A fascinating visit to RAF Valley with both Conservative and Labour members of the Armed Forces Parliamentary Scheme.
The base has more than a thousand civilian and military staff working seamlessly together. It's home to No 4 Flying Training School which is responsible for training the UK’s next generation of world-class fighter pilots. It was good to talk to some of those moving onto the Hawk jet in the next stage of their training - I was incredibly impressed by them all, especially after experiencing a simulator first-hand.
Helicopter training is another big element of RAF Valley's work, as well as being the base of Royal Air Force Mountain Rescue Service.
We also met some of the brilliant apprentices in aerospace engineering, working for BAE Systems and Babcock.
Apprenticeships are a great way to start a career, and I was pleased to see how popular this option is for school-leavers at both GCSE and A level standards.
This visit was another reminder of the selfless work the armed forces do every day, seen and unseen, to defend our nation’s skies and keep us safe.