(Image: screenshot via Telegraph Video)
Britain’s RAF Tornado force may be winding down, but the venerable warplane is once again back in action over the Middle East.
Its numbers have dwindled significantly in recent years as time-expired or damaged airframes not deemed economical to fix have been sent for ‘RTP‘ – stripped of usable parts and scrapped.
But with ISIL an increasing threat in the region and its F-35 replacement still several years away, the Panavia Tornado, which remains a formidable weapons system despite its ageing airframe, is once again at the forefront of the UK’s military effort in Iraq.
(Image: screenshot via Telegraph Video)
To date Urban Ghosts has covered Tornado’s gradual withdrawal and reduce-to-produce process, which involves the removal of sensitive avionics systems and other components, such as engines, wings, tail fins and so on, which can be reused on the remaining fleet. With all useful parts removed, the gutted carcasses are then recycled.
This report by the Telegraph’s Ben Farmer (video below) shows two Tornado GR4 jets taking off from RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus on a bombing mission against ISIL targets in Iraq. The low-vis aircraft, which display no unit markings, are coded 092 and 059. Tornado 059, serial number ZA592, is a relatively early production machine which first flew in 1982.
Many younger Tornados have already been disposed of, but as one of a handful of airframes in the remaining fleet selected for active operations, ZA592 clearly has some time left on the clock. Meanwhile, the aircraft accompanying it on the sortie, tail code 092 and serial number ZD744, first flew in 1984 and was one of the Tornado GR4 display aircraft during the 2012 airshow season.
Thankfully a number of Tornado GR4s and original GR1s have already been saved, such as this one at Bruntingthorpe in Leicestershire. Many more, however, will find their way into the dreaded RTP cycle before the fleet’s eventual retirement.
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