RAF air marshal hails enduring link with Northern Ireland after parade and flypast to mark freedom honour

The Causeway Coast and Glens Council voted in 2018 to award the RAF its highest honour — the Freedom of the Borough — in recognition of the air force’s centenary year.

But the onset of the coronavirus pandemic has meant that it wasn’t until yesterday that a suitable ceremony could be arranged to mark the honour.

The award was made in recognition of the key role served by RAF operations from bases in the local area during the campaign against the Nazis — with airfields in Limavady and Ballykelly having played a key role in the Battle of the Atlantic during World War Two.

Air marshal Sir Gerry Mayhew, speaking to the News Letter following the event in Limavady, said: “This was the first opportunity we had to get everybody together here in Limavady, to have the parade, to join the town and celebrate.

“There was a parade with the central band of the Royal Air Force, a marching military band, and two flights of our marching RAF personnel, a lot of folks from Northern Ireland university air squadron and our air cadets.”

The decorated air marshal, who spent his early career as a pilot flying the Jaguar attack aircraft and the Tornado multirole combat jet, continued: “It was a good parade, with about 100 people in uniform, and there were a lot of people there from the town. Thank God the weather shone on us as well.”

There was a flypast by the RAF’s Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft — the modern successor of the famous Liberator that operated from the North West during World War Two.

“We were at the war memorial and we’d just had a very moving part of the ceremony when the aircraft flew over,” Air marshal Mayhew said.

“That particular aircraft has two big links to Northern Ireland — the first one is that the aircraft bears the name of 120 squadron, that was based here in Northern Ireland during World War Two hunting submarines and protecting Atlantic convoys, and that was a chap by the name of Terry Bulloch.

“The aircraft itself is busy, it is out there in the north Atlantic doing exactly the same job as coastal command in World War Two, so there was a bit of coming full circle.

“The importance to the overall war effort was huge.”

He added: “We still value the people and the technological industries of Northern Ireland. The Royal Air Force is still trying to join up with the companies in Northern Ireland. This is not just about looking back, this is about looking forwards.”