RAF Faces Major Changes in Defence Review

The UK Royal Air Force (RAF) will face major changes in its strength as a result of the new Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR).

Under the SDSR, the C-130 Hercules transport fleet will be replaced with A400M aircraft ten years earlier.

The Sentinel surveillance aircraft will be withdrawn and Tornado aircraft will be retrained to operate in Afghanistan, while Harrier aircraft will be removed from service.

The Nimrod MRA4 will not be brought into service, while VC-10 and the three variants of TriStar will be withdrawn by 2013.

The RAF will also have to reduce its manpower by around 5,000 personnel to about 33,000 by 2015.

The air force’s future capabilities will include a modernised multirole Typhoon fleet and the joint strike fighter (JSF).

The RAF air transport fleet will be upgraded with the addition of A400M transport aircraft, A330 future strategic tanker and transport aircraft, and the proposed C-17 fleet.