No. 30 Squadron of the Royal Air Force

Royal Air Force

The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...

 operates the second generation C-130J Hercules

C-130 Hercules

The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is a four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built originally by Lockheed, now Lockheed Martin. Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally designed as a troop, medical evacuation, and cargo transport...

 from RAF Brize Norton

RAF Brize Norton

RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire, about west north-west of London, is the largest station of the Royal Air Force. It is close to the settlements of Brize Norton, Carterton and Witney....

, Oxfordshire

Oxfordshire

Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....

. The squadron operates alongside No. 24 Squadron and No. 47 Squadron

No. 47 Squadron RAF

No. 47 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Hercules from RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire.-First formation:No. 47 Squadron Royal Flying Corps was formed at Beverley, East Riding of Yorkshire on 1 March 1916 as a home defence unit, protecting Hull and East Yorkshire against attack by German...

 all flying the Hercules.
No 30 Squadron was formed for service in Egypt in October 1914 at Farnborough, but was not allocated the squadron number 30 until 24 March 1915. Initially a single flight of BE2

Be2

The online matchmaking company be2 is one of the leading matchmakers worldwide. Internationally, be2 is represented in 37 countries..-History:...

s at Ismailia Airfield, it was expanded when a second flight was added at Basra in April (formally becoming part of 30 squadron in August 1915).