It has only four quick reaction fighters against external attack

A former RAF commander has warned that Britain has only four fighter jets ready to fly immediately in the event of an imminent Russian attack on British territory. Air Marshal Greg Bagwell announced Sun The British armed forces do not have the capability to defend themselves against a “significant” surprise attack by Vladimir Putin’s forces.

Bagwell emphasised that two decades of relative peace after the Cold War meant that Britain, like much of NATO Europe, had become complacent about the Russian threat and had not invested enough in its military defence. This lack of foresight has resulted in a “second-rate” military that can respond to a “limited” Russian attack with only a few aircraft and missiles.

Air Marshal with 36 years of service in the RAF warned In the event of a significant attack Britain’s limited number of aircraft, defence systems and weapons would quickly be exhausted. If Putin decides to launch a major attack on Britain, as seen in Ukraine, The RAF would be overwhelmedHe assured.

Bagwell Explains It Only four Eurofighter Typhoons are ready to fly immediately as part of the UK’s Quick Reaction Alert (QRA)., two at RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland and two at RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire. Although the rest of the Air Force could be activated “relatively quickly” in response to an enemy threat, available resources would soon be exhausted.

Air Marshal also made a disturbing revelation The British arsenal would soon run out of weapons and spare parts because Britain’s missiles are designed for small wars without a significant aerial threat.. He added this If Russia launches a “surprise airstrike”, it will take a lot of time to prepare other aircraft to respondThe need to anticipate such surprises in advance was highlighted.

Bagwell mentioned it There were only six squadrons at RAF Lossiemouth and RAF Coningsby, which would quickly be destroyed in a long conflict.. He told that The UK has around 130 typhoons in total, but that number will drop to around 100 next year.And not everyone will be ready to fly.

This has made the situation even more complicated The Royal Navy, which has six Type 45 air defence destroyers, most of which are in maintenance or deployed in the Gulf, And most of the UK’s land-based air defence systems are deployed overseas in places such as the Falkland Islands. This means that The country does not have the capacity to adequately confront the threat posed by Putin.

Bagwell emphasized that If Britain were to face the kind of conflict that Ukraine faces on a daily basis, it would have to keep its entire air force on alert, limiting its capabilities. Furthermore, he stressed that the United Kingdom should strengthen its armed forces, otherwise Putin would sense weakness and attack Britain.

General Richard Barrons also supported these statements by saying European NATO members should strengthen their defenses instead of arguing over who should pay the bill to defend the alliance.As Russia increases its defense spending, Europe needs to do the same to ensure its security.

The situation of the British army is worrying a 30% reduction since 2000 and shortages of personnel, modern equipment and ammunition to become a serious player in NATO. General Barrons called the UK’s position “ridiculous” and highlighted the need to invest sufficiently in defence to ensure national security in an increasingly dangerous age.