Red Arrows north american tour august/September 2019

[SydneyBridge]

http://www.air-shows.org.uk/2018/10/airshow-news-r...

Great advertisement for the uk but shame they are away and at no Uk airshows in that time

[Tony1963]

They're just so boring now, I won't miss them.

[ukaskew]

How do the logistics work, can they refuel mid-air or do they pop up to Scotland and hop across via Iceland etc in a couple of legs?

[Eric Mc]

ukaskew said:

How do the logistics work, can they refuel mid-air or do they pop up to Scotland and hop across via Iceland etc in a couple of legs?

The latter. They did it with Gnats in the 1970s.

[SydneyBridge]

Is that how the Canadian Lancaster came over a few years ago ?

[Ginetta G15 Girl]

Lossie, Keflavik, Soenderstrom, Goose Bay, Gander, then into the USA I would expect given that the Hawk has no AAR capability.

[Eric Mc]

SydneyBridge said:

Is that how the Canadian Lancaster came over a few years ago ?

Yes,

[Simpo Two]

They'll be up against the Thunderbirds and Blue Angels.

[Ginetta G15 Girl]

And spank them.

[kilty2]

Cracking, I am almost certain they will be doing the Chicago air and water show. This show is cool in that you can watch from the water (boat required obvs) very close to the flight line.

[Steve_D]

Ginetta G15 Girl said:

And spank them.

When they were out there before they performed at a show where many international teams were displaying. At the end of the show there was a VIP cocktail party at sunset and a final flying display.

The team displaying was chosen by votes from the other teams. Reds won the vote (near 100%).

When they came out to go to their aircraft the Blue Angels team bus was there to transport them. When they got to each of their aircraft an angels pilot was waiting to salute them and escort each of them to their planes.

[ApOrbital]

I remember reading about that.

[Tony1963]

I think I'm going to vomit......

[Simpo Two]

I think that's a nice touch. But 3 Angels pilots would have to make two runs...

[aeropilot]

SydneyBridge said:

http://www.air-shows.org.uk/2018/10/airshow-news-r...

Great advertisement for the uk

Given the aircraft they are flying all entered RAF service before many of the red suit wonders flying them were born, or at the least were wearing short trousers, I'm not so sure that's much of a great advertisement for the UK.

Might as well send over the BBMF instead.

[anonymous-user]

aeropilot said:

Given the aircraft they are flying all entered RAF service before many of the red suit wonders flying them were born, or at the least were wearing short trousers, I'm not so sure that's much of a great advertisement for the UK.

Might as well send over the BBMF instead.

It's not about the aircraft is it? Surely it's the pilot skills?

[aeropilot]

Coin Slot. said:

aeropilot said:

Given the aircraft they are flying all entered RAF service before many of the red suit wonders flying them were born, or at the least were wearing short trousers, I'm not so sure that's much of a great advertisement for the UK.

Might as well send over the BBMF instead.

It's not about the aircraft is it? Surely it's the pilot skills?

Its was both, back in the day when UK plc were using the team as a sales tool for the UK aviation industry when foreign Hawk sales were very much being pursued.....and when the RAF training was such that foreign airforces wanted to send/pay for its students to be trained by the RAF.

Given neither are really relevant today, and given the ever increasingly shrinking RAF due to budget constraints, it does question under what role the Scarlet Sparrows can continue to be 'justified'.

[Eric Mc]

aeropilot said:

Given the aircraft they are flying all entered RAF service before many of the red suit wonders flying them were born, or at the least were wearing short trousers, I'm not so sure that's much of a great advertisement for the UK.

Might as well send over the BBMF instead.

I think you will find that the Blue Angels and Thunderbirds airframes are no youngsters either. I'm sure the Canadian Snowbirds aircraft are getting on a bit too.

Regarding sales of aircraft, I've never thought that was a big part of what the Red Arrows do. After all, there was no attempt back in the Gnat days to persuade the Yanks to buy Gnats. The only American Gnats were these ones -

Edited by Eric Mc on Monday 22 October 12:13

[Kccv23highliftcam]

Have they painted one blue yet?

[Tony1963]

My belief is that the Sparrows are a recruitment tool and a way of showing the general public an acceptable face of the RAF.

Of course, nobody wants to show off people doing yet another engine change at 2am, or the aftermath of a Brimstone strike on a dwelling, but that's another story.