As the year draws to a close, everyone at RIAT would like to wish you a very Merry Christmas and a happy festive season.
With so many great moments behind us, we’re already building excitement for what’s ahead. RIAT26 is on the horizon – and there’s plenty to look forward to.
Keep your eyes peeled in the new year for some exciting announcements as we begin to reveal what’s in store… including the return of Take off Thursday in February!
2026 marks the 100th anniversary of Britain’s 1st Grand Prix, held at Brooklands Race Circuit. It will be a year of celebrations, including a special event on 8 August 2026, to honour the speed, passion and heritage at the original home of British motorsport.
Alongside the centenary celebrations the Museum’s events programme is set to be as busy as ever, offering many memorable days for motoring and aviation enthusiasts and families alike.
Our ever-popular New Year’s Day Classic Gathering kick-starts the season on 1 January, the first of three Classic Gatherings in 2026. This will be followed by the Easter Classic Gathering on 4 April and later the Summer Classic Gathering and Autojumble on 26 July, where enthusiasts can peruse and grab a bargain amongst the large array of trade stands.
Witness competitive action at several events throughout the year including the Vintage Sports Car Club’s annual Driving Tests on 8 February where drivers will tackle complicated courses around the historic site. Later, the Brooklands National Autotest returns for its second year on 2 August featuring Championship drivers take on challenging manoeuvres in timed tests. And not forgetting, the Brooklands Relived – Festival of Motorsport weekend on 13-14 June that steps back into Brooklands’ hey-day. Featuring Sprints on Mercedes-Benz World track, Autotests on the Finishing Straight, Pride of Brooklands Concours, race starts and Test Hill ascents – the site will come alive with the roar of engines. Alongside the motoring action, visitors of all ages can enjoy live vintage themed music, costume and food, dancing and traditional family games, to truly reignite the spirit of Brooklands!
Another highlight for 2026 will be the highly anticipated Aviation Day, returning to Brooklands after a hiatus on 13 September, transforming the site to all things aeronautical with exciting displays in store.
As ever, Brooklands Museum will celebrate marques from across the globe including firm favourites Italian Day on 2 May, American Day on 30 August and German Day on 27 September. Furthermore, following the successful introduction of Japanese Day in 2025, it will be returning earlier in 2026 on 21 June. Explore the full range of marque specific events on the website, which will be complimented with busy trade and food stands alongside entertainment, sure to make a fun day out for all generations.
Special guests will be returning to delight our younger fans including Paddington Bear at Best of British on 25 May, which combines the best of British manufacturing alongside traditional British family entertainment. Popular children’s characters Bluey and Bingo will be joining for special guest appearances on 18 July at Working Vehicles Day, where the site will be filled with working machines such as tractors, mobile cranes, airfield vehicles and more. And the annual favourite Emergency Services Day on 19 September, gives everyone a chance to see the everyday heroes of our country as well as exciting demonstrations, together with PAW Patrol’s Skye, Chase and Marshall coming back to say hello.
Don’t miss the usual favourites, including Mini Day on 22 March, Motorcycle Day on 5 July and Motorsport Day on11 October, alongside London Bus Museum’s three popular events – Spring Gathering, 19 April, Summer Festival, 28 June and Transportfest, 18 October. Finishing the season will see the return of Off Road Day on 1 November where anyone with an off road vehicle can challenge themselves on the off road course at Mercedes-Benz World and ascend the famous Test Hill.
Tickets for the whole year are available now and there is so much more to discover in the 2026 programme. See the full calendar on the website for the planned fly ins, evening talks, club and rally meets, and get involved in the Grand Prix themed activities throughout the school holidays to celebrate this special centenary year.
With our amazing value membership you can enjoy unlimited admission all year round including a large list of events. Plus, there are a range of benefits including a members’ magazine and selected special discounts. As a registered charity and protected heritage site, a Brooklands membership goes a long way in helping preserve the original home of British motorsport and aviation, and to continue inspiring future generations.
Make 2026 memorable – fantastic days out await at Brooklands.
The Royal International Air Tattoo is an awe-inspiring three-day event filled with incredible flying displays, amazing aircraft, and a fantastic atmosphere for all ages.
To help you enjoy the show in total comfort, we offer a range of enclosure options designed to give you the very best views, extra space to relax, and an upgraded experience throughout the day.
Explore our selection of premium enclosures or get in touch with our team to create a unique experience that suits you.
Start by exploring two fan-favourite enclosures below, or browse all available packages.
We’re thrilled to welcome Freemans Event Partners as our exclusive public food and drink partner.
