Gallery

Duxford Autumn Show 2007

The final main show of the European airshow season was once again held at Duxford, enjoying some nice autumn weather.

Warbirds made up the bulk of the show, with some classic jets, formation aerobatics and modern military aircraft thrown in for good measure. Undoubtedly, the highlight for many was the heritage flight of the Belgian F-16 with a TF-51 Mustang and a Spitfire, both Duxford residents.

54 pictures bring you the very best of the last!

Czech International Air Fest, Brno

Dark clouds and a rather pedestrian programme in comparison to previous years made for a difficult year for the annual airshow at Brno.

Still, there were some real stars participating. The Czech air force was obviously present in force and was joined by the Slovak Mig-29, USAF C-17 and B-1B, Belgian F-16 and the Serbian Orao, to name but a few.

All this and more is included in this report.

Kecskemet International Airshow 2007

One of the undisputed highlights of the 2007 European airshow season was to be found in Hungary, at their main fighter base Kecskemet.

The show opened with a parade of a number of Hungarian air force. What followed was an impressive programme filled with some of the finest displays on the European circuit: Gripens from 3 air forces, 2 F-16 solo displays, Spanish EF-18, Serbian Orao and Super Galeb and many more. In addition, 5 display teams graced the skies: the Danish Baby Blue, Serbian Stars, Croatian Wings of Storm, Turkish Stars and the Patrouille de France.

3 days at Kecskemet, distilled in 72 pictures.

31st International Sanicole Airshow, Hechtel

The biggest airshow in Belgium was once again held over the airfield of aeroclub Sanicole in Hechtel.

Civilian acts like Team Guinot, Breitling Jet Team and a Harvard pair were complemented with military aircraft from France, the Netherlands, Great-Britain, Czech Republic and Spain. Highlights included the Army Air Corps Blue Eagles, Swiss Air Force PC7-team and the Asas de Portugal.

Operational Integration Exercise 2007, Kleine Brogel

After 2 days at RIAT, Kleine Brogel provided a nice follow up with the 2007-edition of their famous Operational Integration Exercises.

Apart from the local F-16s, frontline aircraft from many NATO nations participated, including the Czech Republic, Great-Britain, Denmark, Italy, Turkey, France, Germany, Spain and no fewer than 6 aircraft from Greece!

Sunny spells completed one of the highlights of the 2007 summer.

Royal International Air Tattoo 2007, RAF Fairford

As if the rain in France wasn't bad enough, the weather in England wasn't much better on Sunday July 15 at Fairford. Luckily, the departures enjoyed some sunshine on Monday, offering some nice photo opportunities.

RIAT 2007 celebrated the 60th anniversary of the USAF in style with plenty of American hardware at hand, with what was probably the final European appearance of the F-117, the F-15E Solo display and the Thunderbirds. The show had plenty of other stars present, however: Brazil, India, Canada and Oman are just a few examples of countries you don't see at a European show every day.

An impression of 2 days at Fairford for the biggest military airshow in the world in 81 pictures...

Meeting National de l'Air Evreux

Another wrong forecast, but in the negative sense this time: Evreux was soaked during most of the afternoon on July 8.

Classic aircraft and the French airforce made up the bulk of the programme, but the highlight was the performance of the United States Thunderbirds with their 6 F-16s.

Defence Days Coxyde

The sun was a very unexpected participant at the 2007 Belgian Defence Days at Coxyde because all forecasts predicted a weekend of rain.

Parts 1 and 2 of this report focus on the Belgian air component aircraft attending the event, like the Fouga Magister with its final major public display, F-16, C-130 and Seaking. Apart from these, many historic aircraft took part in the flying display, including a Vampire and a Huey. The report conclude with some exciting foreign aircraft at the show.

While the programme was quite limited, it still proved to be a fine event to showcase the Belgian defence and its allies.

NATO Open House Geilenkirchen

A very varied static display at Geilienkirchen attracted many enthusiasts to the home of the NATO E-3 Sentry-force, celebrating 25 years of operations. Apart from the static gems like a Greek C-27 Spartan and German orion, visitors could also try many culinary specialties from a number of NATO-nations.

A wonderful day out for many photographers and not just for spotting reasons!

La Ferté Alais

Each year, the airfield of La Ferté Alais is the location where one of the world's great warbirds shows is held.

Old aircraft, ranging from a World War I-triplane to aircraft from the Eastern European, Western European and Pacific front in the Second World War and the Vietnam war bring aviation history back to life. Unfortunately, the weather was not very kind to the organization, which lead to the cancellation of parts of the display and making photography quite challenging.

Belgian Helidays, Bierset

The first major show of the 2007-season are the ever-popular Belgian helidays, held every other year at Bierset.

Despite some adverse weather, spectators got a chance to see some interesting helicopters at this meeting, the largest of its kind in Europe.
Highlights included 2 helicopters of the Irish Air Corps, a Royal Air Force A109 of the Royal Flight based at Northolt, 2 Hinds and a Hip, a United States Air Force MH-53M and the Spanish Patrulla Aspa.

A wonderful start of the Belgian airshow season!