AN UNUSUAL aircraft which looks like a cross between a helicopter and plane has been spotted in the skies over Herefordshire this afternoon.

The aircraft was circling parts of Herefordshire from Peterchurch and across to Malvern.

The futuristic-looking Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey is an American multi-mission, tilt-rotor military aircraft with both vertical takeoff and landing and short takeoff and landing capabilities.

Hereford Times: A Bell Boeing Osprey aircraft at Shobdon airfield, Herefordshire. Picture: Donna Davies A Bell Boeing Osprey aircraft at Shobdon airfield, Herefordshire. Picture: Donna Davies

Its design is meant to combine the functionality of a conventional helicopter with the long-range, high-speed cruise performance of a turboprop aircraft.

It made at least four circular trips around the county, Flightradar24 showed, and could be seen above Hereford after 1pm on Tuesday.

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Ospreys can carry 24 troops at a speed of 360mph with around eight hours of flying time – enough to travel comfortably around the length and breadth of the United Kingdom.

It is not known which arm of the military is responsible for the Ospreys seen above Herefordshire, but both the US and UK military operate these state-of-the-art aircraft.

Hereford Times: The flight path of the Osprey over Herefordshire. Picture: Flightradar24The flight path of the Osprey over Herefordshire. Picture: Flightradar24

In 2017, broadcasters for the British Armed Forces, Forces.net, said the SAS, based at Credenhill near Hereford, was training to use Ospreys in the fight against terrorism.

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Forces.net reported at the time it understood the Ospreys would be twice as fast as the SAS's current transport and would be able to make the journey from Hereford to London in 30 minutes. 

It could make the trip to Manchester in roughly the same time.

The Ministry of Defence never comments on the United Kingdom's Special Forces.