Jump to content

Air show

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Arpingstone (talk | contribs) at 17:33, 18 October 2007 (px values removed as per wP policy, and pic caption improvements). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
For the navigational aid displayed to airline passengers, see In-flight Entertainment.
The UK Utterly Butterly wing-walking display team flying Boeing Stearman PT-17 biplanes
Aviation Nation 2006 at Nellis Air Force Base. USA

An airshow is an event at which aviators display their flying skills and the capabilities of their flying machines to the crowd. Airshows without aerobatic displays, with only aircraft displayed parked on the ground, are called static airshows.

Most airshows are held for commercial motives, gaining income from onlookers or from companies hoping to sell aircraft. Others are held on military bases and are mostly paid for by recruiting budgets, and some are held to raise funds for charities. Usually they are arranged at airfields in which case a variety of static aircraft and helicopters might also be on view. Less often shows are held over the sea near coastal cities or resorts. Where space allows, other entertainments and market stalls may add to the attractions on offer.

The year's airshow schedule is usually defined during the end of the preceding year. The lineup of pilots and aircraft to be in attendance at each airshow is tentatively determined around February and March. With a handful of exceptions (such as the mid-winter airshow at MCAS Yuma, Arizona), the airshow season starts in March-April and ends in October-November. During the months that follow, airshow organizers will invite airshow performers to their shows, and performers pick which airshows they will fly.

While adverse weather rarely causes an airshow to be cancelled, wind and/or low visibility may delay the start of an airshow, and may sometimes cause the cancellation of most flight demonstrations. Many performers have a "high show" routine, a "low show" routine, and a "flat show" routine, to take into account the possibility of different cloud heights. When all flying is cancelled, spectators can view static displays and may be invited to talk to the pilots. Shows at military bases are liable to be cancelled or postponed during periods of international tension

Airshows usually open their gates very early, giving spectators a few hours to wander around the static displays before flying starts in the late morning or early afternoon. Flying usually continues until late afternoon or early evening, or even later at some airshows, especially evening airshows which may go into the night. In evening airshows, airplanes fly which are especially lit, which release flares or fireworks or other pyrotechnics, or which have bright afterburners. When airshow organizers decide to have an evening airshow - which is rare - it is usually held on Friday night, preceding the main airshow weekend.

While military installations will usually ask spectators to leave once the flying ends, most airshows that take place in non-military airfields do not. This allows the public to watch the aircraft depart the airfield at the end of the day (many aircraft on static display do not fly during the show itself, only during arrivals and departures) and to photograph static-display aircraft and departing aircraft with good sunset lighting and with fewer people obstructing their shots.

A bird taking a part in airshow in San Francisco

Attractions

Air racing at an air show in England: the Red Bull Air Race heat held at Kemble Airfield, Gloucestershire. The aircraft fly singly, and have to pass between pairs of pylons

Before the second world war, airshows were associated with long distance air races, often lasting many days and covering thousands of miles. While the Reno Air Races keep this tradition alive, most airshows today primarily feature a series of aerial demos of short duration.

Some smaller airshows may display only general aviation aircraft, some aerobatic aircraft, and a warbird or two. However, most airshows will feature warbirds, aerobats, and demonstrations of modern military aircraft, and many airshows offer a variety of other aeronautical attractions as well, such as wing-walking, radio-controlled aircraft, water/slurry drops from firefighting aircraft, simulated helicopter rescues, etc.

Some airshows (Static airshows) feature primarily aircraft on the ground with the occasional fly-by. While most airshows also feature hours of flying demonstrations, a greater number and variety of aircraft can often be seen on static display, parked in the spectator area so that airshow goers can see them up close and talk to the crew. The exception to this are airshows held over the water at coastal cities, which often have no static displays at all.

Airplanes used in aerobatic demos have powerful piston engines, light weight and big control surfaces, making them capable of very high roll rates and accelerations. A skilled pilot will be able to climb vertically, perform very tight turns, tumble his aircraft end-over-end and perform manoeuvres during loops.

RAAF F-111 performing a dump-and-burn fuel dump at the Australian International Airshow.

Solo military jet demos, also known as tactical demos, feature one aircraft, usually a strike fighter or an advanced trainer. The demonstration focuses on the capabilities of modern aircraft used in combat operations. The display will usually demonstrate the aircraft's very short (and often very loud) takeoff rolls, fast speeds, slow approach speeds, as well as their ability to quickly make tight turns, to climb quickly, and their ability to be precisely controlled at a large range of speeds. Manoeuvres include aileron rolls, barrel rolls, hesitation rolls, Cuban-8s, tight turns, high-alpha flight, a high-speed pass, double Immelmans, and touch-and-gos. Tactical demos may include simulated bomb drops, sometimes with pyrotechnics on the ground for effect. Aircraft with special characteristics that give them unique capabilities will often display those in their demos; For example, Russian fighters with Thrust vectoring may be used to perform Pugachev's Cobra or the Kulbit, among other difficult maneuvers that cannot be performed by other aircraft. Similarly, an F-22 pilot may hover his jet in the air with the nose pointed straight up, a Harrier or Osprey pilot may perform a vertical landing or vertical takeoff, etc.

