7.45 pm 'The future of the RAF' - Talk by Squadron Leader Matt Peak at The Hillard Rooms

Squadron Leader Matt Peak gave a very good presentation on the RAF from its inception on 1st April 1918 with the amalgamation of the Air Flying Corps and the Fleet Air Arm, through the various periods of conflict and how he envisages the planes of the future wil look and be controlled.

Flying started with biplanes flying with petrol driven propellors  and  their use in war time situations was by dropping grenades or firing rifles from the cockpit. Navigation was limited to fairly low altitude with a compass and in sight of land.

The  technology changed rapidly in the build up to WW2, in which the planes became single winged and the weaponry advanced to allow guns to be wing mounted and even in line with the cockpit where the firing of the machine guns was synchronised with the rotation of the propellor and allowed the ammunition to be fired through the propellor as it turned at full speed giving greater accuracy when fired.

The greatest breakthrough, however, came with the  invention of the jet engine by Sir Frank Whittle. Propellors were no longer required, the planes could travel faster, fly higher and take off and land on a shorter runway.

With the introduction of computers, satelite navigation systems, laser controlled weaponry the fleet of aircraft changed to the modern fighters - Typhoons, Tornadoes, etc and the need for training of both aircrews and ground staff  changed with the changing face of the aircraft.

Drones, or to be more correct, UAV's -Unmanned Aerial Vehicles- are now flying regular surveillance and armed situations, and this, probably, is the way the RAF will move forward in the future with more and more missions being carried out by a pilot sitting in a portacabin literally anywhere in the world and controllingthe aircraft onthe opposite sideof the world.

Question for seasoned travellers -"Is the way that commercial passenger planes will travel in the future?"

A very well presented talk, and by the volume of questions very well received as well.

Many thanks to Mary and Val for organising the talk.