UK Airshow News – Page 4

The De Havilland Moth Club Present a New Event at Shuttleworth

On Thursday 31 July and Friday 1 August, the de Havilland Moth Club present their DH.60 Centenary Fly In event at Shuttleworth Aerodrome (Old Warden).

2025 marks the 100th anniversary of the first flight of the prototype DH.60 Moth, the aeroplane conceived and developed by Captain Geoffrey de Havilland which, together with its Cirrus and later Gipsy engine, revolutionised the concept of the light aeroplane around the world, as well as establishing the practicalities for Club flying and private ownership.

Across two days, visitors can enjoy seeing what is anticipated to be the largest gathering of DH.60 Moths since the Second World War, including several flying in from bases overseas. Marvelling at a fantastic array of de Havilland Moths flying into the iconic home of Richard Shuttleworth, a well-known de Havilland enthusiast, visitors can also take in a short bespoke flying display, featuring de Havilland aircraft from Shuttleworth’s Collection, including the oldest flying DH.60 Moth in the world, the Tiger 9 Display Team and more to be announced on Friday 1 August.

Outside of the airborne action, guests can enjoy an open airfield area, allowing them to get as close as possible to these stunning aircraft. Then there are all six of Shuttleworth’s Collection hangars to explore, and the calm idyl of the nine-acre Regency Garden to relax in before refuelling at the popular on-site Runway Café.

Stuart McKay, Secretary of the de Havilland Moth Club, said, “We have waited 100 years for this unique opportunity to salute the inspiration of Captain Geoffrey de Havilland who, against all the accepted beliefs of the day independently proceeded with the design and construction of a suitable engine and airframe which, in 1925, were agreed to be the most practical solution to providing standard equipment for the emerging light aeroplane clubs being promoted, encouraged and subsidised by the British Government under a scheme soon to be copied by the governments of Australia and Canada.”

Jean Munn, Head of Engineering at Shuttleworth said, “We are delighted to be hosting the de Havilland Moth Club for their DH.60 centenary celebration, an aircraft that our founder Richard Shuttleworth was so very fond of. We hope to see the aviation community turn out to support this fantastic occasion.”

Tickets for the DH.60 Centenary Fly In event, presented by the de Havilland Moth Club, start from £18 and children attend for free. Tickets can be purchased via www.shuttleworth.org

Record speed for RIAT ticket sales as event announces popular Italian display team

Organisers of The Royal International Air Tattoo have confirmed tickets for this year’s show are selling at record speed for the third successive year.

The event, which is held at RAF Fairford, has already sold over 100,000 tickets for this year’s show, putting them ahead of the same time last year.

Last July, 168,000 people descended on the rural airfield for three days of aerobatic displays, interactive tech exhibits and the chance to talk to pilots and their crew, and this year looks to be no different with demand for tickets at an all-time high.

With Saturday 19^th July close to selling out, organisers have recently announced the Italian display team, the Frecce Tricolori will be performing over the Gloucestershire skies this summer.

Joining the Frecce are a further three flying displays and three static displays from the Italian Air Force. These join an already extensive list of aircraft from 15 nations confirmed for RIAT, with many more aircraft to be added to the line-up in the coming weeks.

Head of Air Operations at Royal Air Force Charitable Trust Enterprises, Peter Reoch said: “The Frecce Tricolori are always a welcome addition to the RIAT flying programme and visitors who joined us in 2022 will know how impressive and energetic their display is to watch.

“We’re grateful to the Italian Air Force for their continued support and look forward to welcoming their aircraft and crew to RAF Fairford later this year.”

In just over three months, RIAT will return and highlight the importance of aviation in intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, search and rescue, and more, under the theme of ‘Eyes in the Skies’.

So far, the aviation show case has announced the Royal Air Force Red Arrows, a Spanish Navy Harrier as well as a Portuguese Merlin, Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, Danish F-16 and Swedish Black Hawk helicopter displaying for the first time with a number of announcements still to come.

“We are looking forward to this summer’s show, we already have some great aircraft confirmed to be taking part and will be adding to the line-up right up until the show later this year,” added Peter

“Ticket sales have been incredible, at RIAT we know our event is an incredible day out whether you’re an aviation enthusiast, a family with young children or someone who has never been to the event before – we have something for everyone. Tickets are available via www.airtattoo.com

Shuttleworth’s 2025 Air Show Season Kicks Off in Style

On Sunday 11 May, the skies of Bedfordshire will once again be filled with aircraft as Shuttleworth’s 2025 air show season kicks off in style with their Season Premiere Air
Show.

