Category Archives: Airshow News Military

RIAT will be Red Arrows’ last UK show of 2019, MoD confirm

FAIRFORD | The Royal International Air Tattoo will be the last European event to host the Red Arrows before they head on tour to North America.

Defence Minister Mark Lancaster announced today that the Red Arrows will perform at the Gloucestershire show on the 19th-21st July. They will then leave for America at the end of the month after a short period of maintenance and leave for team members.

The tour, called Western Hawk ’19, will see the world-famous team fly at venues across the United States and Canada in August and September this year to promote trade and cooperation with the UK.

No schedule has yet been announced for the tour, although a former Canadian military demonstration pilot said online that the team are all but confirmed for the Canadian International Air Show in Toronto. Red 1 Sqn. Ldr. Martin Pert recently said on Twitter that fans can expect to see the team’s 2019 schedule in early February, but it is not clear whether this referred to the American tour, or just to the team’s European season.

Mr Lancaster MP confirmed that the Typhoon Solo Display and other RAF display teams will remain in the UK for the rest of the airshow season. Their air display participation will be “carefully prioritised to deliverr maximum impact”, he said.

Blue Angels suffer landing mishap during training

EL CENTRO | An F/A-18 Hornet of the Blue Angels landed with its main gear partially retracted after a training flight today.

The pilot, who has not been named, was unable to extend the jet’s main landing gear and was forced to make an emergency landing. He was not injured in the incident.

The Blue Angels are currently operating from El Centro while they train intensively for the 2019 airshow season, which starts in March.

The cause of the accident is under investigation.

German Navy to display P-3C Orion at Cosford Airshow

COSFORD | The German Navy will make a rare UK flying display appearence at the Cosford Airshow this June.

The airshow organisers made the confirmation on social media today. It is the second flying display participant announced for the show after the Swiss Air Force’s F/A-18C Hornet was confirmed last week.

The German Navy had planned to display a P-3 at the Cosford Airshow 2015, but the aircraft could not make the show due to poor weather.

There are just eight P-3s in the German Navy’s fleet, which it purchased second-hand from the Netherlands in 2006. The fleet is currently undergoing a major modification programme which will keep the type in service until 2035.

The German Navy will also contribute a Sea Lynx Mk.88/88A for the static display.

The Cosford Airshow, near Wolverhampton, will be held on Sunday 9th June.

Swiss F/A-18C Hornet display to return to Air Tattoo

FAIRFORD | The second flying display act for the Royal International Air Tattoo 2019 has been confirmed today.

The Swiss Air Force will return with their F/A-18C Hornet solo display for the second consecutive year, the organisers said.

The display is a firm favourite among airshow fans, not least because the aircraft’s flight control software has been updated and all angle of attack limitations have been removed. This allows for a particularly dynamic display.

The announcement comes less than a week after the same display act was announced for the Cosford Airshow in June, and after the Swiss Air Force’s PC-7 Team schedule was released. We can expect the rest of the Swiss Air Force’s full airshow schedules soon.

Last week, the first aircraft at the show was confirmed. Organisers revealed the Spanish Navy would contribute an AV-8B Harrier to the flying display.

The Royal International Air Tattoo will be held on the 19th-21st July at RAF Fairford.

Swiss PC-7 Team release 2019 schedule

PAYERNE | The Swiss PC-7 Tean will perform at international events in the UK, Spain and the Czech Republic this year.

Photo: Adam Landau

The team’s schedule was posted on their website yesterday. Other Swiss Air Force schedules will follow soon after.

Their schedule is as follows:

Dates Event
Feb 21-24 FIS Ski Weltcup, Crans-Montana, Switzerland
May 17-19 Fête des musiques Gruériennes, Les Moulins, Switzerland
May 24-25 Tag der Öffentlichkeit, Emmen, Switzerland
May 29-Jun 1 Heliweekend, Grenchen, Switzerland
May 29-31 Gewerbe- und Erlebnisausstellung, Buochs Switzerland
May 21-22 Eidgenössisches Turnfest, Aarau, Switzerland
Jun 28-29 15. Flüügerchilbi, Beromünste, Switzerland
Jul 5-7 Züri Fäscht, Seebecken Zürich, Switzerland
Jul 19-21 Festival Aéreo de Gijón, Gijon, Spain
Jul 26-28 Sunderland International Airshow, Sunderland, ENG, UK
Aug 30-31 Hunterfest St. Stephen, Obersimmental, Switzerland
Sep 6-7 Flüüger-Fäscht Schmerlat, Schaffhausen, Switzerland
Sep 20-22 NATO Days & Czech Air Force Days, Ostrava, Czech Republic
Oct 4-5 40. Modellflugtag, Hausen am Albis, Switzerland
Oct 11-21 Air & Space Days Verkehrshaus, Luzern, Switzerland
Dec 11-12 Brevetierung, Vitznau, Switzerland

Traverse City replaces Rhode Island on Thunderbirds’ schedule

TRAVERSE CITY | The Thunderbirds will be winging their way to the National Cherry Festival this June, filling an open date in their 2019 schedule.

