RAF kidnap target: I fought for my life

THE RAF serviceman who battled suspected jihadi kidnappers has spoken for the first time about his terrifying fight for life.

A reconstruction of the desperate struggle with thugs who tried to drag him into a people carrier will be screened on tomorrow night’s Crimewatch.

The ambush near RAF Marham in Norfolk on July 20 ignited fears that home-grown terrorists set out to kill a member of the military – like the murder of soldier Lee Rigby in London in 2013.

Now the married serviceman, who has not been named, has given a gripping account of how he escaped by headbutting one of the two men.

He said : “This event turned my world upside down. The outcome could have been a lot more severe.

“It’s the what-ifs – not seeing my wife again, not seeing my family again.

“I knew what I had to do to get away. I was fighting for my life.

“I won’t let this stop me doing the things I need to do. But it does affect you emotionally.” The airman was out for a run in Marham village at around 3.10pm on Wednesday, July 20 when the men pounced. One of them had a knife.

The release of e-fits of the suspects resulted in more than 150 calls from the public but police are still hunting the attackers, who might have been part of a larger gang.

Det Supt Paul Durham said at the time that a terror link was a line of inquiry.

He said: “I’m keeping an open mind as to where they are from. It’s evident the would-be attackers underestimated the victim’s ability to fight back.

“There is no credible evidence this is a terrorist incident but that remains one of a number of possibilities.”

Officers from the Metropolitan Police counter-terrorism unit were called in to help the inquiry.

An internal memo warned air base staff: “Following a security incident at RAF Marham, it is directed that all personnel keep a low profile and not make themselves vulnerable. Specifically, until the threat subsides, no one is to be on their own on foot or bicycle within the local area in uniform or clothing which might identify them with the military.”

Marham is home to four RAF Tornado squadrons that have played a key role in the bombing campaign against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.

The would-be kidnappers are both described as being of Middle Eastern appearance.

One of them was between 20 and 30, around 6ft 2in and stocky. He had a full, well-groomed beard and dark hair.

He was wearing dark blue jeans or trousers, dark trainers and a black roundneck T-shirt with white writing from the right shoulder down to the left hand side.

The other was smaller and about 5ft 10in with a slimmer build. He was clean shaven with a short back and sides and wore a plain white round-neck T-shirt and dark shorts just above the knee.

Crimewatch is on BBC 1 tomorrow at 9pm.