A traditional Sunday air show, the Season Premiere offers the perfect opening to a new season with something for the whole family to enjoy. The air display will feature a range of exciting visiting aircraft, many making their Shuttleworth debuts – an aspect that Shuttleworth has a growing reputation for developing into an ever-more thrilling spectacle. The US ‘Ready 4 Duty’ team (Douglas R4D-6S) will be on site as a static exhibit to explore prior to taking to the skies at later shows. Shuttleworth also boasts its own stunning Collection of aircraft – dating back to 1909 – of which many will take to the skies on the day. From fan favourites like the de Havilland DH.88 Comet to the Sopwith Triplane and Supermarine Spitfire, the Collection alone promises to leave visitors in awe of these remarkable historic aircraft that Shuttleworth’s engineers maintain in an airworthy condition.

Outside of the flying, air shows at Shuttleworth promise ground entertainment throughout the day. Guests can enjoy a free fun fair, delicious food and drink and stalls to browse, whilst children can discover a variety of STEM activities from Shuttleworth Learning’s Discovery Zones. Visitors can watch a parade of the Collection’s veteran vehicle fleet or catch a vintage bus to Shuttleworth House – the former home of the founder of the Collection, Richard Shuttleworth, and an award-winning events and wedding venue. The Clayton and Shuttleworth Heritage Team will be on hand to display working exhibits of steam traction engines and more, and then there are nine idyllic acres of Regency Garden to explore.

For a small additional fee (no more than £12 per person), guests can enjoy a guided tour of Shuttleworth House or take the opportunity to go onto the airfield itself with a Flightline Tour – limited availability for Season Premiere.

Various third parties will also offer air experience flights: Cambridge Flying Group in their two-seater, open cockpit Tiger Moths, Scillonia Airways with their de Havilland DH.89 Dragon Rapide, and Warbird Experience with their North American T6 Harvard ‘Wacky Wabbit’.

For those who want to turn a flying visit into an unforgettable stay, there is camping available, as well as beautiful Garden Suite accommodation at Shuttleworth House.

Marc Boult, Head of Visitor Operations at Shuttleworth, said, “We cannot wait to start the 2025 air show season. With a refreshed layout, amazing ground entertainment and stunning air displays, we’ve got a full day’s entertainment for the whole family, and what’s unique about Shuttleworth is just how close you can get to the aircraft. We’ve got big plans for 2025 so don’t miss it!”

The Season Premiere Air Show is the first of seven spectacular shows taking place at Shuttleworth this year, each with their own unique charm and theme:

Military Air Show – 31 May
Festival of Flight Air Show – 28 & 29 June (Red Arrows appearing on Saturday)
Summer Air Show – 26 July
Flying Proms Air Show – 16 August
Best of British Air Show – 30 August
Race Day Air Show – 5 October

The Season Premiere Air Show takes place on Sunday 11 May. Tickets start from £34, and kids go free. For tickets, and more details about the full season, visit www.shuttleworth.org

Exciting debutants announced for this year’s Air Tattoo

This week’s update has something for everyone with theme-related aircraft and RIAT debutants!

Starting with our theme of ‘Eyes in the Skies’, we are delighted to say we will be joined in July by a pairs display of photo-reconnaissance Spitfires, with a Mk.XI and Mk.XIX flying together to showcase both the Merlin and Griffon engine Spitfires in a distinctive blue colour scheme.

Elsewhere we have another rare addition to the static display from the Spanish Air & Space Force with their CASA VIGMA aircraft, plus a pair of Mirage 2000-5 aircraft from the Hellenic Air Force this summer will mark the first time these jets have ever participated at the Air Tattoo! Rounding off this week, we have two more civilian aircraft participating in the static display with a pair of ex-RAF Bulldog training aircraft.

View Confirmed Aircraft

Last chance! Early bird pricing for Sunday ends midnight, Tuesday 22nd April

We extended our early bird pricing for general admission Sunday, and 5% off Sunday enclosures through Easter. And now it’s your last chance to get your Sunday tickets at a discounted price. Act now before it’s too late! All tickets will be at full price from Tuesday 22nd April at midnight.

