RAF base which taught princes marks 50th birthday

A helicopter school which trained Prince William and Prince Harry is celebrating its 50th birthday.

RAF Shawbury, near Shrewsbury, Shropshire, is home to the No.1 Flying Training School - the oldest the military pilot training school in the world.

Gp Cpt Mike Jordan, the commandant at the base, said it was a "very, very proud day".

"Every single helicopter air crew on the front line will have come through Shawbury in some form over time," he said.

The anniversary is due to be marked with a parade through the centre of nearby Market Drayton and an evening event for people who have worked at or supported Shawbury over the years.

Prince Harry completed his helicopter flying course at Shawbury in October 2009, followed by Prince William who completed his advanced helicopter flying training in January 2010, before going on to take a Search and Rescue Conversion Course at RAF Valley in Wales.

The following year, ahead of his marriage to Catherine, Princess of Wales, the base sent them a message, wishing them well on their wedding day.

During their time in Shropshire both were regularly seen in the local area, including in Shrewsbury town centre.

Jordan said the school was currently training about 150 people, of whom about 100-120 would graduate every year

Between 60% and 70% of them would be pilots, with the remainder "rear crew" who serve specialised roles away from the cockpit.

The base commandant said they took trainees from all three armed forces, as well as from abroad, and typically trained people who had never flown a helicopter before.

While at Shawbury, they can expect to total about 100 flying hours over 12-18 months, along with training in "things like intelligence briefings, making sure they understand how to lead better" Jordan said.

A lot of the training is done in simulators these days, he explained, but Shropshire also provided an ideal location for real flying.

"For basic flying training we want nice wide open spaces, we want airfields were we can go and train the fundamentals of helicopter flying," he said.

As the pilots advance, he said, they are taken to "more dynamic" environments in other parts of Shropshire, Cheshire and north Wales, where they can practice over woods or through hills and mountains.

Jordan said his training school "sets the foundation" for all British military helicopter crews and enables the armed forces to "fly, fight and win wherever they need to do that".

He took did his own training at Shawbury in 1998 and while he went away to serve on search and rescue and front line helicopters, he said it had "always been a home" to him.

The parade and the evening celebration will allow people at the base to share the day with the local community, he said, and they would attended by everyone from young recruits to a 95-year-old former instructor.

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