Following recent suggestions that the RAF’s Aerobatic Team, the Red Arrows, based at RAF Scampton, could be moved out of the county have been quashed by a government minister.

Sir Edward wrote at the end of September to the Ministry of Defence when suggestions emerged that the Red Arrows could move from their home at RAF Scampton in the Gainsborough constituency to Doncaster Sheffield Airport, Finningley in Yorkshire.

The Rt. Hon. Tobias Ellwood MP, Parliamentary Under-Seretary of State and Minister for Defence People and Veterans, has responded, making it clear that there is no plan for such a move, he wrote:

“There is no plan to move the Red Arrows base from RAF Scampton to Doncaster Sheffield Airport.”

Sir Edward Leigh welcomed the minister’s reassurance saying:

“I am very pleased that the minister has provided the assurance I was seeking, on behalf of local residents. The Red Arrows are an important part of Lincolnshire, which has a tremendous aviation heritage. To lose them would be a tremendous blow both to the local economy and local sentiment. They play an important role locally that really puts our corner of Lincolnshire on the map. I am very pleased they are here to stay.”