A huge tour of North America by the Red Arrows—aimed at promoting the United Kingdom—has begun. Fighter jets from the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team took off from their base at RAF Scampton, Lincolnshire, UK earlier this month, to begin a 4,922-kilometre journey across the North Atlantic.
This is the largest North American tour to date for the famed Red Arrows, which will include performances or flypasts at more than 20 locations across Canada and the United States.
Stretching coast to coast, audiences across North America will have the unique opportunity to see the Red Arrows take flight during the team’s 11-week deployment, which is aimed at showcasing the UK at its best and supporting trade, business and defence interests.
The last time the Red Arrows visited Canada and the United States was in 2008.
With stops across North America, the 2019 tour will comprise a combination of nearly 20 aerobatic displays, several iconic flypasts and 100 separate ground engagement activities—from business receptions led by the UK’s Department for International Trade to sessions aimed at inspiring young people.
Planning for the North American tour has spanned more than a year, and technical equipment and other resources have already been shipped to key “hub” locations in Canada and the US in advance of the jets setting off from RAF Scampton, Lincolnshire.
The team’s Hawk jets, which cannot refuel in the air and do not have the range to make the transatlantic crossing in one sortie, will be flown via several stops, including Scotland, Iceland and Greenland, to reach Halifax—the first major location of the tour.
Planned dates for visits to Vancouver and Victoria are as follows:
Vancouver—September 24, 25, 26 (flypast) and 27
Victoria—September 26 (flypast)
For more information on the Red Arrows tour, follow @rafredarrows on Twitter, like the team’s Facebook page at RAF Red Arrows, view pictures on Instagram @rafredarrows or visit raf.mod.uk/reds
Use #redarrowstour online to keep up to date with the Red Arrows’ tour of North America.