Six F-16 Fighting Falcons of the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds aerobatics team fly in delta formation in front of the Empire State Building in Manhattan during a photoshoot preceding the 2005 Jones Beach airshow.

Jet demo teams perform many of the same manoeuvres seen during solo military jet demos, but they perform these manoeuvres in large synchronized groups, while in close formation or during opposing passes. These manoervres are performed simultaneously by a group of two to nine aircraft while they fly together, often less than two meters apart, or by two or four aircraft simultaneously as the aircraft fly at each other (seemingly on a collision course) from opposite directions. The demo teams usually split up for most of their routine, with a larger formation performing gentle loops and rolls, and a smaller group of aircraft performing opposing passes and higher-speed/higher-g manoeuvres. Teams include the Blue Angels and Thunderbirds of the USA, the Snowbirds of Canada, and the European teams such as the Red Arrows, Patrulla Aguila, Frecce Tricolori, Patrouille Suisse, or Patrouille de France, Surya Kiran of the Indian Air Force. These are usually the highlight of an airshow.

Warbird demos allow audiences to experience the sights and sounds of the aviation of times gone by. These may include limited aerobatics or mock dogfights, but more often consist of a series of straight-line passes made by World War 2-era aircraft. Some warbird demos will feature large formations of warbirds, as would have been seen during World War 2. Sometimes the old aircraft will fly along with new aircraft in what is known as a “Heritage Flight” (US Air Force) or a “Legacy Flight” (US Navy).

Helicopter demos usually focus on search-and-rescue operations - such as lowering a rescuer via a cable, attaching the rescued person to the harness and then returning them both to the helicopter. Military helicopters may drop soldiers or vehicles, and fire weapons, during these rescue operations. Fire-fighting water-drops may be included. Helicopter demos may show off the agility and maneuverability of the helicopter - these are usually performed with light two-seater helicopters.

Other attractions: Airshows can also feature air races, skydiving/paragliding demos, skywriting, wingwalking demos, glider demos, aviation record attempts, hovercraft, replicas of some of the earliest aircraft, new-technology demonstrator prototypes, cargo-transport or even airdrop demos, battlefield simulations (including soldiers, ground vehicles, helicopters, airplanes, and pyrotechnics), fire-fighting aircraft (which drop water or slurry), and remote-controlled aircraft. Interesting ground vehicles, such as vintage cars, race cars, modern muscle cars, military vehicles, and even the occasional jet-powered car or truck, may be seen. Sometimes a "race" is staged between a ground vehicle (typically a muscle car or a jet-powered vehicle) and an aircraft (typically a warbird or an aerobatic airplane).

Safety

The Frecce Tricolori aerobatics team of the Italian Air Force, flying at the Royal International Air Tattoo, Fairford, England (2005)
Frecce Tricolori at RIAT 2005

Airshows present some risk to spectators and aviators. Accidents occur, sometimes with a large loss of life, such as the 1988 disaster at Ramstein Air Base in Germany and the 2002 airshow crash at Lviv, Ukraine. Because of these accidents, safety regulations governing airshows have become increasingly more defensive, especially in the United States, leading to greater safety but to less-dramatic performances. Due to the Ramstein incident, Germany went as far as to ban airshows altogether, but this ban was later lifted, and strict regulations put in its place.

At airshows held in the U.S., slower aircraft may perform at a distance of 500 feet from the crowd, but faster aircraft are required to maintain a distance of 1000 or 1500 feet (depending on aircraft speed), except during takeoffs, landings, and "flyby's", or straight-line passes. Aircraft may never fly overfly the crowd at an altitude of less that 1000 feet, or when engaged in aerobatic maneuvers. While most maneuvers are performed directly in front of the spectator area, pilots often fly at least one photo pass (also known as a "banana pass") from behind the spectator area, following a curved arc in front of the crowd, so that the aircraft is in a steep bank (presenting a good photo opportunity) while directly in front of the crowd. However, federal regulations require that the minimum 500' distance from spectators be maintained at all times, even during photo passes.

Aerobatic maneuvers may only be performed if the energy vector of the aircraft is not directed toward the crowd. All aerobatic maneuvers must be performed inside the "airshow box", a rectangular volume of airspace which provides the specified distance from all spectators, and up to a certain altitude over this area. No people are allowed in the airshow box except those assisting the pilot in his or her act (for example, to hold poles the aircraft flies between, or to drive ground vehicles associated with the aerial act). This means any roads in the airshow box (such as a highway at one end of the airfield) may have to be closed, and any buildings in the airshow box must be evacuated during the airshow.

Aerobatic pilots earn certificates that initially only allow them to perform aerobatics at higher altitudes, and only with more advanced certificates can all maneuvers be performed near the ground. Formation flying, as well as flying vintage or high-performance aircraft, also requires training.

