UK Defence Secretary Liam Fox has said that the Royal Air Force (RAF) will deploy two additional Tornado jets in Afghanistan for three months to support ground forces.

Two Tornado GR4 aircraft from RAF Lossiemouth in Moray will reach the Kandahar Airfield on 12 August 2010.

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The UK will deploy the GR4s following a request by commander of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) General David Petraeus to increase air support for ground forces.

The GR4s will join the eight RAF Tornado aircraft already in Afghanistan, and will increase flying hours by 25%, an extra 130 flying hours a month.

Tornado fighter jets will provide essential air cover to service personnel on the ground and provide them with intelligence to detect improvised explosive devices (IED) from the air.

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