Final ex-RAF Sentinel R1 departs Waddington

The fifth and final ex-RAF Raytheon Sentinel R1 battlefield surveillance aircraft departed RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire, UK, on March 21 – almost two years after the platform was withdrawn from operational service and sold as second-hand assets to an unconfirmed US end customer. The aircraft (formerly ZJ690, now registered as N690BD) was initially due to leave RAF Waddington in 2022 – and again in January, this year – but issues identified during multiple air tests led to its final departure