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February 1999 - Fairford
As you will have seen in both the local and national media, a
detachment of USAF B-52 bombers flew into RAF Fairford, in Gloucs over the
weekend of the 20th/21st February 1999.
APRA co-ordinator, James Hill, has been told that
local aviation enthusiasts also saw two 'bat-like' aircraft fly in in the early
hours of the 21st. They had no navigation lights, or landing lights, and
no runway lights were used. It seems very likely that B-2 Spirit bombers,
or perhaps even the even-more secret TR-3A’s were also at the base. Some
of us went for 'a look round' the following weekend*, not that we realistically
expected to see B-2's in public view!
This is not
the first time that apparent stealth bombers have been stationed there during a
period of international tension. At least one FT was also seen in the area
during the previous Kosovo crisis in October 1998. We have also been given
a preliminary report of an FT near Wallingford, Oxon during this February 1999 -
RAF Benson was very close, though it is the base for No 33 Sqdn, with its HC-1
Pumas, not fixed wing aircraft.
* A good ‘quirk’ occurred with photos attempted on
the day. James Hill’s camera refused to function as the battery gave up.
Brian James took 5 or 6 photos of the B-52’s that could be seen from the public
roads. These photos were ‘missing’ from the pictures returned from the
processors, and were not in the negative strips!
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