British jets continue fight against Islamic State

British jets continue fight against Islamic State

Typhoon jets continue to launch from RAF Akrotiri on the island of Cyprus to conduct sorties against terrorist group Daesh.

RAF Akrotiri is an extremely busy Permanent Joint Operating Base that supports ongoing operations in the region as well as support for the Sovereign Base Areas on Cyprus. It is used as a forward mounting base for overseas operations in the Middle East and for fast jet training.

Secretary of State for Defence Ben Wallace was quoted as saying last year:

“The British Armed Forces, alongside our Iraqi and Coalition partners, continue to root out Daesh terrorists from where they hide. The UK is committed to defeating Daesh. This operation will prevent the terrorist group and its toxic ideology from regaining a foothold in Iraq and reduce its capability to coordinate attacks around the world.”

In June 2021, the Royal Navy deployed a carrier strike group, UK Carrier Strike Group 21, centred around the aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth to support anti-Daesh operations. A joint force of RAF and US Marine Corps F-35B aircraft began launching combat sorties over Syria from the aircraft carrier whilst in the eastern Mediterranean. Airstrikes were confirmed by the United States Naval Institute.

In December 2021, an RAF Typhoon shot down a hostile drone which posed a threat to Coalition forces at the Al-Tanf military base in Southern Syria. It was the RAF’s first air-to-air engagement in combat conducted by a Typhoon. An ASRAAM short-range air-to-air missile was used.
What is Operation Shader?

Operation Shader began on the 9th of August 2014, when the Royal Air Force began a series of humanitarian air aid drops onto Mount Sinjar in Northern Iraq.

The air drops were ordered following the genocide of the Yazidi people and other ethnic minorities by Daesh in Northern Iraq, which had led to them fleeing onto the mountainside to escape Daesh.

Following the conclusion of the aid drops, the operation quickly changed to become the UK element in the US-led coalition that began the campaign to destroy Daesh. Based out of Cyprus, the Royal Air Force continues to survey and strike targets in Iraq and Syria as part of the Global Coalition under the banner of Op SHADER.

Source: Uk Defence Journal