New RAF Lossiemouth fire station completed

Air December 6, 2022

The Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) has completed construction of the new Crash, Fire and Rescue building at RAF Lossiemouth, part of a wider upgrade programme at the Moray station.

DIO awarded the contract to Henry Brothers to construct a new facility for the professional in-house firefighters at RAF Lossiemouth and demolish the existing Crash, Fire and Rescue building, for a total cost of £10.7m.

The new building allows firefighters to reach any part of the airfield in under two minutes.

It needed to be robust due to its location close to the busy, operational airfield and provides space for state-of-the-art new firefighting vehicles and supporting training accommodation.

The Lossiemouth Development Programme (LDP) will result in significant upgrades to the RAF Main Operating Base, including providing all necessary facilities for both an additional Typhoon squadron and the new P8A Poseidon.

RAF Lossiemouth now has 4 squadrons of Typhoon, a fleet of nine P-8A Maritime Patrol Aircraft and will also be home to the RAF’s new E-7 Wedgetail surveillance aircraft.

Construction of the new Crash, Fire and Rescue building started in August 2021 and is one of many improvements being made at RAF Lossiemouth under the LDP, future-proofing the Moray station for years to come.

The site has already benefitted from early completion of the resurfaced runways, installation of advanced communications and improved drainage among other enhancements to its operating capability.

Through the LDP, DIO will also provide upgraded facilities for IX (Bomber) Squadron later this year and over 300 new en-suite single living accommodation rooms for all ranks in 2023.

Over the next few years the LDP, DIO and the RAF plan to construct new in-flight catering facilities and a state-of-the-art Air Traffic Control Tower.

Darren Keddie, DIO’s Project Manager, said: “The developments at RAF Lossiemouth are an example of the great work that is done to improve our infrastructure through investment, to better support our Service Personnel and armed forces capability in Scotland.

“The new Crash, Fire and Rescue building is a testament to our close working relationship with our RAF colleagues and contractors, enabling us to provide a building that meets their needs and maintain high standards of operational safety.”

Now the new facility is in use the team will turn their attention to the demolition of the previous facility, dating back to the 1960s, which is no longer fit for purpose.