Freemans are local to Gloucestershire and have been part of RIAT’s story since the 1970s – starting with a simple fish and chip stand at RAF Fairford. Today, they support more than 650 major event days a year, and we’re excited to bring their expertise to the world’s greatest airshow.
With RIAT26 tickets already selling faster than ever, guests can look forward to an upgraded food and drink experience alongside next year’s Fighter Meet theme and the celebration of 30 years of our Royal status.
A glittering awards ceremony at the Grand Hotel in Brighton on Tuesday evening, saw the Army Flying Museum at Middle Wallop in Hampshire, scoop the silver award for Tourism Event of the Year for Wallop Wheels and Wings, at the Beautiful South Awards organised by Tourism South East.
The awards celebrate excellence within the tourism sector, with 75 finalists from tourism and hospitality businesses in South East England gathered for the ceremony.
This is the second consecutive year that the Army Flying Museum has reached the final of the prestigious awards and recognises the hard work the Museum team has undertaken in establishing this event on the national calendar.
Chief Executive of the Army Flying Museum, Lucy Johnson said: “We are so thrilled to have been given this award which recognises the hard work that the entire team of staff and volunteers at the Museum has achieved over the last few years. Wallop Wheels & Wings is our flagship event, and we are extremely proud of how it has developed since our inaugural event in 2021. The last year has been a very special one at the Museum with us celebrating 40 year and we continue to go from strength to strength. I am incredibly proud of all the team and to be presented with the silver award by Tourism South East was the icing on the cake.”
Fran Downton, Chief Executive of Tourism South East said: “It was a real honour to play host to such truly exceptional businesses, and the strength of the winners is testament to the incredible standards and unwavering quality of the South’s tourism industry.”
The Museum, which also won Silver in the Best Small Attraction Award last year and ‘Best Aviation Museum’ in the Airscene Awards 2023 and 2024, is most certainly getting recognised both locally and nationally, and firmly making its mark on the local tourism sector.
The Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) continues to play a transformative role in widening opportunities for young people across the UK, with its success directly powering the impact of the Royal Air Force Charitable Trust (RAFCT).
As a not-for-profit event, RIAT generates the funds that enable the RAFCT to deliver an expanding portfolio of STEM education and skills programmes for young people broadly aged 5–25 across the UK. This has allowed the charity to surpass its ambitious goal of inspiring 500,000 young people by 2026 – achieving over 750,000 engagements more than a year early and now exceeding 780,000.
By attending RIAT, the public, industry partners and international air and space communities contribute directly to this growing national impact. The 2025 show alone welcomed more than 178,500 visitors, offering not only world-class aviation displays but also hands-on STEM experiences through the Techno Zone® and Inspire Stage. Here, young people met leading figures such as astronaut Tim Peake and explored cutting-edge aerospace technology, helping to spark curiosity and confidence in air, space, engineering, and technology.
The event’s success has strengthened the RAFCT’s ability to invest in new educational initiatives. Its latest partnership with Mathematics in Education and Industry (MEI) marks the charity’s first significant foray into supporting further education students through mathematics. By backing the Further Education Maths Challenge – a national programme involving over 80 colleges and 40,000 learners – the Trust is helping 16–19-year-olds build vital numeracy, problem-solving and teamwork skills. For many participants, the challenge provides a pathway to renewed confidence in maths and improved future career prospects.
Across all its programmes – from primary-school STEM engagement to national digital-safety partnerships – FE maths and flying and engineering scholarships, the Trust ensures that RIAT’s impact extends far beyond the airshow weekend. Attendance at the event directly fuels opportunities for increasing numbers and diversity of young people to explore how science, technology and aviation shape the world, helping them gain the essential skills, inspiration and self-belief to fulfil their potential. In turn, this collective effort supports the UK’s acute need for the next generation of STEM innovators, engineers and aviators.
We’re thrilled to share that excitement for RIAT26 is already soaring – and so are ticket sales! With thousands of aviation fans securing their spots early, this year’s show is shaping up to be another spectacular one.
If RIAT is on your must-attend list for 2026, now’s the perfect time to book. From breathtaking aerial displays to interactive experiences, RIAT26 promises a weekend you won’t want to miss.
Lock in your tickets today to make sure you get the best availability and pricing. Once they’re gone, they’re gone and we’d hate for you to miss out on the action.
Here at Shuttleworth, we’re keen to welcome the next generation of engineers into the industry. Our rolling apprenticeship scheme offers those with a passion for aviation the chance to work on our unique Collection.
Beginning over 50 years ago, we have seen many apprentices pass through our workshop, with many of them staying at Shuttleworth following their four-year programme.