The team had been due to perform at the Rhode Island Airshow on the weekend of the 29th-30th June. However, the event was cancelled in November because too many troops will be on deployment next June for the base to be able to hold an airshow. The popular event will return in 2020.

The National Cherry Festival in Traverse City, MI, comprises a diverse selection of events designed to attract tourists to visit the blooming cherry blossoms in the area. This includes an airshow over Grand Traverse Bay.

The show will also feature flying displays by the USAF F-22A Raptor and USMC AV-8 Harrier.

New F-35A Demo Team filmed training for the first time

LUKE AFB | The USAF’s new F-35A Lightning II Demo Team have been recorded flying an extraordinary pedal turn maneuver as they train for their first airshow season.

It will be the first time the USAF has performed a fully-aerobatic F-35 display, after several years of flying Heritage Flight displays and the occasional mini-demonstration. The only fully-aerobatic F-35 display so far was performed by Lockheed Martin test pilot Billie Flynn at the Paris Airshow 2017.

However, it was announced in December that the USAF F-35A Heritage Flight team would transition to a full demonstration team for the 2019 season, with Capt. Andrew “Dojo” Olson at the controls.

The latest videos, which are the first to show the jet practicing its display, were uploaded to Instagram by user Patriot Ops. It shows a remarkable sequence of moves, including a high-alpha pass and high-G turn.

Most notably, one video shows the F-35 pitch up into half of a square loop before descending out of the maneuver in what appears to be a pedal turn – a dramatic spin-like manoeuvre that shows the jet’s rudder priority and excellent turn rate at low speed.

The F-35A Demo Team will make their airshow debut at the Melbourne Air & Space Show, FL, on the 30th-31st March this year. They will perform at 13 shows in the USA this year and one in Canada.

Swiss F/A-18C Hornet confirmed for Cosford Airshow

COSFORD | The Swiss Air Force will be thundering back to Cosford this year, with the first international display act was confirmed today.

The Swiss Air Force will be making a welcome return to the show with their F/A-18C Hornet Solo Display. The demonstration last featured in the Cosford Airshow in 2015, but has been seen in the UK more recently at the Royal International Air Tattoo and Scottish International Airshow in 2018.

The display is a firm favourite among airshow fans, not least because the aircraft’s flight control software has been updated and all angle of attack limitations have been removed. This allows for a particularly dynamic display.

The Cosford Airshow will be held on the 9th June 2019. The remainder of the Swiss Air Force’s airshow schedules are usually released in January and we expect to see them soon.

LCA Tejas to join LIMA ’19 flying display for first time

LANGKAWI | The Tejas Light Combat Aircraft will be on display at this year’s Langkawi International Maritime & Aerospace Exhibition.

With the Royal Malaysian Air Force now considering purchasing 30 Tejas jets (it previously favoured the Sino-Pakistani JF-17 Thunder), the Malay government has already requested the Indian-built jet attends the show this March. According to Indian media, the Indian Air Force will be showing off the Tejas in the show’s aerial display.

The Tejas has already been displayed at several events in India, including Aero India and Air Force Day. It has also performed abroad at the Bahrain Airshow 2016.

Harrier to return to RIAT in hands of Spanish Navy

FAIRFORD | The first confirmed aircraft for this year’s Royal International Air Tattoo is the Spanish Navy EAV-8B  Harrier II Plus.

The VTOL jet, which operates from the Spanish Navy’s amphibious assault ship, Juan Carlos I, will perform in the flying display. Spanish Navy Harriers, in the form of the earlier AV-8S and TAV-8S variants, were last seen at the Air Tattoo in 1994.

The last Harrier flying display at RIAT was by an RAF Harrier GR.9 in 2010, just months before the UK retired the type. The Spanish Navy more recently displayed their Harriers at the Farnborough Airshow in 2014 and 2018.

The Royal International Air Tattoo will be held at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire on the 19th-21st July 2019.