RAF Waddington - Present Day

Present Day

It is presently home to the RAF's Sentry and Raytheon Sentinel R1 ASTOR (Airborne STand-Off Radar) ground-surveillance/intelligence aircraft. The station is also home to No. 34 Expeditionary Air Wing.

There is an outdoor viewing area east of the A15 road close to the northern end of the long runway which was designed to accommodate V bombers. Short-term visits from different NATO and Swiss fighter squadrons, in the past, used to generate occasional additional noise and interest because the airfield was conveniently placed for offshore practice firing ranges above the North Sea. However with the closure of the aforementioned Air Combat Manoeuvring Instrumentation range these visits have ceased. Waddington also has a very active Force Development ethos, putting emphasis on the development of its busy personnel.

No. 34 Expeditionary Air Wing was formed at Waddington on 1 April 2006 encompassing most of the non-formed unit personnel on station. The EAW does not include the flying units at the station. The station commander is dual-hatted as the commander of the wing.

The Nimrod MRA4 was due to be moved to the base from RAF Kinloss, but the whole fleet was cancelled.

Amateur Radio licensees are not allowed to operate unattended radio beacon transmitters within 50 km of the Waddington airfield, centred on Ordnance Survey Grid Reference SK 985640.

The Lincolnshire & Nottinghamshire Air Ambulance, which began operating in 1994, is based at the airfield.

RAF Waddington Voluntary Band is one of seven voluntary bands within the RAF and is proud to serve the station and the surrounding areas. Members of the band include RAF personnel as a second duty, dependants, civil servants and local civilians. As part of the station's musical heritage, Pink Floyd performed at the station's Raven Club on 20 April 1968.

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