The RAF will fly just seven Red Arrows instead of the usual nine for most displays until 2030, due to ageing engines in the fleet of Hawk T1 aircraft.
The world-famous display team of the Royal Air Force will still fly in a nine aircraft formation for the flypast on the King’s birthday and at the 250th anniversary of America’s Independence Day on 4th July.
But the Hawk T1 planes, which have delivered nearly 4,000 displays worldwide, require significant maintenance and critical spare parts, including engines, which are less readily available than previously, as first reported by Sky News.
The Chief of the Air Staff is understood to have made the decision to change the formation size, aiming to ensure that the fleet remains viable and engineering resources are not overstretched.
All Hawk T1 aircraft remaining in the RAF’s fleet will be retired in 2030, after the out of service date was extended by the Conservative government in 2021.
Although most of the UK's original T1s were phased out in 2022, the Red Arrows aerobatic team retained the iconic jets for longer.
The decision to scale down the number of aircraft used in future flypasts will “support the sustainable management of the Hawk T1 fleet and prepare the team for a transition to a future aircraft type”, an RAF spokesperson told The Independent.
They added: “The Red Arrows are the pride of the nation, known globally for their world-class precision, speed, and teamwork.
“The Red Arrows will fly in a nine aircraft formation for HM The King’s Birthday Flypast and the 4th of July 250 Commemorations in the USA this year. For other displays, they will operate with a seven aircraft, continuing to deliver high quality engaging displays at airshows and events across the UK, mainland Europe and further afield.”
The Red Arrows team has flown with seven aircraft in the past, regularly doing so in the 1960s, and with seven-aircraft displays flown in 2012 and 2022.
It is set to join several more airshows and events across the UK, mainland Europe and further afield between May and October this year, the RAF said.
The US Independence Day flight comes more than two centuries after the US rejected British rule. The team will appear at 13 events across seven states, while Royal Navy ships will also attend celebrations in New Orleans and New York.
It follows a state visit from King Charles last month, which also marked the anniversary and was seen as a way to try to ease relations with the US, the UK’s strongest and closest security ally.
Relations between the two countries have come under strain since Donald Trump re-entered the White House.
The Red Arrows also performed a flypast during US president Trump’s state visit to the UK last year.
