THE country’s first Royal Air Force (RAF) radio station went live from Brize Norton yesterday.

The British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS) station will include local and military news, music and feature programmes from across the world.

It can be heard on its own base, as well as in RAF Benson, RAF Fairford and force locations in Abingdon, Didcot and Shrivenham.

RAF Brize Norton station commander Stephen F Lushington said: “I think BFBS Brize Norton is going to open many avenues and we’ll be able to have a lot of fun.

“It’s important for the local community and the families, as we can keep them up to speed on messages and announcements for the station.

“We have nearly 500 people deployed on operations at any given time from Brize Norton, so there’s an awful lot of families out there who want to know what’s happening on the station.”

Presenters include Alex Gill, who has moved from BFBS Gibraltar, and ex-BBC Oxford broadcaster Jo Thoenes.

Mr Gill, who will host the breakfast show from 6.30am to 10am, said: “I love how BFBS links the Armed Forces community around the world.”

There are radio stations for British forces in countries including Afghanistan, Germany and Cyprus, as well as at military bases including Catterick and Aldershot.

The station can be heard on DAB digital radio and at bfbs.com/brizenorton