When you think of the cost of filling up your car, and how far you will get on a full tank, have you every wondered how much fuel RAF aircraft use?
During a recent Exercise in France, personnel from RAF Global Enablement Support Force distributed over 500,000 litres of aviation fuel.
L'armée de l’air (France) invited RAF Atlas aircraft to this international Air Livex, Exercise Volfa 24, based in France, with other participating nations – Canada, Greece, Italy, Spain and the UAE.
Alongside aircraft, Global Enablement’s No. 2 Mechanical Transport Squadron, 5001 Squadron Engineers and No. 1 Expeditionary Logistics Squadron specialists were also asked to participate in Exercise Energise Volfa. The aim was to train together as a coalition in a complex air environment facing a high-level near peer threat. By building on Tactical Aviation refuelling capability, the RAF will remain ready to fly and fight across the globe 24 hours a day.
This was a French Service de l’Énergie Opérationelle (SEO) exercise running alongside the wider Exercise Volfa, with collaboration from the UK Operational Energy Authority (OEA). UK participation was under the auspices of the Franco-British Fuels Co-operation agreement, set up by DSFA (now the OEA) with the French SEA (now the SEO) and run actively by those organisations. The UK participation was a trial, and it's hoped that lessons identified can be used to inform the NATO Modular Combined Petroleum Capability (MCPC) Co-ordination Board, which the UK is Chair of.
