Will Lincolnshire Remain The Home Of The Red Arrows?

Three sites have been revealed as potential options to become the future home of the Red Arrows.

The RAF aerobatic display team is facing relocation following the decision by the Ministry of Defence (MOD) to close their current base, RAF Scampton.

There have been many campaigning to keep them in their home county of Lincolnshire.

In a letter, defence minister Tobias Ellwood says there is a one in three chance of that happening.

They are the RAF’s flagship team, recognised and respected around the world.

But for months the future of where the Red Arrows will fly from has been uncertain.

Last July, the MOD announced RAF Scampton, the Red Arrows' current home, would close.

The department said it is part of plans to create a more efficient, modern and capability focused defence estate.

It was a decision met by some with sadness and concern about the future of the aerobatic team, the forces families linked to it, and the wider Lincolnshire economy.

Now, a letter from defence minister Tobias Ellwood appears to confirm three potential sites have been shortlisted.

They are RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire, RAF Leeming in North Yorkshire and RAF Wittering in Cambridgeshire.

Karen Lee, MP for Lincoln, says she is optimistic the Red Arrows will stay in Lincolnshire, and she has been pressing Tobias Ellwood for answers:

"I've been to a couple of Westminster Hall debates and I've had a private meeting with him [Tobias Ellwood].

"I had a petition - we had over 5,000 signatures on the petition - so I had a meeting and presented him with it."

The MOD is currently assessing the suitability of each location and said in a statement:

"Any basing decision for the Red Arrows will depend on securing a suitable area of airspace in which they can conduct their aerobatic training."

Only then will the Red Arrow’s new home be revealed and the future of those linked to the world’s premier aerobatic display team determined.