Royal auxiliary air force

The role of the RAF Reserves has become more important over recent years due to conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya.

The Royal Air Force Reserves were created in 1924 to support and augment the Regular Forces in times of crisis and this role has not changed. They are a vital, integral element of the total manpower mix required by the RAF to meet its commitments.

Over 20 trades are available in the RAF Reserves and personnel are trained to the same high standards as their Regular counterparts. The RAF Reserves need people from all walks of life and from all backgrounds who can bring with them their expertise and experience from their civilian roles. Being an RAF Reservist is both rewarding and challenging.

To find out more about being an RAF Reservist and what the RAF Reserves can offer you please go to www.raf.mod.uk/rafreserves, call 08456069069, or alternatively contact your local reserve squadron.

East Midlands based Squadrons

504 (County of Nottingham) Squadron RAuxAF
2053 (County of Lincoln) Squadron RAuxAF Regt
7006 (VR) Intelligence Squadron RAuxAF
7010 (VR) Photographic Interpretation Squadron RAuxAF

504 (COUNTY OF NOTTINGHAM) SQUADRON ROYAL AUXILIARY AIR FORCE

504 Squadron is an RAF Reserve Operational Support (OS) Squadron based at RAF Cottesmore in Rutland. Their mission is to provide a part-time Reserve force of Regiment Gunners principally to support No1 Force Protection Wing and 3 Squadron RAF Regiment on operations. Training is generally completed at weekends either on base or at a military training area/range. Whilst a Reservist must be fully committed to training the majority of squadron personnel successfully integrate this with their full-time civilian jobs.

Current vacancies – Part-Time RAuxAF Regiment Gunner

Requirements
Male, aged between 18 and 35, with an excellent level of fitness and up for the challenge of some serious infantry training.  As specialised infantrymen, RAF Gunners are trained to provide active protection of RAF assets, capable of countering the whole range of ground-based threats to the RAF’s Deployed Operating Bases.  For reasons of combat effectiveness this trade is open only to male applicants.

Occasionally part-time vacancies occur in the following trades: Personnel Support, Logistics, and Chef

Your commitment
Reservists are required to attend training for a minimum of 27 days a year, 15 of which will be en bloc as part of Annual Continuous Training (ACT), which could be a military exercise, training course, or a Squadron-organised camp.  The remaining 12 days are made up of monthly training weekends, with many people attending for more than the minimum requirement. 

Reservists are liable to call-up for full-time service under the terms and conditions of the Reserve Forces Act 1996.

What you get in return
As well as an amazing sense of achievement, Reservists also receive pay and allowances in return for attendance for training.  Pay is at similar levels to that of the Regular RAF, and in addition a tax-free bounty is paid each year on completion of certain essential training requirements.

You also become part of a family of like-minded individuals, who have a real desire to do something different yet worthwhile with their lives. 504 Squadron holds regular social events and there is the chance to take part in adventure training, such as skiing, sailing or even parachuting, at reduced rates or sometimes no cost at all.

Interested?
If you feel up to the challenge, or you’d like more information to help you make up your mind, please call us free on 0800 731 5574.

Parade Times:
There is no midweek parade night and the unit generally meets one weekend a month.

Contact Us:
Post: RAF Cottesmore, Oakham, Rutland LE15 7BL
Phone: (01572) 812 241 Ext 7199

Email: 504AUX-FSRecruiting@mod.uk

2053 (COUNTY OF LINCOLN) SQUADRON ROYAL AUXILIARY AIR FORCE REGIMENT

2503 (County of Lincoln) Squadron is based at RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire. The squadron was formed at RAF Scampton in 1979, moving to RAF Waddington in 1985, where it is now a force sustainment squadron for the RAF Regiment. The squadron was presented with its standard for 25 years’ service in March 2007.

The squadron is highly trained in the infantry skills necessary to enable it to defend RAF assets against any potential enemy. This was proven during Operation Telic when squadron members deployed with coalition forces to Iraq.

The squadron is currently supporting 34 Squadron and 1 Squadron RAF Regiment on operations. Squadron members have also served on operations in Bosnia, Kuwait and Afghanistan.

The squadron prides itself on its standard of training and on the pride the reservists have in both the squadron and the RAF Regiment. Training exercises are carried out in the UK as well as overseas, in places such as Germany, Belgium, Cyprus and the USA.

