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December 2, 2008 3:53:45 AM CST

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Royal Air Force

Royal Air Force news stories

9 Stories

Blinded Pilot Lands After Mid-Flight Stroke

Pilot recovering sight, but still in serious condition

Independent (UK) Independent (UK) Nov 8, 08 4:17 PM CST
(Newser) - An amateur pilot who suffered a stroke and went blind as he flew over North England landed his plane without a scratch, the Independent reports. Jim O’Neill, 65, was initially unable to follow instructions from civilian traffic controllers, but was guided to safety by British military planes. He remains hospitalized in serious condition, but is regaining his sight, BBC notes. More »

More about:  Great Britain • England • rescue • pilot • stroke • flight • blindness • Royal Air Force

 Prince William
 Will Fly to
 the Rescue 

Royal plans to be search and rescue pilot

BBC BBC Sep 15, 08 1:27 PM CDT
(Newser) - Prince William’s next military stint  will be as a search-and-rescue pilot for the Royal Air Force, the BBC reports. Having served with the army and navy, the prince learned to fly with the RAP this year and said today, "I now want to build on the experience and training I have received to serve operationally." The 26-year-old prince starts 18 months of training in January. More »

More about:  Great Britain • British royals • Prince William • Prince Charles • British Army • Royal Air Force • Royal Navy

Wills Lands Splashy Training in Caribbean

Commanders decide against deploying prince to Persian Gulf

Associated Press Associated Press Jun 1, 08 1:41 PM CDT
(Newser) - Instead of heading to duty in the Persian Gulf, one Sub Lieutenant Wales is set to embark on several weeks of training in the Caribbean with Britain's Royal Marines and Royal Navy. Prince William "commendably wanted to be as close to the front line as possible," says a rear admiral, but deployment to the Persian Gulf was considered too risky, the AP reports. More »

More about:  Great Britain • Prince William • Caribbean • smuggling • Royal Air Force • Royal Navy

 Britain Opens X-Files Vault 

ET, phone the home office: 90% of UFO sightings are bogus

Reuters Reuters May 14, 08 11:23 AM CDT
(Newser) - Britain has released the first batch of secret files on reported UFO sightings, Reuters reports, and concluded that 90% are bogus. The Defense Ministry's Flying Saucer Working Party found that the other unexplained 10% posed no security threat. It has investigated some 11,000 reports dating back to the '50s that include tales of aliens in green overalls and a spaceman named Algar. More »

More about:  Great Britain • Ministry of Defence • Royal Air Force • UFOs • Close Encounters

For Britain's Young Princes,
a Role Reversal

Harry's Afghan tour, Wills' chopper antics flop public perception

Associated Press Associated Press Apr 24, 08 10:06 PM CDT
(Newser) - It seems like only yesterday that William was Britain's standup prince, brother Harry the misled stoner in an SS uniform. But after revelations that William landed his RAF helicopter on his girlfriend’s lawn, and that the younger Harry served actual combat in Afghanistan, the tables have turned, the AP reports. One commentator called William’s antics “the whole spoiled brat syndrome.” More »

More about:  British royals • Afghanistan war • Prince William • Prince Harry • helicopter • Kate Middleton • British Army • Royal Air Force

Prince Pilots Chopper
to Gal Pal's Home

Military defends
'royal heir farce'

BBC BBC Apr 20, 08 5:50 AM CDT
(Newser) - British officials have defended allowing Prince William to land a military helicopter on a field next to the home of his girlfriend’s family after the media blasted it as “ridiculous and inappropriate,” the BBC reports. “This was a routine training sortie"—and no one entered or exited the chopper, said the Ministry of Defense. Wills' girlfriend Kate Middleton and her parents watched the landing from their home. More »

More about:  Prince William • British military • Kate Middleton • Ministry of Defence • Royal Air Force

Brown Upbraids UK Public for Taunting Troops

PM irked that some personnel advised not to wear uniform off base

Daily Telegraph (UK) Daily Telegraph (UK) Mar 7, 08 5:34 PM CST
(Newser) - After reports that officers in Britain's Royal Air Force advised members against wearing uniforms in public, Prime Minister Gordon Brown urged troops to show their colors, the Telegraph reports—and chastised citizens for the verbal abuse that prompted the guidelines. Brown said troops should “have the respect and gratitude of the British people” and police should work to stop any abuse. More »

More about:  Great Britain • United Kingdom • Gordon Brown • England • abuse • British military • Royal Air Force • uniforms • harassment

Woman Held in Bomb Threat on British Oil Rig

Officials evacuate 539 workers; incident not terrorist-related

Reuters Reuters Feb 10, 08 10:58 AM CST
(Newser) - British authorities have detained a 23-year-old woman in connection with a bomb threat that caused an evacuation of hundreds of oil workers from a North Sea oil rig, the BBC says. The woman had been working aboard the platform, which is located about 130 miles northeast off the coast of Scotland, and officials don’t believe the incident is terrorist-related. More »

More about:  United Kingdom • terrorist • evacuation • bomb threat • Royal Air Force • North Sea • oil rig

British Jets Intercept 8 Russian 'Bears'

Kremlin's renewed long-range recon flights buzz Britain, Norway

Guardian (UK) Guardian (UK) Sep 6, 07 3:42 PM CDT
(Newser) - British fighter jets intercepted eight Russian recon bombers today as they approached British airspace in the latest long-distance forays to display Vladimir Putin's renewed virility in air power. Authorities said the aircraft did not enter British airspace, the Guardian writes. Norwegian planes monitored the same eight bombers in international airspace north of Norway. More »

More about:  Russia • Cold War • Norway • Alexander Litvinenko • Russian military • aircraft • Royal Air Force • bear • Britian

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