[[image:red.arrows.single.arp.750pix.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Red Arrows Hawk at speed during a display ]] [[image:Red_Arrows_Eclat.png|left|Red Arrows badge]] The '''Red Arrows''', officially known as the '''Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team''', is the [[aerobatics]] display team of the [[Royal Air Force]], based at [[RAF Scampton]], [[United Kingdom]]. They were formed in late [[1964]] as an all-RAF team, replacing a number of unofficial teams that had been sponsored by various RAF commands. The Red Arrows badge shows the aircraft in their trademark diamond nine formation, with the motto ''Eclat'', meaning "brilliance" or "excellence". Initially, the Red Arrows were equipped with seven [[Folland Gnat]] trainers which were inherited from another RAF display team, The '''[[Yellowjacks]]''', and had been chosen because they were less expensive to operate than the front-line [[fighter aircraft|fighters]]. In their first season, they flew at 65 shows across [[Europe]]. In [[1966]], the team was increased to nine members, enabling them to develop their ''Diamond Nine'' formation. In late [[1979]], they switched to the [[BAE Hawk]] trainer. The Red Arrows have now given shows world-wide, in over fifty countries and are widely regarded as one of the world's most skilled and famous military aerobatics teams. ==The pilots== [[image:red.arrows.pilots.arp.750pix.jpg|thumb|left|250px|The pilots of the Red Arrows line up for an official photo after their display]] Since 1966, there have been nine display pilots each year; all are volunteers. Pilots must have completed one or more operational tours on a fast jet such as the [[Panavia Tornado|Tornado]], [[RAF Harrier II|Harrier]] or [[SEPECAT Jaguar|Jaguar]], and 1500 flight hours to be eligible. Even then, there are more than ten applicants for each place on the teamsee reference [http://www.bbc.co.uk/jersey/content/articles/2004/09/09/red_arrows_feature.shtml "The Red Arrows" from BBC Jersey]. Pilots stay with the Red Arrows for a three year [[tour of duty]]. Changing three pilots a year ensures the experience level within the Team is never low as there are always three first year pilots, three second year pilots, and three in their final year. As few female pilots have completed a tour of duty on a fast jet, there have not yet been any female Red Arrows pilots. The Red Arrows have no reserve pilots for safety reasons, as a spare pilot would not perform often enough to fly to the standard required. If one of the pilots is not able to fly, the Team is able to fly an eight-plane formation, in which case the team leader will change the positions of the other pilots to maintain the most pleasing effect. If the Leader is unable to fly for any reason, then the Red Arrows will not fly at all. Each pilot always flies the same position within a formation. The pilots spend six months from October to April practising for the coming display season. During a routine, Red Arrows pilots regularly experience forces up to five times that of gravity (''see [[g-force]]''), and when performing the [[aerobatic maneuver]] 'Vixen Break', forces up to 7g can be reached, close to the 8g structural limit of the aircraft. As well as the nine pilots, 'Red 10', also known as the Road Manager, is a fully qualified Hawk pilot who flies the tenth aircraft when the Red Arrows are away from base. This means the team have a reserve aircraft at the display site. Red 10's duties include co-ordination of the display and acting as the team's Ground Safety Officer. Red 10 also flies TV cameramen and photographers for air-to-air pictures of the Red Arrows.see reference [http://www.raf.mod.uk/reds/info.html The official Red Arrows home page information section] ==The aircraft== {{Main|BAE Hawk}} [[image:red.arrows.sideview.arp.750pix.jpg|thumb|right|250px|British Aerospace Hawk of the Red Arrows]] The Red Arrows do not use front line aircraft on the grounds of cost. The Reds (as they are affectionately called) have twelve Hawks, six of which have been used every year since the Hawk was introduced in late 1979. While the Hawk is very basic compared to the likes of the much more modern [[Eurofighter Typhoon]], it is still fast enough and very manoeuvrable, ideal for low level aerobatics. The Red Arrows normally cruise at 360 knots (about one mile every 10 seconds). '''Statistics''' * Wing span - 9.39 [[metre|m]] * Length - 11.85 m * Height - 4.0 m * Maximum speed sea level - 645 [[Mile per hour|mph]] (1037 [[Kilometre per hour|km/h]]) * Maximum altitude - 48,000 [[Foot (unit of length)|ft]] (15,900 m) * Empty weight - 8,000 [[Pound (mass)|lb]] (3,630 [[kilogram|kg]]) * Maximum weight - 18,390 lb (8,330 kg) * Powerplant - one [[Rolls-Royce plc|Rolls-Royce]] Adour Mk 151 * Thrust - 5200 [[pound-force|lbf]] (23 kN) ==Displays== {| align=right |[[image:red.arrows.formation1.arp.750pix.