All enclosures on Saturday are now SOLD OUT, apart from Altitude. If you want to upgrade your experience you will need to be very quick as we expect it follow suit and sell out soon. Friday is selling much faster than last year and Sunday is catching up. Don’t miss out, we know you’ll be disappointed if you do. Buy your tickets today!

Book Tickets HERE

The Spanish Harrier returns to thrill at this year’s Air Tattoo

The Spanish Harrier is back!

Always a popular sight and a welcome addition to the flying programme, the iconic jet will be participating in this year’s Royal International Air Tattoo.

Also in this week’s announcement, we have a Slovak Air Force C-27J Spartan on the static line-up as well as a further four civilian aircraft with two Soko J-20 Kraguj and a pair of DHC Chipmunk T.10s which will also be lining up on the tarmac.

View Confirmed Aircraft

Tickets are flying out – there are less than 10,000 tickets remaining for Saturday, so be quick to secure your place. Only the Family Enclosure, FRIAT and Altitude still have space in their enclosures.

Friday is also seeing high demand, selling faster than ever before! Sunday is still at Early Bird prices, so this is a great opportunity to get your tickets at the best price available now.

Book Tickets HERE

Get ready for an amazing display from the F-16s at RIAT25

This week we have a double dose of F-16s with the Royal Danish Air Force flying their fast jets into RAF Fairford for this summer’s show.

Both aircraft are from the Eskadrille 727 squadron – one in a striking red and silver livery taking part in the flying display, and the other featuring on static display as part of our celebration of 40 years of RIAT at RAF Fairford, representing the Danish F-16B which featured at the 1985 show.

Elsewhere, under our Eyes in the Skies theme, we’re pleased to welcome the German Navy back to RIAT, with their classic Westland Sea Lynx helicopter. This might be the final time to see this type appear at the show, so not to be missed.

Finishing for the week, we’re pleased to announce a Dornier Do 27, coming from Switzerland. As always, our website has more details on this week’s update and the full aircraft participation list to date.

View Confirmed Aircraft

With five of our Saturday enclosures already SOLD OUT it’s time to act now to avoid disappointment. Upgrading to an enclosure is a great way to make a special day even more amazing.

We think you’ll love our new enclosure, Altitude. Located at the heart of the showground, perfect as a base to browse the static aircraft from, as well as a great spot to watch the flying displays. Altitude offers something completely different with upper deck viewing spaces and a cool, contemporary vibe. As well as an all-inclusive cocktail bar with selected wine, prosecco, beer, cider, spirits, cocktails and soft drinks and complimentary food served throughout the day. Once the flying display has finished the festivities continue with an exclusive DJ music set in the enclosure.

Tickets for the Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) have been selling even faster than last year, so don’t delay and buy yours today HERE.

Help us welcome the German Air Force to RIAT25!

It’s Guten Tag from Germany this week as the German Air Force confirms their participation in RIAT25.

For the flying display, we are excited to add an Airbus A400M to the line-up in a display that will demonstrate the aircraft’s agility despite its size. We’ve also got a further four aircraft making the trip to RAF Fairford, for static display.

Firstly, RIAT favourites, we’ve got a pair of Panavia Tornados. Joining them on the tarmac and following up on some recent RIAT rarities, we have a new arrival from Germany, with their C-130J Hercules and a special forces H145M which has only been sighted at a British airshow once before! Bringing this week’s update to a close, there is a Battle of Britain Memorial Flight Dakota for static display. Incredibly, this aircraft also visited the show the first time it was hosted at RAF Fairford back in 1985.

View Confirmed Aircraft

Tickets for the Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) have been selling even faster than last year, so don’t delay and buy yours today HERE.

The icons are returning!

We’ve got something for everyone this week with updates from the Royal Air Force and Swedish Air Force!

Starting with the RAF, this summer we will be joined by the iconic Red Arrows, the ever-popular Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, which will be made up of an Avro Lancaster, Hawker Hurricane and Supermarine Spitfire, plus the BAE Systems Typhoon FGR.4 which will all be taking to the skies this summer.

Moving over to Sweden, we have a RIAT debut in the flying display with a Sikorsky Hkp16 Black Hawk joining the line-up with another one lining up on static display this July in what is a great addition to this year’s programme. Rounding off this week’s update, we also have a civilian-owned Hawker Hunter T.72 and a Rheims-Cessna F152 on static.

View Confirmed Aircraft

Tickets for the Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) have been selling even faster than last year, so don’t delay and buy yours today HERE.

