Pilots from closure-threatened RAF Leuchars are safely back in Scotland after a series of crucial operations in battle-scarred Libya.
The first Fife-based Typhoon crews to have deployed in support of NATO’s Operation Unified Protector to defend the civilian population in the troubled region have returned from their makeshift base in Italy.
Having successfully completed their deployments, the pilots have rejoined their colleagues of Number 6 Squadron at the base.
With a decision on the future of RAF Leuchars said to be “imminent,” the airmen are part of the significant contribution the base makes to defence operations around the world. Approximately 15% of personnel are deployed abroad.
In addition to the ground crew, support personnel and pilots that Leuchars is providing to maintain the no-fly zone over Libya, members of Number 6 Force Protection Wing an RAF regiment unit also based in Fife are in war-torn Afghanistan.
They have been given the task of protecting the strategically vital airfield at Camp Bastion.
Squadron Leader Scott Loughran is the executive officer with 6 Squadron. He is among those to have returned to Scotland following a gruelling a two-month deployment to Gioia del Colle in Italy, from where RAF Typhoons and Tornados launched missions over Libya.
He said, “Together with the Tornado GR4s, the Typhoons are providing a very capable RAF presence protecting the civilian population of Libya in accordance with the United Nations Security Council resolution.
“As a pilot I have been doing the best job I can to make a positive contribution in support of the NATO mission. However, I was just one of a number of personnel from Leuchars who have been supporting the RAF’s Typhoon element in southern Italy.
“We are all focused on the task at hand, be it the mission to protect the civilian population in Libya, the regiment gunners in Afghanistan or the guys on Quick Reaction Alert duties here in the UK.”