RAF Mildenhall - 13th July 2008

An early morning text warning of the imminent arrival of six Turkish AF F-16s and three of their KC-135Rs saw a quick dash to Mildenhall take place.

We arrived to find the mound packed, so word had obviously got out, no doubt exacerbated by the cancellation of RIAT at Fairford due to the waterlogged nature of the airfield and car parks.

Some twenty minutes earlier than scheduled the first pair of F-16s, together with support KC-135R were on the approach.

Some twenty five minutes later another four aircraft were on approach. This time in addition to the F-16s and KC-135s, the Turkish Stars special schemed C-130H was also present.

Finally, just ten minutes later, the last wave also called up.

There you go. Pretty uninspiring angles, but you don't very often see Turkish fighters passing through the UK. Typically five minutes after the last KC-135 touched down, the sun was shining... What's that law called again....?