Exclusive: Inside the cockpit for RAF's first F-35 air policing mission in Iceland

Pilots and groundcrew deployed with the RAF's Quick Reaction Alert mission in Iceland are on alert 24/7 and strive to achieve "perfection" in their role, their commander has said.

BFBS Forces News was given access to RAF pilots as British F-35s and 617 Squadron are tasked with defending the alliance's airspace in the Arctic region.

It is also the first time F-35B Lightnings have taken on an air policing role.

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Wing Commander Stewart Campbell said the RAF personnel and their fighter jets were at the "heart of the mission".

"We're holding alert 24/7," he said. "That means having pilots and engineers and support staff on call throughout the day, throughout the night, ready to respond to any alert that might come in from our combined air operations centre."

So what happens when the alert call comes in?

"So first of all, we'll get the scramble," Wg Cdr Campbell explained. "We'll go to the jets, get airborne and we'll get an initial heading.

"We'll very quickly with the F-35 have situational awareness of where that is, our sensors will pick it up at a huge range.

"And then the first thing for us is to identify [it]. That can be by using some of the systems we have available to us on the F-35 – right down to the point we get close enough to ID it with our eyes.

"But I'm pleased to say with F-35 I should have a very good idea of what it is well before I see it."

The aircraft are patrolling Icelandic airspace, having travelled from RAF Marham in Norfolk.

It is the first time British jets have taken part in such activity in Iceland since 2019 – when four Typhoons flew 59 training sorties and more than 180 practice intercepts.

The RAF personnel deployed on the mission very much know they are performing on the Nato stage, Wg Cdr Campbell said.

"We know we might get called upon for a more dynamic mission in the years ahead, so we want to set a reputation by meeting everything that is asked of us here and more," he said.

"I think it's just ingrained in pilots from very early on in their flying career that when you join the Royal Air Force, or indeed the Royal Navy, to become a fighter pilot, if you want to make the grade, you have to be the very best.

"And for some people, that isn't good enough, but by the time the guys and girls come to the frontline, perfection is what they're looking for day in, day out."