Abseiling commandos, Royal Marines Buglers and a Merlin flypast heralded the 100-day countdown to the military’s largest public event of 2022.
To set the clock running down to Armed Forces Day, a Royal Marines team slid down the side of the castle keep in Scarborough, to a fanfare from four buglers of the RM Corps of Drums as a Merlin from 814 Naval Air Squadron buzzed around the ancient fortress.
The historic Yorkshire town/seaside resort is the place to be on Saturday June 25 as it hosts the main national Armed Forces Day event – at last.
The resort was selected for the privilege several years ago... but the pandemic got in the way.
With normal life resuming, the MOD and civic leaders have dusted off the plans and all systems are go for the last Saturday in June.
Military personnel from the Royal Navy, Royal Marines, Army and Royal Air Force will parade along the seafront, with cadets and veterans, while the public will get the chance to show their appreciation for those who have served or continue to do so.
They’ll see a variety of military displays, look around military equipment and, most importantly, meet Armed Forces personnel.
As a coastal town, there’s heavy Senior Service involvement, with the Royal Navy Regional Command Northern England leading the planning.
“We aim to provide a spectacular series of events, culminating in Armed Forces Day, which truly showcases the capabilities of the UK Armed Forces,” said Commodore Phil Waterhouse, the Naval Regional Commander Northern England and the Isle of Man.
“The Royal Navy, Army and Royal Air Force are looking forward to supporting Scarborough Borough Council as we all deliver this year’s Armed Forces Day national event, particularly given the delays over the last two years due to the pandemic.”
Councillor Eric Broadbent, Mayor of the Borough of Scarborough, said the town was “pulling out all the stops to make the 2022 national event truly spectacular”.
He continued: “It will be a great honour for us to show our appreciation for their outstanding service by welcoming serving personnel, veterans, military charities, special guests and visitors to the town for what promises to be a very special celebration.”
The website scarborougharmedforcesday.co.uk will be the main online source of information about the national event weekend in the town.
In the coming weeks the site will be populated with the programme and activity listings, details of how to plan a visit to Scarborough, stories from veterans and Armed Forces personnel, community project information, how sponsors are supporting the event and much more.
The event is backed by more than 30 major sponsors, led by retailing giant Tesco and including NAAFI, Babcock, Balfour Beatty, BAE Systems, McCain Foods, REFA (The Forces Employment Charity), Royal British Legion and Taylor Wimpey.
