Airshow News & Press Releases

Below are the 2018 display dates & venues for the Red Arrows:

June
• 02 Torbay Air Show, Paignton, Devon - 3pm
• 03 Torbay Air Show, Paignton, Devon - 3pm
• 05 Isle of Man TT Races, Douglas, Isle of Man - 7.30pm
• 10 RAF Cosford Air Show, RAF Cosford, Shropshire
• 16 Great Yarmouth Air Show, Norfolk - 3pm
• 17 Great Yarmouth Air Show, Norfolk - 3pm
• 23 Weston Air Festival, Weston-super-Mare, Somerset - 4.20pm
• 24 Weston Air Festival, Weston-super-Mare, Somerset - 2.45pm
• 30 Armed Forces' Day at Llandudno, Wales - 12pm
• 30 Wales National Show, Swansea, Wales - 5.15pm

July
• 01 Wales National Show, Swansea, Wales - 12pm
• 01 Cleethorpes Armed Forces' Day, North East Lincolnshire - 5.30pm
• 06 Southport Airshow - 7.30pm
• 07 RNAS Yeovilton International Air Day, Somerset - 1.05pm
• 08 F1 British Grand Prix, Silverstone, Northants - 1.30pm
• 13 Royal International Air Tattoo, RAF Fairford, Glos - 11.20am
• 14 Royal International Air Tattoo, RAF Fairford, Glos - 12.05pm
• 14 Goodwood Festival of Speed, Goodwood, West Sussex - 5.15pm
• 15 Royal International Air Tattoo, RAF Fairford, Glos - 4.35pm
• 15 Goodwood Festival of Speed, Goodwood, West Sussex - 11.30am
• 20 Farnborough International Air Show (Flypast & Static only) - 11.00am
• 21 Farnborough International Air Show (Flypast & Static only) - 2.26pm
• 21 Hastings
• 22 Folkestone
• 25 Peterhead - 7pm
• 27 Sunderland Airshow, Tyne & Wear - 7.15pm
• 28 Scotland's National Airshow, East Fortune Airfield - 12.50pm
• 28 Sunderland Airshow, Tyne & Wear - 4.30pm
• 29 Bray Air Display, Bray, Ireland - 2.10pm

30th July to 8th August - No flying

August
• 10 Cowes Week, Cowes, Isle of Wight - 7.30pm
• 11 Newcastle Festival of Flight, Newcastle, County Down - 3.40pm - cancelled due to weather
• 12 Blackpool Airshow - 4pm
• 12 Whitby Regatta, Whitby, North Yorkshire - 12pm - cancelled due to weather
• 14 Falmouth Week, Falmouth, Cornwall - 6.15pm
• 15 Cromer Carnival, Cromer, Norfolk - 4pm
• 17 Airbourne, Eastbourne International Airshow, Eastbourne, East Sussex - 3pm
• 18 Airbourne, Eastbourne International Airshow, Eastbourne, East Sussex - 4.30pm
• 18 Biggin Hill Festival of Flight, Biggin Hill, Kent - 1.30pm
• 19 Airbourne, Eastbourne International Airshow, Eastbourne, East Sussex - 12.30pm - cancelled due to weather
• 19 Biggin Hill Festival of Flight, Biggin Hill, Kent - 4pm
• 23 Clacton Airshow, Clacton-on-Sea, Essex - 3pm
• 24 Clacton Airshow, Clacton-on-Sea, Essex - 1pm
• 24 Sidmouth Regatta, Sidmouth, Devon - 6.30pm
• 25 Dunsfold Wings and Wheels, Dunsfold, Surrey - 4.30pm
• 25 CarFest South Overton, Hants
• 26 Dunsfold Wings and Wheels, Dunsfold, Surrey - 12pm - cancelled due to weather
• 26 Rhyl Air Show, Rhyl, Denbighshire - 5.30pm - cancelled due to weather
• 26 Birmingham RAF100 aircraft tour flypast - 3.07pm - cancelled due to weather
• 30 Bournemouth Air Festival, Bournemouth, Dorset - 5.30pm
• 31 Bournemouth Air Festival, Bournemouth, Dorset - 3pm

