If you've never witnessed a display by
the Red Arrows, then how about taking some time out to see one of the most spectacular and exhilarating aerobatic flight teams in the world.
If you
have seen them before, well, it's more than likely you'll want to see them again. So here's your chance. The two-day
Battle of Britain Air Show in Duxford will be hosting the Reds on both days.
The Red Arrows see themselves as "the public face of the Royal Air Force", using displays to show off the professional skills of pilots while at the same time providing thrilling entertainment. For 45 years they've been looping, twisting, bending and rolling through skies all over the world, painting them pretty shades of red, white and blue as they go.
Nine planes. Nine pilots – all volunteers (highly trained ones, naturally). The planes, BAE Systems Hawk T1s, are pushed quite literally to within breaking point – when performing the
Vixen Break move, for example, the planes face pressures of as much as 7 g-force – they're built to withstand 8 g-force. The pilots even wear anti-g suits to counter the gravitational pull, thereby preventing them from, in a worst case scenario, blacking out – not a good situation when 8,000 kg of man and metal is moving through the sky at 800 mph.
Displays consist of a wide range of daredevil manoeuvres, some involving all the planes together, with others involving just two planes, known as the Synchro Pair, performing stunts as low as 100 feet from the ground.
The Battle of Britain Air Show commemorates one of WWII's
decisive battles, when in 1940 German air forces failed to destroy Britain's air defences. The planes that maintained Britain's air superiority back in 1940, as well as military aircraft from the present day, will be taking to the skies.
For those without a car, trains to Cambridge from London take 45 minutes, and from there to Duxford a free courtesy bus will be running at regular intervals.