The scheme is always heavily subscribed due to the diverse selection of aircraft within our Collection, but we’d love to ensure this opportunity reaches as far and wide as possible to ensure that candidates from a range of backgrounds can apply.
Applications for our next apprenticeship placement (starting September 2026) are now open. Apply by 2 March 2026.
The Royal International Air Tattoo has teamed up with fellow Gloucestershire business Freemans Event Partners to provide catering at the iconic aviation showcase.
Less than 30 miles separates RAF Fairford, home of RIAT since 1985, and Freemans Event Partners’ Head Office in Gloucester. However, when Stephen Senior and Karen Freeman first launched their business selling fish and chips in 1975, the then called ‘International Air Tattoo’ was one of the first events they attended.
Freemans Event Partners and the Royal International Air Tattoo continue to build on their long-standing success. Freemans Event Partners now supports more than 650 event days each year, while the Royal International Air Tattoo recently celebrated a record attendance of over 178,000 visitors. Tickets for RIAT26 are already selling unprecedented speed and are currently 20% ahead of this time last year.
Chief Executive Officer at Royal Air Force Charitable Trust Enterprises, Gavin Gager said: “We are excited to partner with Freemans Event Partners to bring a new high-quality catering offer to our visitors.
“As the leading large-scale food & drink partner for a huge range of leading global events, Freemans Event Partners is well suited to help the world’s greatest airshow to take its catering offer to new heights.”
Next year’s aviation showcase will see the event explore fast jets after announcing an operational theme of Fighter Meet earlier this year, 2026 also represents 30-years since the Air Tattoo was given its royal status, giving their guests plenty to look forward to in addition to the new food & drink offer.
Executive Chairman at Freemans Events Partners, Stephen Freeman said: “The Air Tattoo is an event our family have a long association with, starting with my family selling fish and chips at RAF Fairford in the 1970s.
“To be working with the Royal International Air Tattoo all these years later is fantastic and we are looking forward to elevating the customer experience with exciting new food & drink concepts.” If you are a trader offering catering services and would like to participate in RIAT26, contact: concessionsenquiries@freemanseventpartners.co.uk
Better than anticipated weather conditions during the autumn months have enabled the volunteers at Newark Air Museum to complete the repaint work on their MiG-23.
This extensive repaint work has seen the application of a new set of markings to the MiG-23, which along with the MiG-27 was taken off site back in 2019 for use in the filming of the Marvel movie, ‘Black Widow.
The completion of the MiG-23 repaint has ensured that both aircraft have now been returned to a good display standard.
A new self-published book by Newark Air Museum trustee, and part time author, Colin Savill, is now on sale from the Air Museum Shop.
With a foreword by the esteemed author Mr Ken Ellis and listing all the RFC and RAF units that were based in over thirty places in the county the book is the story of Nottinghamshire’s part in the story of the Royal Air Force and its predecessor.
For over a hundred years from the days of the Royal Flying Corps of World War One through the formation of the Royal Air Force, its 1930s pre-war expansion and World War Two, the Cold War and into the 21st Century the county has played its part in the story of the Royal Air Force. Not all places were airfields but are integral to the story.
The defence of the country especially in World War One, the air offensive by Bomber Command and the USA’s part in D-Day and Operation Market Garden in World War Two were, in part, events that took place from RAF bases in Nottinghamshire. Training of both air and ground personnel began at places in the county during World War One and continued into the 1990s.
Many of these places have now disappeared to be replaced by housing, industry or returned to agriculture, some have left traces of their existence that can still be found but sadly many have not. One or two still have aircraft flying from them but only one remains as an RAF station.
Men and women of the air forces of the British Isles, Empire and Commonwealth, USA, Poland and other nations have all trod the soil of the county; some still remain in the more than 70 Commonwealth War Graves sites, churchyards and cemeteries; many names are recorded on memorials to individual aircraft crashes within the county.
The book ISBN: 978-1-9996353-2-9 costs £12.00 and copies can be purchased from the Newark Air Museum Shop; which is open 10am until 3.40pm each day in the run up to Christmas. Please note that the Museum and Shop will be closed on December 24th, 25th & 26th plus January 1st.
It’s time to celebrate. While everyone around us is going Black Friday mad, we’ve got something far more exciting to announce. Our official RIAT merchandise store is now open and our exclusive RIAT Christmas jumper is ready to order and will be dispatched from Thursday 5th December.
So don’t delay, order yours now and make someone’s Christmas Day, or why not just treat yourself?
There’s something here for all the family. Browse our range of women’s, children’s and men’s wear, and find something special for the aviation enthusiast or future pilot and spark excitement for the skies.
