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British Tranche 2 Typhoon aicraft in unfamiliar conditions during exercise Bersama in Malaysia 2111113.
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World
Air Force News - United Kingdom |
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British Tranche 2 Typhoon aicraft in unfamiliar conditions during exercise
Bersama in Malaysia. |
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Pilots
and ground crew from Number 6 Squadron have gained priceless experience
in operating the Tranche 2 Typhoon aircraft in unfamiliar conditions during
Exercise Bersama Lima in Malaysia. This was the first overseas deployment
of Tranche 2 Typhoon
aircraft and the first deployment of 6 Squadron since it reformed at RAF
Leuchars in September 2010. |
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6 Squadron Eurofighter Typhoons on Exercise Bersama Lima in Malaysia [British MOD Picture: Geoffrey Lee, Planefocus Limited 2011] |
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During
the exercise, four 6 Squadron Typhoons, representing the Royal Air Force,
flew mock combat sorties alongside Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) F/A-18s,
Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) MiG-29s and F/A-18s, and Republic of
Singapore Air Force F-15SGs and F-16s. 6 Squadron successfully completed more than 70 sorties during the detachment, amounting to 164 flying hours. Moreover, the squadron delivered 100 per cent of the sorties it planned during the exercise itself. Severe thunderstorms and the effect of the extremely long distance on the supply chain provided engineering challenges, but the overall assessment is one of resounding success for the squadron. Officer Commanding 6 Squadron, Wing Commander Roddy Dennis, said: "From my perspective as a Squadron Commander, Exercise
Bersama Lima provided an excellent opportunity to prove Tranche 2 Typhoon's
expeditionary capabilities and its ability to not only operate in tropical
weather conditions and high humidity, which it did without impact, but
also to conduct air operations with nations that we do not routinely
train with. |
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6 Squadron Eurofighter Typhoons flying alongside aircraft refuelling from a 101 Squadron VC10 during Exercise Bersama Lima in Malaysia [British MOD Picture: Geoffrey Lee, Planefocus Limited 2011] |
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Exercise
Bersama Lima marked the 40th anniversary of the Five Power Defence Arrangements
(FPDA) between the UK, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand. Established in 1971, the FPDA is a commitment undertaken by the five nations to consult in the event of an attack on Singapore or Malaysia. It is the only multilateral defence agreement in South East Asia with an operational element. The joint exercise saw the participation of around 4,000 troops, 68 aircraft, 18 ships, two submarines and various support elements from the FPDA member nations. The four RAF Typhoon aircraft from 6 Squadron flew to the Royal Malaysian Air Force base in Butterworth, Malaysia, from their base at RAF Leuchars in Fife, Scotland, to take part in Exercise Bersama Lima. The 7,000-mile (11,265km) trip took the pilots four days with stops in Jordan, Oman and Sri Lanka, supported throughout by engineers and ground crews as well as a VC10 aircraft of 101 Squadron based at RAF Brize Norton. See Related News to read more on this. |
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