Beach welcome for giant of RAF

The three-mile stretch of sands is helping train pilots in take-off and landing. Enlarge Image

A beach in Carmarthenshire is helping to train RAF pilots land a huge Hercules aircraft without a runway.

The 50-tonne planes are among the more unusual visitors to Pembrey Sands near Llanelli.

The three-mile stretch of beach is being used for practising take-off and landings without a conventional runway.

Wing commander Greg Cook said the terrain was ideal, adding: "It is exactly the sort of thing we get involved in every day in Afghanistan."

A crew from RAF Lyneham was among the first to use the beach.

Wing commander Cook said: "It's a skill that every pilot will need to have these days."

He said the training could be useful for humanitarian missions to Darfur, Sudan in the future.