THE arrival of the Tornado heralded a wind of change during the Cold War, and its departure yesterday left communities near an air base contemplating a quieter future.

Only three days after the RAF celebrated its 90th anniversary, the last of three Tornado fighter squadrons at Leeming, near Northallerton, was disbanded as the aircraft entered the twilight of its frontline career.

Former members of 25 Squadron and their families were joined by senior figures from the service for a parade and a flypast involving six aircraft, marking the end of Tornado operations from Leeming after 20 years.

Leeming was upgraded from a training station into a Nato fighter base between 1984 and 1988, to plug a 225-mile gap in Britain's East Coast air defences.

The first Tornado unit to arrive was 11 Squadron, which moved out two years ago, closely followed in 1989 by 23 Squadron, disbanded only five years later under a defence review, and 25 Squadron.

The station will assume a new role as the headquarters of 90 Signals Unit, a major communications centre that will eventually be home to about 900 people, and will remain the home of the Hawk jets of 100 Squadron, 34 Squadron RAF Regiment and the Northumbrian Universities Air Squadron.

The 25 Squadron was formed in 1915 as part of the Royal Flying Corps, and its main claim to fame during the First World War was the shooting down of the German air ace Max Immelmann. After serving throughout the Second World War, it entered the jet age.

Last summer, the squadron made headlines by scrambling Tornados to intercept Russian aircraft intruding on British air space for the first time in many years.

A Tornado painted in a colour scheme commemorating the squadron's 93 years was the backdrop for the disbandment parade, reviewed by Air Chief Marshal Sir Glenn Torpy, Chief of the Air Staff, while the Band of the RAF College at Cranwell, Lincolnshire, played.

Wing Commander John Prescott, who has led the squadron since 2005, said: "Today will be particularly poignant for many. Aircrew will be saying goodbye to the jet that has taken them through years of service, and some will even be ending their flying careers. Most of the ground crew have been with the squadron for several years and will now be posted from the area they have grown to love.

"It will potentially be very emotional."

The squadron standard, which will be laid up at the RAF church St Clement Danes, in London, was handed to Flight Lieutenant Al Footit for safekeeping by Flight Lieutenant Stefan Brown.

John Wright, the landlord of the Willow Tree Inn, at Leeming, a haunt of wartime bomber crews, said: "I have enjoyed being out there watching the Tornados when I can. The noise has not bothered me. I will miss them."