September
• 01 Bournemouth Air Festival, Bournemouth, Dorset - 12pm
• 01 Scottish International Airshow, Ayrshire - 5.40pm
• 01 Glasgow RAF100 aircraft tour flypast - 3.29pm
• 02 Northern Ireland International Airshow, Portrush, Co Antrim - 1.10pm
• 02 Scottish International Airshow, Ayrshire - 4.30pm
• 08 Heroes at Highclere, Highclere Castle, Newbury - 1pm
• 09 Great North Run - 1.15pm
• 13 Jersey International Air Display, Channel islands - 4.20pm
• 13 Guernsey Air Display, Channel islands - 12.50pm
• 18 Menorca - 1.30pm (GMT+2)
• 20 Belfast RAF100 aircraft tour flypast - 6.50pm - cancelled due to weather
• 22 Duxford Battle of Britain Airshow, Duxford, Cambridgeshire - 4.52pm
• 23 Duxford Battle of Britain Airshow, Duxford, Cambridgeshire - 4.52pm
• 27 Monte Carlo, Monaco - 2.30pm

2019 Dates will be available in March 2019.

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The Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, The Red Arrows fly nine BAE SYSTEMS Hawk T.1 advanced trainer aircraft and are currently based at RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire.

Red Arrows Training:
The Red Arrows begin training for the forthcoming season almost as soon as the previous year has ended.

Typically, winter training starts in October, with small groups of three or four aircraft formations. Each pilot flies three sorties a day, five days a week, and the formations grow in aircraft number as training progresses. These flights involve a thorough brief, debrief and discussion to ensure safety is paramount and the formations are precise. One complete cycle consisting of these elements lasts about two hours, usually with a 30-minute flight.

Winter training lasts until mid-March, when the team usually moves overseas to a location with more predictable, settled weather to maximise flying hours and perfect the display. This is known as Exercise Springhawk. During Springhawk the team is assessed by senior Royal Air Force officers, with the aim of gaining Public Display Authority. If this is awarded, the Squadron's pilots change from green coveralls into their famous red flying suits and the ground crew are allowed to wear their royal blue display coveralls.

The season then officially begins and public performances by the Red Arrows are permitted.

Types of Display:
There are three types of display the Team Leader can elect to fly - full, rolling or flat. To carry out a full, looping, display the base of the cloud must be above 5,500ft to avoid the aircraft entering the cloud at the top of the loop. If the cloud base is less than 5,500ft, but more than 2,500ft, the team will perform the rolling display - substituting wing-overs and rolls for the loops. And when the cloud base is below 2,500ft, the Team will fly the flat display, consisting of a series of flypasts and steep turns.

Red Arrows Team Pilots for the 2018 season:
• Red 1 - Sqn Ldr Martin Pert (Team Leader)
• Red 2 - Fl Lt Jon Bond
• Red 3 - Fl Lt David Stark (*Sqn Ldr Mike Ling)
• Red 4 - Fl Lt Chris Lyndon-Smith
• Red 5 - Fl Lt Dan Lowes
• Red 6 - Fl Lt Si Taylor (Synchro Leader)
• Red 7 - Fl Lt Toby Keeley (Synchro 2)
• Red 8 - Fl Lt Matt Masters
• Red 9 - Fl Lt Mike Bowden
• Red 10 - Sqn Ldr Adam Collins (Supervisor)

*Sqn Ldr Mike Ling will return as a display pilot for the 2018 season, standing in for RED 3 following the tragic accident last March.

There is actually a 10th Red Arrow which is flown by the Team Manager who provides commentary during the display.

• Click here for 2019 Red Arrows Team Pilots.

Scanner Frequencies:
• 243.450, 242.200

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• Red Arrows Official website.

• Red Arrows page on this website.

• UK Air Show Calendar 2018.

• Red Arrows jet crashes after an incident at RAF Valley on 20/03/2018.

• Red Arrows go on North American Tour in August and September of 2019.

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