After having controlled countless flypasts over Buckingham Palace over many years, both myself and my colleague, Flight Lieutenant Ross Hammerton were lucky enough to have the unique opportunity to actually fly in the Voyager aircraft this year for the King’s Birthday Flypast. As far as we’re aware, this is a first for any controllers from Swanwick and it was fantastic to experience this from the air rather than from the radar!
On the morning of Trooping the Colour, we arrived at RAF Brize Norton ready to board the aircraft. I’m sure most people would agree that a grey Airbus A330 is hardly top of the spotter’s snapshot list, however, excitement spiked a little when we were let in on the secret that we’d be flying on VESPINA, the VIP transport aircraft for His Majesty King Charles III, the Royal Family and other VIPs working on behalf of the Crown. The bus then turned a corner to unveil a striking white A330 with union flag livery and the words UNITED KINGDOM emblazoned in gold writing.
After departure, we set up an orbital hold out to sea on the East coast at what felt like 30ft, but I’ve been assured by colleagues it was about 3,000ft. We held for around two-hours, most of us lost track of time after a while, counting the same buoy over and over and over.
Then, the spectacle itself – six Eurofighters approached in formation onto the left wing, two pulled up and positioned 500ft high whilst another two flew underneath our belly and joined the right-hand wing.
Once the fighters had joined and were happy with everything, four of them peeled off and formed a diamond further back in the convoy, with the other two from 29 and 3 Squadron at RAF Coningsby escorting us to Buckingham Palace.
As soon as we saw land, the seatbelt signs illuminated, and the exhibition commenced of pure talent and precision. Pilots combatting high winds whilst keeping their wing tip no more than 15ft away from a 200 tonne Airbus A330. The captain then made his final announcement “Buckingham Palace, two-minutes, crew standby for manoeuvres”. This was in preparation for any final sharp turns to line up perfectly with The Mall, wowing the waiting crowds, Their Majesties’ The King and Queen, and other members of the Royal family.
The flight crew executed a few final checks, strapped themselves in, pressed a button and like clockwork, we hit some major turbulence. High rise buildings began to appear, approaching London from the North-East, and, we caught brilliant glimpses of all the famous landmarks.
As if it wasn’t already a special sight, as the Typhoons peeled away, another RAF Coningsby residing aircraft could be seen around half a mile away, putting into perspective what 60 years of aviation engineering produces. The last airworthy Lancaster Bomber this side of the Atlantic, rolling along like she had been built last month, and still patrolling the skies after all those years. If that doesn’t make someone feel patriotic, I don’t think anything will!
From an air traffic control point of view, the coordination with NATS to get 29 military aircraft through the busiest bit of UK airspace safely was excellent as ever – we genuinely couldn’t do it without you all!
Hopefully other 78 Squadron personnel will have the opportunity to be in one of the aircraft for a future flypast. Ross and I shared an unforgettable experience in what feels like a fitting month as we celebrate Armed Forces Week.
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