RAF Red Arrows SCT training
During my time with the RAF, I did a tour working on the Red Arrows. I was lucky enough to get picked to fly 'back seat' as a 'Circus' back seat engineer. I gained maybe 100hrs flying back seat in Hawks.
During my time, the Red Arrows were based at RAF Scampton, just north of Lincoln. However RAF Scampton has now closed and the Red Arrows are now based at RAF Waddington.
This scenario is a typical monthly training routine that the drivers in the front seat had to do.
Once a month, we would transit over to RAF Valley where the jockeys had to do their monthly simulator training to remain current on the Hawk.
On the way back to Scampton, a practice low level sortie would be flown to keep the skill levels up.
So there are 2 flights in this down load, as Little Nav map flight plans.
Flight 1
Transit across to RAF Valley via the Lichfield corridor and then across Wales, passing Beeston Castle.
Flight 2
Low level Navex. Fly north from Valley up to the Scottish coast at Fl250. This leg of the flight must be at FL250 or the fuel burn at low level will mean you might not have enough fuel for the trip. If you fly high level for the leg to the Scottish coast, then your landing fuel will be about 250kg. The calculations in the attached Word document are for low level for the complete flight.
If you fly low level all of the way <1500ft, then you might run out of fuel if you aren't careful or wander off the flight plan route. If you fly low level all the way expect the fuel to be down to about 150kg or less when landing. This gives virtually no allowance for a missed approach and/or a circuit to land etc. The low level fuel warning will indicate in the CWP (Central Warning Panel) with an orange light at 200kg of fuel remaining. I can not recall a jet ever landing with a low fuel warning. It was a big NO NO. The fuel calculations are reasonably accurate in the attached Word document and so is the fuel gauging in the Hawk T Mk1 from Just Flight.
At the Scottish coast, return to low level and head east, then turn south past Newcastle and Durham.
Your target is a small airfield at Way Point 24 - it is very difficult to pick out in FS2020. The airfield is being used by the enemy as a helicopter landing ground. Your mission is to bomb the target. Arriving over the target at +/-30 seconds of the intended time.
Time Over Target (TOT) 41m:30s after take off from RAF Valley. The airfield is at Boonhill House Caravan Park. Note the parked aircraft in the close up photo, towards the top of the photo.
Then return and land at Scampton.
August 23 update
If you haven'y already downloaded the scenery from Flightsim.to - additiobal/better scenery than the default FS2020
https://flightsim.to/file/9361/egov-raf-valley-custom-built
https://flightsim.to/file/23137/egxp-raf-scampton-red-arrows-home-lincoln-lincolshire-england-uk
The target airfield
https://flightsim.to/file/25946/eg19-fadmoor-airfield-boon-hill-farm-north-yorkshire-england-uk-upgrade
Flight Planning Maps and Fuel Requirements
A Word document is included in the download with flight plan routing and timings at Way points and also a 1minute flight plan marked up - 420kts/7miles a minute between the black lines. Keep to the flight plan or the Boss won't be happy.
If anybody knows how to draw the black 1 minute lines onto the Little Nav map flight plan DIRECTLY in Little Nav map, please let me know. I couldn't see a way of going it. Hence why I had to screen shot the flight plan route and put 1 minute lines on the route within Word.
If you want to fly the Hawk properly
Check out the following web site - a real RAF fast jet jocky
https://www.cgaviator.co.uk
All comments appreciated. How did you find this trip? Easy or hard?
Davidaa
How do I install this?
mnpostema
Very cool! Thanks mate! 😊 or should i say?.... you lucky bastard! 😉
Ascot252 author
Those were the days. Certainly great flying experience. Most RAF techies don't fly fast jet. Now just about impossible as the frontline jets are single seat.
1 years ago