RAF tanker, transport, reconnaissance and combat-support missions operated over very long distances from Ascension Island and other bases.

  Outcome. The United Kingdom regained control of the Falkland Islands.

  Source
• 1943Combined Bomber Offensive

  Europe

  RAF Bomber Command conducted large-scale night bombing alongside United States Army Air Forces daylight operations against Germany.

  Outcome. Contributed to the degradation of German industrial and military capacity, though the campaign remains historically and ethically contested.

  Source
• 1940Battle of Britain

  United Kingdom

  RAF Fighter Command conducted the principal British air-defence campaign against the Luftwaffe, using an integrated warning and control system to contest German air superiority.

  Outcome. German invasion plans were postponed indefinitely and Britain remained in the war.

  Source

• 2010

  Cancellation of the Nimrod MRA4 programmeStrategy

  Background

  The maritime-patrol aircraft programme had experienced delays, cost growth and technical problems.

  Action taken

  The government cancelled the Nimrod MRA4 as part of the Strategic Defence and Security Review.

  Aftermath

  The cancellation created a gap in the UK’s fixed-wing maritime-patrol capability until a replacement arrangement was introduced.

  Source

• 2010

  Retirement of the Harrier forceGeneration change

  Background

  The defence review sought substantial reductions in aircraft and personnel while restructuring the combat-air fleet.

  Action taken

  The Joint Force Harrier was retired earlier than previously planned.

  Aftermath

  The RAF’s short-takeoff and vertical-landing combat-air role was later restored through the F-35B programme operated jointly with the Royal Navy.

  Source

1. 1Royal Air Forceen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Official RAF websiteraf.mod.uk
3. 3Chief of the Air Staffraf.mod.uk
4. 4Pink’s Waren.wikipedia.org
5. 5Battle of Britainen.wikipedia.org
6. 6Berlin Airliften.wikipedia.org
7. 7Falklands Waren.wikipedia.org
8. 8Dedicated Reaper squadron formeden.wikipedia.org
9. 9Combined Bomber Offensiveen.wikipedia.org
10. 10Operation Shaderen.wikipedia.org
11. 11Cancellation of the Nimrod MRA4 programmeen.wikipedia.org
12. 12Retirement of the Harrier forceen.wikipedia.org