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Supporting our UK and Qatari customers on Typhoon

14 Jun 2020
Man and woman stood in front of plaque displaying 12 Squadron logo
In 2018, the Royal Air Force stood up 12 Squadron, the joint RAF-Qatari Emiri Air Force squadron. Its stand up marked the RAF's seventh operational Typhoon squadron, which further developed the UK’s combat air capability.
To enable 12 Squadron to operate at full capacity, our investment projects team has worked alongside the Ministry of Defence to design and build a new headquarters for the squadron along with eight aircraft shelters, two storage hangars and a ground equipment store at RAF Coningsby.
 
Using modern modular construction techniques, the joint team were able to fast track the design and build of these facilities ensuring they are ready for the first Qatari pilots which have started operational training on 12 Squadron.
 
The project has taken around 60 weeks to complete by a team of 30 sub-contractors from the local supply chain using nearly 1,500 tonnes of concrete and more than 1,000 tonnes of steel.

The facilities will become home to Qatari and RAF pilots and ground crew, with the first QEAF pilot cohort starting joint flying with their RAF counterparts this week.
 
They have completed their Typhoon operational conversion training in the Typhoon Training Facility at RAF Coningsby. 
 
QEAF ground crew will soon complete their initial training at RAF Cosford and many of them will move on to support 12 Squadron in the new facilities.
 
The Qatar Emiri Air Force will become the ninth customer in the global Typhoon fleet when it receives the first of its 24 aircraft in 2022, supported by a fleet of nine Hawk training aircraft.
 
Charles Woodburn, Chief Executive Officer, BAE Systems said:

 

“It has been a pleasure to see these important developments first hand at RAF Coningsby, and to see the successful relationship between the Qatar Emiri Air Force and the Royal Air Force grow through the joint squadron.”