Show Report
Royal International Air Tattoo 2001
Fast Jets
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As usual, the German's supported the event in force with this rather smart and armed MiG-29A Fulcrum of JG-73 seen arriving for the show.
A lovely sight as the first of the Hunter's from the collection of privately owned Swiss examples arrives for the show.
A very tidy display was given by this immaculate F-18C Hornet of the Finnish Air Force.
I'm not sure whether the ATC's were Starfighter fans but on arrival they made the pair from the Italian Air Force 'go round' prior to landing for an undercarriage inspection. At least it gave the appreciative crowd an extra look at these wonderful planes, now very much in the twilight of their service career.
One advantage of seeing the rehearsals is the display pilots get away with things they wouldn't during the show days, as demonstrated by this USAFE 48th FW 493rd FS F-15C Eagle as it spectacularly overflies the crowd in a 'full burner' pass.
The French are also now regular supporters of RIAT shows and it has become noticeable how many enthusiasts also make the journey across The Channel, as did this Jaguar E from EC 2/7 of the French Air Force.
I'm sure it's a fine aircraft but to me there's something about the appearance of the Swedish SAAB JAS-39A Gripen that doesn't look quite right and I have to say, I prefer the raw power of either the Draken or Viggen produced by the same company.
No decent show is complete without a Phantom being present, pictured here is an F-4F from JG-74 of the German Air Force.
There were rumours before the show that the Canadian Hornet was going to 'torch' during its display but this speculation turned out not to be true, so the memories of the Australian F-111C doing that at IAT '93 now seem distant. Actually, the Canadian Hornet display was upstaged by that of the Finnish Air Force.
A nice shot of No.3 Alpha Jet of the Patrouille de France as it makes its final approach for Cottesmore's runway.
IMPORTANT:
PLEASE NOTE: I retain copyright to all photographs on this site. Should you require to use any then please contact me first. Thank you.