Moray welcomed the ‘Dambusters’ home for the final time on Tuesday when the famous Tornado squadron returned from a final tour in Afghanistan.
The 119 squadron members were reunited with family and friends when the flew back to RAF Lossiemouth on Tuesday – the squadron will now be disbanded.
After the emotional scenes when hangar doors opened to the ‘Dambusters March’ to reveal the squadron personal to families, Flight Lieutenant Mo Abdallah said: “It’s great to be home, the homecoming has been the highlight of the last four months and having the kids run towards me when we got into the hangar was amazing.
“We’re now going to sit down together at home with a few hugs, some games and some treats for the kids before I settle back in with my family.
“In Afghanistan my role was to give guidance and training to the junior guys on the team and, of course, to fly.
“We were supporting the troops on the ground, whether it was a normal mission or being on alert and waiting for that call to come in. Being part of such a historic squadron has been amazing, a real lifetime honour.”
In their four-month mission the squadron flew 188 missions and clocked up 1500 flying hours.
Squadron OC, Wing Commander David Arthurton, said: “The Squadron can be justifiably proud of its recent history; Tornado has played a vital role on Ops over the last 30 years and our Squadron is honoured to have made its contribution to this legacy.
“It’s a very different role; back in the Second World War the Squadron was employed on offensive Ops whereas today we are setting the conditions for enduring security and peace.”