These safety restrictions make U.S. airshows very safe, and there has not been a spectator fatality at a U.S. airshow in more than 50 years. However, mechanical malfunctions and pilot error (or a combination of both) are responsible for a handful of pilot fatalities each year in airshow accidents.

United Kingdom

The last fatalities among the crowd at a United Kingdom airshow was in 1952 when a DH.110 piloted by John Derry broke up during a display at the Farnborough Air Show because of a design fault; one of the engines hit a bank of spectators killing 31 people. UK airshow regulations were then revised and now forbid pilots from flying directly over the crowd or from flying towards the crowd; although there have been accidents in which aircraft have crashed, no member of the public has been killed. There have been near misses: a De Havilland Canada Dash 7 crashlanded at Farnborough in 1982 resulting in the propeller ricocheting off the ground and landing in a car park.

Capt. Christopher Stricklin ejected from his USAF Thunderbird aircraft at an airshow at Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho, on September 14, 2003. While making a dive, Strickilin realized he could not pull up in time and ejected after aiming the plane at a safe place. Stricklin was not injured.

Historical airshows

Major airshows

Royal International Air Tattoo, England
  • The world's largest military air show is the Royal International Air Tattoo (RAF Fairford, Gloucestershire, England, United Kingdom), held annually in July. The RIAT gathers military aircraft and military display teams from all over Europe, and sometimes Asia and the United states.
  • The annual EAA AirVenture Oshkosh airshow (Oshkosh, Wisconsin), organized by the Experimental Aircraft Association, is attended by more people and by more aircraft than any other airshow. The week-long event, typically in late July or early August, focuses on experimental aircraft, such as homebuilts and warbirds, but will also feature aerobatics acts, military aircraft, and airliners. The airshow also includes talks by influential people in aviation, as well as a large area with booths where aircraft, aircraft parts, aircraft services, and aircraft memorabilia are traded. The other major yearly airshow organized by the EAA is "Sun 'n Fun", held every April at Lakeland, Florida.
  • Airshows in the United States that display a wide variety of modern military aircraft (helicopters, jet fighters, bombers, cargo aircraft, stealth aircraft, etc) include Andrews AFB every May, NAS Oceana every September, MCAS Miramar every October, and Aviation Nation at Nellis AFB every November. Each of these airshows feature nearly all frontline aircraft in service with the U.S. armed forces. The annual airshow and open house held every October at Edwards AFB also features prototypes, spaceplanes, proof-of-concept demonstrators, rarely-seen stealth airplanes, and other futuristic experimental aircraft, in addition to most frontline aircraft types in service with the US Air Force.
  • The US airshows showing warbirds include the Planes of Fame airshow held at Chino each May, and the "Thunder Over Michigan" show at Willow Run each August. The British equivalents are the three or four airshows held in Duxford throughout the year, especially the Flying Legends airshow in July. The Oshkosh airshow, mentioned above, also features a large number and variety of warbirds.
  • The two largest air and aerospace trade shows are the Farnborough Air Show (Farnborough, Britain), held in July on even years, and the Le Bourget Air Show (Paris, France), held in June on odd years. In addition to displays for the general public, these two shows have important showcases and display halls for professionals. They are one of the occasions when aerospace companies announce deals.
  • Asian Aerospace, previously the third largest in the world, has been held in Singapore since its inception in 1981, although disagreements over a movement of the exhibition venue will see it move to Hong Kong in 2008. A new show, the Singapore Airshow [1], will take its place in Singapore from the same year in February.
  • The Singapore Airshow [2], slated to be Asia's largest airshow, will be held in February on even years, at the new Changi Exhibition Centre which is purpose-built for aviation and aerospace exhibitions.
  • The biggest airshow and aerospace trade show in Russia is MAKS, held at Zhukovskiy in June. MAKS often features multiple jet display teams from western Europe, and Russia alone has an Su-27 team, a MiG-29 team, and an L-39 team, all of whom perform demos at MAKS.
  • The world's oldest air show is the Internationale Luft- und Raumfahrtausstellung Berlin (ILA) in Berlin, Germany going back to 1909.
  • Airshows held at the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome display the largest collection of flying antique airplanes in the United States, including several aircraft from World War 1, a handful of aircraft from the 1909-1913 period, and many aircraft from the 1920s.
  • The Battle Creek's Field of Flight Airshow & Balloon Festival held in Battle Creek, Michigan every July (June-July) is known as America's LARGEST 4th of July Airshow normally displaying Great Stunts, Aerobatic Performances, Military Jets and normally a Jet Team.
  • China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition,largest airshow in China.
  • Sunderland International Airshow held in Sunderland, England is the largest free airshow in Europe [3].

Southend Airshow, Essex England is Europes longest running free airshow, it started in 1986 and boasts some of the largest attendance figures for any two day airshow in the UK

See also

Other notable airshows

Airshow calendar

Official airshow websites

Airshow performers' official websites

Airshow photography

Airshow videography

Miscellaneous airshow websites


See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Air shows.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Air_show&oldid=165446938"