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Red Arrows Hawks in [[Concorde]] formation]] |- |[[image:red.arrows.formation2.arp.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Part of a Red Arrows formation.]] |} The first display by the Red Arrows was at [[RAF Little Rissington]] on [[6 May]] [[1965]]. The display was to introduce the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team to the media. However, the first public display was on [[9 May]] [[1965]] in [[France]], at the [[French National Air Day]] in [[Clermont-Ferrand]]. The first public display in the UK was on [[15 May]] [[1965]] at the [[International Air Fair]] at [[Biggin Hill]]. The first display with nine aircraft was watched by the [[Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh|Duke of Edinburgh]] and was on [[8 July]] [[1966]] at RAF Little Rissington. The first display in [[Germany]] was at [[RAF Laarbruch]] on [[6 August]] [[1965]], and since then the Red Arrows have performed in Germany 170 times. However, the Red Arrows' last display in Germany was on [[22 August]] [[1988]] after formation aerobatics were banned in Germany following the [[Italian Air Force]] [[Frecce Tricolori]] [[Ramstein airshow disaster|accident]] on [[28 August]] [[1988]] in [[Ramstein]]. During displays, the aircraft do not fly directly over the crowd; any manoeuvres in front of and parallel to the audience can be as low as 300 feet, the 'synchro pair' can go as low as 100 feet straight and level, or 150 feet when in inverted flight. To carry out a full display, the [[cloud base]] must be above 4,500 feet; if it is below 2,500 feet then they will perform a 'flat' display, which consists of fly-pasts and steep turns. One of the biggest crowds to see the Red Arrows was in [[Lisbon]] on [[13 June]] [[1973]], when there was a crowd of 650,000 people, a statistic not exceeded until 1996 in [[Sydney]]. The greatest number of displays flown in any year was in 1995, when the Red Arrows performed 136 times. The smallest number of displays in one year was in 1975, after the [[1973 oil crisis]] limited their appearances. In 1977, a charge of £200 was introduced for a Red Arrows display. By 2000, the charge had become £2,000 (including [[VAT]] and insurance). To date (April 2005), the Red Arrows have performed over 3,400 times.see reference [http://www.sky-flash.com/reds8.htm "the Red Arrows history"] UK residents may occasionally see the Red Arrows on a "transit flight" (getting to the display location). On these transit flights, the team flies at the relatively low altitude of 1,000 feet. This avoids the complication of moving though the cloud base in formation, and also avoids much controlled air space. Jets are more efficient at higher altitude, so longer flights are made at 35,000 to 42,000 feet. The smoke trails left by the team are made by releasing [[diesel]] into the [[exhaust]]; this [[oxidisation|oxidises]] straight away, leaving a white smoke trail. [[Dye]]s can be added to produce the different colours. The diesel is stored in the pod on the underside of the plane; originally designed to carry a 30mm [[Aden cannon]], it now houses three tanks: one 50-gallon tank of pure diesel and two 10-gallon tanks of blue- and red-dyed diesel. The smoke system uses ten gallons per minute; therefore each plane can trail smoke for a total of seven minutes. ==Team history== ===Predecessors=== The Red Arrows are not the first RAF aerobatics team; in fact the first RAF [[biplane]] pageant was held at [[Hendon]] in 1920. The biplane teams were made up of Gauntlets and [[Gloster Gladiator|Gladiators]] from front-line squadrons. In [[1938]], three Gladiators flew with their wing-tips tied together. The [[World War II|Second World War]] largely stopped formation aerobatics, as planes were clearly needed elsewhere. In [[1947]], the first jet team of three [[De Havilland Vampire|Vampires]] came from [[RAF Odiham|Odiham]] Fighter Wing. Various teams flew the Vampire, and in [[1950]], No 72 Squadron was flying a team of seven. [[No. 54 Squadron RAF]] became the first RAF jet formation team to use smoke trails. Vampires were replaced by [[Gloster Meteor|Meteors]], No 66 Squadron developing a formation team of six aircraft. [[Hawker Hunter|Hunter]] aircraft were first used for aerobatics teams in [[1955]], when No 54 Squadron flew a formation of four. The next year they adopted the name '''The Black Knights'''; all the pilots wore black flying suits. [[image:red.arrows.allten.arp.jpg|thumb|left|250px|All ten Red Arrows Hawks line up ready for the display.]] The official RAF team was provided by [[No. 111 Squadron RAF]]('Treblers' or 'Treble-One') in [[1956]], and for the first time the aircraft had a special colour scheme, which was an all-black finish. After a demonstration in [[France]], they were hailed as 'Les Fleches Noires' and from then on known as '''The [[Black Arrows]]'''. This team became the first team to fly a five-Hunter formation. The Black Arrows' greatest moment was the loop and barrel roll of 22 Hunters during the [[1958]] [[Farnborough Air Show]]. This is a world record for the greatest number of aircraft looped in formation, a record unbroken to this day. The Black Arrows were the premier team until [[1961]], when '''The [[Blue Diamonds]]''' ([[No. 92 Squadron RAF]]) continued their role, flying sixteen blue Hunters. In [[1960]], '''The Tigers''' ([[No. 74 Squadron RAF]]) were re-equipped with [[English Electric Lightning|Lightnings]] and performed wing-overs and rolls with nine aircraft in tight formation. In [[1962]], they became the RAF's premier team. They sometimes gave co-ordinated displays with the Blue Diamonds. Yet another aerobatics team was formed by [[No. 56 Squadron RAF]], '''The Firebirds''', with nine red and silver Lightnings. In [[1964]], '''The Red Pelicans''', flying six [[Jet Provost]] T Mk 4s, assumed the role of the RAF's leading display team. In that same year, a team of five yellow Gnat trainers from No 4 Flying Training School displayed at the Farnborough Air show. This team became known as the '''Yellowjacks''' after Flight Lieutenant Lee Jones's call sign, "Yellowjack"; the name was briefly 'Daffodil Patrol', but was quickly changed back. In [[1964]], it was decided to amalgamate all the existing RAF display teams, as it was feared pilots were spending too much time practising formation aerobatics rather than operational training. The new team name took the word ''red'' from the fact that the Yellowjacks' planes had been painted red (as it was a far clearer and visible colour in the sky for safety reasons) and ''arrows'' after the Black Arrows; however some think red was a tribute the to the Red Pelicans. ===The Red Arrows arrive=== {| align=right |[[image:red.arrows.pilot.arp.jpg|thumb|right|250px|A Red Arrows pilot exits his Hawk aircraft at the end of the display]] |- |[[image:ConcordeBG.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The Red Arrows escort [[Concorde]] at the Queens Golden Jubilee flyover of London]] |- |[[image:RedArrows01.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The Red Arrows in formation with two [[Supermarine Spitfire]] PRXIX's at [[RIAT]] 2005]] |} The Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team (RAFAT), the '''Red Arrows''', was originally based at [[RAF Kemble]], then a satellite unit of the [[Central Flying School]], itself based at [[RAF Little Rissington]], which was considered the "official" home base of the Arrows. Arrows' aircraft would frequently fly into Rissington for maintenance. When [[RAF Scampton]] became the CFS Headquarters in [[1983]], the Red Arrows moved there. As an economy measure, Scampton closed in [[1995]], so the Red Arrows moved just twenty miles to [[RAF Cranwell]]; however, as they still used the air space above Scampton, the emergency facilities and runways had to be maintained. Since [[December 21]], [[2000]], the Red Arrows have been based again at RAF Scampton, near [[Lincoln, England|Lincoln]]. The first team, led by Sqn. Ldr. Lee Jones, had seven display pilots and flew the Folland Gnat T1 jet trainer. The first display in the UK was on 6th May 1965 at Little Rissington for a press day attended by, amongst others, the Duke of Edinburgh. At the subsequent National Air Day display, three days later, at Clermont Ferrand in France, one French journalist described the team as "Les Fleches Rouge", confirming the name "The Red Arrows". By the end of their first season, the Red Arrows had displayed 65 times in Britain, France, Italy, Holland, Germany and Belgium and were awarded the Britannia Trophy by the Royal Aero Club for their contribution in the field of aviation. In 1968, the then Team Leader (Sqn. Ldr. Ray Hanna AFC) expanded the team from seven to nine jets, as he wanted to expand the team's capabilities and the permutations of formation patterns. It was during this season that the 'Diamond Nine' pattern was formed and it has remained the team's trademark pattern ever since. Ray Hanna stayed as Red Leader for four years until 1969, a record as Leader which still stands to this day. For his considerable achievements of airmanship with the team, Ray Hanna was awarded a bar to his existing Air Force Cross (AFC). After displaying 1,292 times in the Gnat, the Red Arrows took delivery of the Hawk trainer in the winter of 1979. Since being introduced into service with the Red Arrows, the Hawk has performed with the Red Arrows in fifty countries. On the [[9 September]] [[2003]], a Red Arrow jet veered off the runway at Jersey airport. By the quick reflexes of the pilot, Flight Lieutenant Jez Griggs, the jet was run into a gravel pile and little damage was caused. No one was injured. Displays were not affected because the Red Arrows take a spare aircraft with them. see reference [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3093782.stm Red Arrows jet in runway drama] In July 2004 there was speculation in the British media see reference [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/3908187.stm "Why everyone loves the Red Arrows"] that the Red Arrows would be disbanded, after a defence spending review, due to running costs of between £15 million and £20 million. The Arrows were not disbanded and the expense has been justified through the public relations value of the arrows, because the Red Arrows help develop business in the defence industry and they also because act as a recruitment mechanism for the RAF. According to the BBC, it is highly unlikely that the Red Arrows will be disbanded, as they are a considerable attraction throughout the world. ==Video game== In [[1985]], [[Database Software]] released a [[flight simulator]] called ''Red Arrows'', made in cooperation with the flight team. In the simulator, stunts have to be performed while flying in formation. It was available for [[ZX Spectrum]], [[Commodore 64]], [[Amstrad]], [[Electron]], [[BBC Micro]] and [[Atari]]. see reference [http://www.worldofspectrum.org/infoseek.cgi?regexp=^Red+Arrows%2c+The$&pub=^Database+Software$ Red Arrows, The] ==Gallery== Image:RedArrows02.jpg|Red Arrows in "Swan" formation at [[RIAT]] 2005. Image:RedArrows03.jpg|Red Arrows in "Apollo" formation at [[RIAT]] 2005. Image:RedArrows04.jpg|Red Arrows at [[RIAT]] 2005. Image:RedArrows05.jpg|Red Arrows at [[RIAT]] 2005. Image:RedArrows06.jpg|Red Arrows at [[RIAT]] 2005. ==See also== {{Commons|Red arrows}} * Red Arrows' predecessors, the [[Black Arrows]] * The US equivalent team, the [[Blue Angels]] ==Notes== ==References== * [http://www.bbc.co.uk/jersey/content/articles/2004/09/09/red_arrows_feature.shtml "The Red Arrows"] from [[BBC Jersey]], [[9 September]] [[2004]], Accessed [[18 April]] [[2005]] * [http://www.raf.mod.uk/reds/info.html The official Red Arrows home page information section]. from the [[Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)|Ministry of Defence]], 2005, Accessed [[10 April]] [[2005]]. * [http://www.redarrows.com RedArrows.com], from [http://cheaky.com cheaky.com] (Macromedia Flash plugin required to view the start animation), promoting the Red Arrows and the charities that they support, Accessed [[12 April]] [[2005]]. * BBC news. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/3908187.stm "Why everyone loves the Red Arrows"]. Accessed [[12 April]] [[2005]]. * BBC news. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3093782.stm "Red Arrows jet in runway drama"]. Accessed [[12 April]] [[2005]]. * Sky-Flash. [http://www.sky-flash.com/reds8.htm "the Red Arrows history"]. Accessed [[12 April]] [[2005]]. * Martijn van der Heide, [http://www.worldofspectrum.org/infoseek.cgi?regexp=^Red+Arrows%2c+The$&pub=^Database+Software$ "Red Arrows, The"], [http://www.worldofspectrum.org/ World of Spectrum], 1995-2005, Accessed [[18 April]] [[2005]]. {{Modern aerobatic teams}} [[Category:Royal Air Force]] [[de:Red Arrows]]