A RAF Officer based at RAF High Wycombe took part in the London Marathon on Sunday 3rd October. In completing the challenge, Squadron Leader Alfie Hall will raise money for the RAF Benevolent Fund, the RAF’s leading welfare charity.
Alfie, 58, works as part of the air capability delivery programme on the A400M Atlas C Mk 1 team. He has spent more than 20 years as an RAF Reservist, including the last 12 as full-time RAF Reserve.
After finishing the marathon, Alfie will have completed the London Classics Challenge, having cycled Prudential RideLondon virtually in 2020 and Swim Serpentine earlier in September. Alfie promised his sponsors to complete all challenges within a single year, so he also cycled the RAF Benevolent Fund’s Dambusters Ride in July 2021, a 100-mile cycle challenge that paid tribute to the historic raid.
"I’ve always supported the RAF Benevolent Fund – it offers great support for those who have served and I’ve only heard good things about the assistance provided. RAF High Wycombe has also benefited enormously from additional facilities provided by the Fund. One of the biggest challenges was training for three different events at once: cycling, swimming, and running. I had hoped to complete the London Classics in 2020 but, although the cycle and run offered virtual options, there was no alternative for the swim. I’m looking forward to getting some time back as I’ve expended hundreds of hours over almost two years from start to finish against a backdrop of lockdown and COVID-19."
Squadron Leader Alfie Hall
RAF Reservist
In 2018, Alfie ran 10 individual 10km races to raise money for the RAF Benevolent Fund, and in 2017 he cycled from Land’s End to John O’Groats in support of the Fund.
The RAF Benevolent Fund provides financial, practical and emotional support to the whole of the RAF Family, both serving personnel and veterans, as well as their partners and dependants.
"We are so incredibly grateful for Alfie’s support, which will allow the Fund to continue to be there for the whole of the RAF Family for years to come. By taking on this gruelling challenge, Alfie is not only helping raise money for the RAF Benevolent Fund; he’s also helping to raise awareness of the support the Fund offers to other veterans, serving personnel, and their families."
Heather Kemp
Community Fundraiser, RAF Benevolent Fund
RAF Benevolent Fund is the RAF’s leading welfare charity. We exist to support current and former members of the RAF, their partners and dependants, whenever they need us. In 2020, we spent £26 million supporting 63,700 members of the RAF Family.