The AAC's Apaches will be operated by three regiments - 3 and 4 at Wattisham, Suffolk and 9 at Dishforth, Yorkshire - each with two squadrons of eight aircraft. Each regiment will also have a squadron of light utility helicopters, likely to be Lynx, incorporating an upgrade proposed by GKN Westland. A Wattisham-based training unit will use eight machines, while DERA and a trials unit will also be allocated aircraft. The three front-line regiments will form a key part of 16 Air Assault Brigade, which in turn is an element of the tri-service Joint Helicopter Command. The latter controls the UK's airmobile forces, including RAF and RN support helicopter fleets, as well as the operational units within the AAC (Flight International, 15-21 December, 1999). Like its Dutch equivalent, 16 Air Assault Brigade can be declared to NATO as part of its Multinational Division-Central, the European focal point for air-manoeuvre forces, tactics and doctrine.
All units required to deploy rapidly and sustain operations in the field are included in the brigade. While The Parachute Regiment provides the bulk of the troops, signals, logistics, engineer, artillery, medical, police and explosive ordnance disposal units are also part of the 16 Air Assault Brigade.
Source: Flight International