Red Arrows become latest attendees for this summer’s Royal International Air Tattoo

The Royal Air Force has become the latest to confirm their participation at this year’s Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) by announcing the Red Arrows, Battle of Britain Memorial Flight and Typhoon will be touching down at RAF Fairford in July.

So far, the aviation showcase has announced 40 aircraft from 11 different nations, ranging from everything to helicopters and fast jets to huge transport aircraft – with almost 20 weeks still remaining until this year’s show.

Not only have aircraft confirmed their attendance, to date organisers say over 80,000 people have secured their spot at the event which takes place on Friday 18^th, Saturday 19^th and Sunday 20^th of July.

This year’s show will be celebrating the role of aviation in intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, search and rescue and more under the theme of ‘Eyes in the Skies’. This July also marks 40 years since the Air Tattoo first moved to RAF Fairford.

Squadron Leader Jon Bond, Team Leader of the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team and Red 1, said: “The Red Arrows have a great deal of heritage with RAF Fairford – having been based there in the team’s earliest days until a move late in 1966.

“This strong, historic connection with the airfield is one of the many reasons why displaying at RIAT is always a special moment for the Red Arrows.

“However, what makes performing at RIAT particularly enjoyable, is knowing just how many families are there, watching and enjoying the event and understanding the opportunity we have, as a display team, to hopefully inspire future aviators.

“RIAT also gives the Red Arrows team – both air and ground crew – a good chance to meet countless people and we can’t wait to see everyone and display our brand new 2025 show.”

Joining the Red Arrows at this year’s show will also be iconic warbirds from the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, as well as the RAF’s modern-day combat Typhoon aircraft.

In addition to the iconic nine-ship display team, the announcement also sees the return of the BBMF Spitfire, which will be participating alongside fellow historic aircraft in the Lancaster and Hurricane. They join an already exciting line-up of aircraft, including displays never seen before at the Air Tattoo such as the Swedish Black Hawk and Portuguese Merlin.

Chief Executive Officer at Royal Air Force Charitable Trust Enterprises, Paul Atherton, said: “The Red Arrows announcement is always met with huge excitement from our visitors and rightfully so as they fly the flag for United Kingdom and the Royal Air Force around the world.

“We are very lucky to have them with us across the weekend and there will plenty of opportunities for people to engage with the pilots and their groundcrews while they are with us in the Cotswolds.

“This announcement also sees the return of BBMF which will be a welcome sight as well as the Typhoon, which of course flew on sustainable aviation fuel for the first time when it was with us in 2024.” Participating aircraft are unveiled on a weekly basis via Air Tattoo social channels, with tickets available via www.AirTattoo.com.

Red Arrows return to Shuttleworth Festival of Flight

The Red Arrows are set to make a welcome return to Shuttleworth, in Biggleswade, this summer on the Saturday of their Festival of Flight air show (Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 June). Better still, tickets start from £39, and kids go free.

An iconic staple of British culture – from flying over Buckingham Palace to featuring in the film version of Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical – the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, the Red Arrows, is the public face of the Royal Air Force, representing the service’s speed, agility and precision. The display team fly distinctive Hawk fast-jets in thrilling formations, using red, white and blue smoke to add to their stunning displays.

The Festival of Flight air show is the jewel in the crown of Shuttleworth’s air show season, spreading across two days and featuring the most extensive line up of thrilling visiting aircraft – including the Red Arrows on the Saturday of the Festival. All the Shuttleworth Collection’s own iconic aircraft will also appear across the weekend*. As well as the thrilling aerobatic performances, Festival of Flight also offers visitors a free fun fair, vintage vehicle parade and bus rides, tours of the stunning Victorian mansion, Shuttleworth House, STEM activities and a 9-acre Regency Garden to explore. The site will feature a range of fantastic catering outlets and trade stalls too.

James Butt, Air Display Organiser at Shuttleworth, said, “We are so excited to see the Red Arrows back at Shuttleworth for the second consecutive year. They returned last year for the first time since 2019, so we’re delighted to welcome them back again in 2025. If you’re looking for an incredible display of incredible technical skill, this one is not to be missed!”

The Festival of Flight air show takes place at Shuttleworth, Biggleswade, on Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 June – the Red Arrows appear on Saturday. Tickets start from £39 and kids go free, with ground attractions included in the price of your ticket. To book, visit www.Shuttleworth.org.

*All aircraft and vehicle appearances are subject to weather and serviceability.