We are proud of our record of achievement, both on operations and in training. We have participated with great success in military skills competitions, and have won the Strickland trophy on four occasions. We have also been awarded one silver and two bronze medals in the Cambrian Patrol. The squadron shooting team has represented the RAF in competitions in the UK and overseas.

The squadron trains hard to prepare for any future operations it may be deployed on and we are always seeking to recruit new members.

The squadron’s motto is ‘Freedom of the skies and of the land’, while the crest shows the Lincoln Imp, a symbol of good defeating evil.

Parade Times:
Wednesday nights, 7:30-9:30pm

Contact Us:
Post: RAF Waddington, Lincoln LN5 9NB
Phone: (01522) 728288

7006 (VR) INTELLIGENCE SQUADRON ROYAL AUXILIARY AIR FORCE

7006 (VR) Operational Intelligence Squadron came into being on 1 April 1986 at RAF High Wycombe and changed to its present title on the amalgamation of the RAuxAF and the RAFVR on 5 April 1997.

With the reorganisation of the Intelligence Reserves in 2000, 7006 Squadron, together with 7010 and 7630 Squadrons, came under the command of the Air Warfare Centre. The squadron is now administered through Headquarters Intelligence Reserves at RAF Waddington.

Squadron personnel have supported numerous RAF operations, augmenting front-RAF squadrons both at their home bases and while deployed overseas.

Squadron personnel have also augmented the Ministry of Defence in London, at RAF High Wycombe, the Permanent Joint Headquarters at RAF Northwood, NATO Headquarters in Brussels, and other headquarters in Naples, Vicenza, the Balkans, Kuwait, the Falkland Islands, Afghanistan, the Gulf, Cyprus and the USA.

Parade Times:
As 7006 Squadron recruit nationally, there is no midweek parade night and the unit generally meets one weekend a month.

Contact Us:
Post: RAF Waddington, Lincoln LN5 9NB
Phone: (01522) 727026

7010 (VR) PHOTOGRAPHIC INTERPRETATION SQUADRON ROYAL AUXILIARY AIR FORCE

7010 Squadron recruits nationally to provide Intelligence Analysts (Imagery) to augment the RAF’s reconnaissance units at home and on operations. Although headquartered with the other RAuxAF Intelligence Squadrons at RAF Waddington, most 7010 Squadron training takes place elsewhere, primarily at RAF Marham and RAF Brampton.

The role of a 7010 Intelligence Analyst (Imagery) is to analyse aerial imagery taken by reconnaissance aircraft and other sensors, and to produce intelligence reports on what they find. This work is typically done on computer workstations either in an office-style environment or in air-conditioned containers housing mobile imagery exploitation systems.

The Squadron is one of the few RAuxAF Squadrons that recruit nationally and, as such, does not train on weekday evenings. Because it recruits nationally, it normally pays travel expenses from most places in the UK. (The Squadron currently has several members who travel from Scotland, and from Kent and the South West.) No special skills are required to join, but basic IT literacy is essential.

Training
Initial training, which is spread out over 18 to 24 months, takes place at RAF Halton in Buckinghamshire and the Defence College of Intelligence at Chicksands in Bedfordshire. Continuation training on the Squadron’s two operational Flights takes place at the Tactical Imagery Intelligence Wing (TIW) at RAF Marham in Norfolk and at the Joint Air Reconnaissance Intelligence Centre (JARIC) at RAF Brampton in Cambridgeshire. It is likely that it will take 18 to 36 months before a new recruit is fully fit for role.

Operations
When fit for role, 7010 Squadron personnel will typically be mobilised to work on operations at RAF bases in the UK or at airfields and headquarters overseas. In recent years, 7010 Squadron personnel have undertaken mobilisations of between two and six months’ duration, in the UK, Qatar and Afghanistan. When engaged on operations, 7010 personnel will be fully integrated with their regular colleagues, typically providing direct intelligence support to allied land and air forces.

Parade Times:
As 7010 Squadron recruit nationally, there is no midweek parade night and the unit generally meets one weekend a month.

Contact Us:
Post: RAF Waddington, Lincoln LN5 9NB
Phone: (01522) 727054