When and where to see legendary Hercules warplanes in farewell national flypast over region
Today is the last chance to catch a flying glimpse of the legendary Hercules plane, as a monumental flypast marks its forthcoming retirement from the RAF.
Aviation enthusiasts will have a final chance to see the famous plane in flight when three Hercules C-130Js tour the UK today, including a flypast of RAF Cosford.
Residents across Warwickshire, Staffordshire and Shropshire will be among the first in the UK to spot the Hercules at the start of the day. It then heads off to as far as Northern Ireland, Scotland, Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and Salisbury Plain near Stonehenge.
A staple of the RAF since 1966, the planes have been used around the world in support of UK military and humanitarian relief operations.
After over half a century in service, they are being replaced by 22 Atlas A400 planes.
Today, three of the recognisable planes are set to fly out from Brize Norton in Oxfordshire at 10am, before heading to their first destination over the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire.
From there, the route moves towards Cosford at 10.34am, before flying northwest towards Anglesey, flying over Shifnal and Telford.
After touring the skies across Wales, the planes will head to Ireland and Scotland before moving back south towards Yorkshire, across London, and back up to its starting point in Oxfordshire.
10.00am - Depart RAF Brize Norton
10.25am - National Memorial Arboretum, Alrewas
10.34am - RAF Cosford
11.22am - RAF Valley
11.48am - FS Aldergrove
12.51pm - RAF Lossiemouth (with Typhoon escort)
14.08pm - RAF Leeming
14.10pm - RAF Topcliffe
14.23pm - Beverley
14.35pm - RAF Waddington
14.38pm - RAF College Cranwell
14.58pm - Cambridge Airport
15.04pm - RAF Mildenhall
15.15pm - Colchester Garrison
16.22pm - MOD Boscombe Down
16.25pm - Salisbury Plain (West Down Camp)
16.32pm - MOD Lyneham
16.36pm - Royal Wootton Bassett
16.39pm - Defence Academy of the UK, Shrivenham
16.43pm - Dalton Barracks, Abingdon
16.51pm - RAF Halton
16.55pm - RAF High Wycombe
17.05pm - RAF Brize Norton
