Here you will find the latest updates and news from FAAM
Closure of the FAAM Airborne Laboratory
Following the withdrawal of funding by UKRI-NERC, announced on Thursday 26 February 2026, the FAAM Airborne Laboratory will cease operations at the end of this financial year. UKRI have been the custodians of UK airborne science and monitoring since 2014, but the...
New fire extinguishers to reduce ozone-depleting equipment on our atmospheric research aircraft
We are replacing fire extinguishers on board the FAAM Airborne Laboratory’s atmospheric research aircraft to comply with a government directive aimed at reducing ozone depleting substances (ODS). What’s involved in replacing our fire extinguishers? Despite our...
Research aircraft measures NOx emissions from commercial flights
Scientists are taking to the skies in June to study how emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) from aircraft affect the Earth’s climate. Researchers from the National Centre of Atmospheric Science and the University of Cambridge are taking the FAAM Airborne Laboratory’s...
Scientists launch UK’s first sustainable aviation fuel emissions “chase” experiment
Scientists are looking at how pollutants from aircraft could be reduced by using sustainable aviation fuel. Teams from the FAAM Airborne Laboratory, universities, research centres and aerospace companies are working together on a “chase” experiment, the first of its...
New capability: measuring airborne biological matter
A cutting-edge new instrument for studying bioaerosols in the atmosphere, known as the Swisens Enhanced Poleno Jupiter, is joining the FAAM Airborne Laboratory through the Mid-Life Upgrade programme. The instrument will help scientists better understand tiny particles...
FAAM Airborne Laboratory to operate an airborne sub-10 nanometre aerosol sampler
Upgraded aerosol inlets will revolutionise the way the FAAM aircraft samples aerosol particles from outside the aircraft as it flies and delivers them to the instruments inside. The project is led by Dr Paul I. Williams, National Centre for Atmospheric Science and...
10,000 hours of flying with the FAAM Airborne Laboratory
On 14 January 2025 the FAAM Airborne Laboratory’s atmospheric research aircraft reached a milestone of 10,000 hours of flying over the course of its lifetime. Our research aircraft in its first days as the BAe 146-100 demonstrator model, with its original livery. It...
Introducing a groundbreaking new wind profiler to our atmospheric research aircraft
A state-of-the-art Doppler lidar is in development for the FAAM Airborne Laboratory’s atmospheric research aircraft, just one of the new instruments being delivered through the Mid-Life Upgrade programme. This project is led by Ryan R. Neely III (University of Leeds)...
How to customise an atmospheric research aircraft with the Aircraft Modification Programme
We’re getting our atmospheric research aircraft ready for a summer of science projects. The first of these, CARES, looks at how natural sulphur affects the marine environment. The aircraft will head to Ireland in May to collect samples from seasonal phytoplankton...
Research aircraft and EarthCARE satellite track clouds in unison for better weather and climate prediction
Scientists are decoding clouds from space to improve weather and climate predictions, with calibration support from the FAAM Airborne Laboratory. By flying directly under the path of the new EarthCARE (Cloud, Aerosol and Radiation Explorer) satellite as it...