RAF Church Fenton to close by 'end of year'

RAF Church Fenton is to close by the end of the year, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed.

In a ministerial statement, the armed forces minister, Andrew Robathan, said the North Yorkshire base was no longer required for training operations.

Five service personnel at the base will be redeployed and three civilian employees will also be affected.

The closure is part of the government's strategic defence and security review to cut spending on the armed forces.

Church Fenton, built in the 1930s, has been largely disused for the last decade but remains the base of the Yorkshire Universities Air Squadron.

The minister said work to identify a new base for the squadron was continuing.