Two Royal Air Force (RAF) C-130J Hercules aircraft arrived at Prestwick Airport on 2 May for the biannual Exercise Tartan Spirit which will run from 3-9 May and will see aircrews conduct a range of essential military flying training including formation flying, operational low flying and C-130J conversion course.
Speaking at the last Exercise Tartan Spirit in October 2020, Wing Commander McIntyre, Officer Commanding XXIV Squadron said:
“Exercise Tartan Spirit puts us closer to mountainous terrain and remote from RAF support within the deployed setting of Prestwick Airport. The training outputs are huge, with Operational Conversion Unit students planning and flying out of an unfamiliar location alongside Operational Low Flying courses for 47 Squadron crews and vital Engine Running Offload training with No.1 Air Mobility Wing (1AMW).
“We’ve been delivering under COVID-19 conditions for six months now, but it was fantastic to see the various teams at both RAF Brize Norton and Prestwick pull together to overcome some significant challenges to enable the delivery of a vital Exercise for the C-130J Force.”
In October 2020 XXIV Squadron Instructors delivered training to crews from 47 Squadron, 47 Air Dispatch Squadron, Royal Logistics Corps, and 1AMW in scenarios such as low-level resupply, formation flying and the utilisation of Night Vision Goggles (NVGs), culminating in the aircrew completing over 40 training sorties, thus achieving 95 hours of flying training, with over 25 qualifications being awarded.
