Boeing Chinook (UK variants) Boeing Chinook (UK variants) The Boeing Chinook is a large, tandem rotor helicopter operated by the Royal Air Force (RAF). A series of variants based on the United States Army's Boeing CH-47 Chinook, the RAF Chinook fleet is the largest outside the United States. RAF Chinooks have seen extensive service including fighting in the Falklands War, peace-keeping commitments in the Balkans, Northern Ireland and action in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. The Chinook aircraft, normally based at RAF Odiham, provides heavy-lift support and transport across all branches of the British armed forces, and is supported by the smaller, medium-lift helicopters
Boeing Chinook (UK variants) alongside Westland Sea King and Westland Wessex helicopters. Post-war, four Chinooks were operated by "ChinDet" (Chinook Detachment) which became No.1310 Flight in 1983. Subsequently, No. 78 Squadron was re-formed in 1986 from the merger of No. 1310 Flight and No.1564 Flight (Sea Kings) and operated two Chinooks as part of the Falklands Garrison. This was reduced to a single helicopter in the mid-1990s and the type was eventually withdrawn from the Falklands in 2006 in order to free up resources and craft for operations in Afghanistan. RAF Chinooks provided routine supply and support missions to the British military during Operation