Red Arrows tonight - 8th Jan.
 

For those who are interested, the Red Arrows played away for most of last season and tonight, on channel five, there is a programme about their trip to America; at 9p.m..

Worth watching
 

If you haven't caught up with this it is well worth watching. Their flying is quite extraordinary. As a bit of a 'plane nut' (mild understatement) I really enjoy programmes like this.

:bowdown:


Chris

It's a four part series. I've been lucky to see them perform scores of times, and in those shots of the roll over the top, that looked really really close.

Interesting to see it from the eyes of the Blues as well.

I too have seen The Red Arrows countless times and was at RAF Fairford last July when they performed their final UK display of 2019 before heading off across the pond. I also have fond memories of the team when they were flying the Folland Gnat before updating to the BAE Hawk. I can even remember (just, as I was only 4) seeing the Black Arrows at Farnborough in 1960 when the team were using Hawker Hunters.

I too remember back to the Black Arrows.

Luckily for me I managed to meet all the pilots of the Gnat Red Arrows when I was a teenager at Mildenhall.

Even more luck, when the Reds changed from the Gnats to the Hawks in 1980, I got an invite to Kemble to meet them and see them practice. Three times they went up that day, and then to attend the de-briefing for the rollicking because it seemed the challenge was to see who could get low enough to cause the corn to part in the neighbouring fields.

It was wonderful to realize that they are not "action men" but real people who are excellent at what they do.

Lucky enough to live close to their base and watch them regularly practice.

Second part this evening, 9p.m. Channel five.

The Hornet is a larger and more powerful aircraft, and the flying/displaying is very different.

The Red Arrows fly a larger formation and at higher speeds; the Blue Angels fly closer and slower.

The Hawk has one engine, which has less power than one of the two engines on the Hornet.

The Hawk is designed as a trainer aircraft and the Hornet is a front line fighting aircraft, hence the difference in the displays.

Each team, is at the top of their league.