A ROYAL Air Force aircraft was heard flying over Worcester this morning.

A Lockheed C-130 J Hercules plane departed from RAF Brize Norton at approximately 8.39am this morning.

The plane was flying at a calibrated altitude of 20,026ft and a 311kts ground speed.

The flight path has seen the plane travel over the Cotswolds, areas of Gloucestershire, over Evesham and Pershore, and over Worcester.

The Hercules is the RAF’s primary tactical transport aircraft and has been the backbone of UK operational-tactical mobility tasks since it was brought into service in 1999.  

It is frequently employed to operate in countries or regions where there is a threat to aircraft; its performance, tactics and defensive systems make it the ideal platform for such tasks.

READ MORE: RAF aircraft from Brize Norton spotted over Worcestershire

The aircraft is highly flexible, with the ability to airdrop a variety of stores and paratroopers and operate from natural surface landing zones.  

The first production of the C-130A Hercules entered service in December 1956 and Lockheed went on to create a bewildering array of variants and subvariants for the US and foreign militaries and civilian market.