Technician flies high with famous Red Arrows

Mar 26 2008 by Liam Murphy, Liverpool Daily Post

A MECHANICAL technician from Chester will be spending the summer flying high with the world-famous Red Arrows as part of their back-seat support crew.

Corporal Phil Ackerley, 35, will be part of the 10-strong team of engineers known as Circus, who will each be assigned to a specific aircraft and pilot throughout the 2008 summer display season.

He will travel as a passenger in one of the Red Arrows’ two-seat Hawk aircraft in transit flights to over 90 display venues throughout the UK, Europe and North America, flying at speeds of over 350mph.

Once his aircraft arrives at the display’s operating base, Tim will be responsible for servicing it before it can fly safely again.

He said: “I enjoy my job as an Royal Air Force engineer and to fly with the Red Arrows will be an extra bonus.”

Phil is originally from Chester and was educated at Bishop Heber High School, Malpas.

He joined the Royal Air Force as an Airframe Mechanic in 1990 and has served on Tornado GR1/4, Merlin EH101 and Tornado F3, which involved him in multi-national exercises throughout the USA and Europe.

He also worked on the Sea King helicopter at Royal Air Force St Mawgan, which included a stint in the Falkland Islands.

At the moment he lives in Lincoln with his wife Annette and two children, Amie and Liam, and remains a follower of Liverpool FC.

Since the team’s creation in 1965, the Red Arrows have flown over 4,000 displays in 53 countries.