Present Day
In April 1997 the station started providing training for helicopter pilots for all three of the UK's armed services, being home to the Defence Helicopter Flying School. Currently the Squirrel HT1 (Eurocopter AS350BB) helicopter operated by (660 and 705 Squadrons) and the Griffin HT1 (Bell 412 EP) helicopter operated by No. 60 Squadron RAF is used by the School and is maintained by the contractor, FB Heliservices Ltd, who also provide 40% of the flying instructors. It is also home to the Air Traffic Control School and the RAF Aircraft Storage flight.
Shawbury is home to the 'Assault Glider Trust', building a non-flying replica Horsa glider for museum display.
The station's new physical recreation training centre, named the Jubilee Hall Sports and Fitness Centre to mark the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II, was opened by Prince Michael of Kent on 24 April 2012.
Read more about this topic: RAF Shawbury
Famous quotes containing the words present and/or day:
“A book is not an autonomous entity: it is a relation, an axis of innumerable relations. One literature differs from another, be it earlier or later, not because of the texts but because of the way they are read: if I could read any page from the present time—this one, for instance—as it will be read in the year 2000, I would know what the literature of the year 2000 would be like.”
—Jorge Luis Borges (1899–1986)
“And you’re too fired up to go to sleep, you sit at the kitchen table. It’s really late, it’s really quiet, you’re tired. Don’t wanna go to bed, though. Going to bed means this was the day. This Feb. 12, this Aug. 3, this Nov. 20 is over and you’re tired and you made some money but it didn’t happen, nothing happened. You got through it and a whole day of your life is over. And all it is—is time to go to bed.”
—Claudia Shear, U.S. author. New York Times, p. A21 (September 29, 1993)