A new fire appliance has been airlifted to Caldey Island this morning (Tuesday) in a pioneering flight partnership.

In an exercise which took four months to plan, a rural response pump (RRP) was flown by the RAF underneath a Chinook helicopter to the island off Tenby.

The 4x4 vehicle has been provided by the Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service (MWWFRS) to add to its existing appliances on Caldey.

The test flight, which took off from Manorbier Range, had been organised by a specialist team from the Joint Air Delivery Test and Evaluation Unit, RAF Brize Norton.

Wing Commander Phil Greville, the RAF regional liaison officer in Wales said: “Air-lifting this type of vehicle underneath a Chinook has not been done before and we were very pleased that the flight trial went according to plan.

“Once we knew the vehicle was stable in flight and did not present any hazards, the helicopter crew were able to fly over to Caldey Island.

“This has been a win, win situation.

"The fire service needed to get a new fire appliance out to the island and we wanted to get this type of fire-vehicle approved for air-lift by Chinook. We now have a safe method of doing that.

"The rural response pump vehicle is in widespread use throughout the UK and, in the future, we will be able to fly it to where it is needed when responding to major floods and other emergency situations”.

Added Rob Quin, assistant chief fire officer from MWWFRS: “We have been working very closely with the RAF over the last few months and it really has been a team effort. We are grateful to the RAF and would like to offer a sincere thank you for all their assistance. It has been very rewarding to be involved in the air-lift trial and we now have a new fire appliance on Caldey Island.

“As a fire and rescue service, we are confronted with a wide range of challenges that make the service area of mid and west Wales unique.

Geographically, we cover the largest service area of England and Wales, which contains Swansea, the second largest city in Wales, and many populous towns. We also serve many rural communities. Therefore, ensuring we have the best response vehicles and equipment, tailored to each area’s needs, is important.”