British “Tattoo Club”
Until 2014, domestic aircraft enthusiasts and aviation photographers first organized a group tour of the British “Tattoo Club” air show, which was hailed as “the world’s number one”, and truly experienced the shock of the ultra-low-altitude dangling of the fighter fleet. .
From July 19 to 21, 2019, the annual British “Tattoo Club” air show opened at the Fairford Air Force Base in the UK. This year’s air show attracted air forces from 25 countries around the world, bringing a total of 245 aircraft, including two Spanish EAV-8B Harrier II Plus x2, Ukrainian Su-27, US Air Force F-16 Viper demonstration team, UK Royal Air Force F-35B lightning and so on. The special reporter of “Global Flight” magazine specially carried out a rare “air-to-air” filming at this year’s air show, with a group of wonderful pictures to readers.
Air show with “tattoo”
The “Tattoo Club”, the full name of the Royal Airline Show (Roval International Air Tattoo), is held at Fairford Air Force Base in the UK in mid-July and attracts tens of thousands of aviation enthusiasts from all over the world.
The “Tattoo Club” air show, as the name suggests, is a “tattoo” on the plane. The “tattoo” here refers to the painting of the aircraft. The aviation industry originated in Europe and the United States. The centuries-old inheritance has created a profound aviation culture. The various “tattoos” are one of the important carriers of European and American aviation culture, and also fit people’s fascination with airplanes.
The “Tattoo Club” is also known as the “Tiger Club” because it is painted with tiger stripes. It is the world’s largest military aircraft flight show and ground show air show, with active military aircraft as the main character. The ground display area is deployed along the airport taxiway and is about 3 kilometers long and is full of planes. The large aprons at both ends of the taxiway are concentrated display areas and flight preparation areas. The aircraft displayed include fighters, bombers, attack aircraft, transport aircraft, early warning aircraft, aerial refueling aircraft, trainers, helicopters, drones and other active military aircraft from Europe, the Americas and some Asian countries, most of which are directly from combat troops. Therefore, for many military fans, this air show is undoubtedly a super eye-catching event.
Clear flight show
Regardless of size or level of excitement, the flight show at the Tattoo Convention is the world’s number one. The daily flight performances are arranged from 8 am to 8 pm, with almost no gaps throughout the day. Sometimes a group of aircraft are performing in the air, and the follow-up performance aircraft has taken off in the air to stand by. The flight performances are splendid, and you can miss the wonderful picture even when you give the camera a short battery change. When the blue sky is covered with criss-crossing white smoke and colored smoke, people are even more aware of why it is called “tattoo club” here.
The “Tattoo Club” in 2018 coincides with the i00 anniversary of the establishment of the Royal Air Force. There are many highlights, and the colorful air show is also frequently staged at this year’s air show. On July 20th, Royal Airline BA100 flight debuted at the air show event and starred in the air, accompanied by the Royal Air Force aerobatic demonstration team “Red Arrows” 9 Eagle aircraft, staged wonderful Hyun skill. The “Red Arrow” air show team spurred red, white and blue smoke in the air to commemorate the 100th anniversary of British Airways.
The Royal Air Force’s “Red Arrow” is one of the most famous and oldest aerobatic performance teams in the world. It is a British Empire decoration with the costumed guard of the bearskin high cap in front of the Buckingham Palace in England. One of the best tools on the facade. Every time the “Tattoo Club”, the British as the organizer will send this ace fleet to play. With the advantage of home game, the “Red Arrow” flight performance team has become the most outstanding flight performance team in the previous “Tattoo Club”.
On July 21st, the Italian Air Force’s “Three-Color Arrow” performance team performed a wonderful aerial performance. In this air show, the American F-16 performed Yin Maiman’s flip, the Italian typhoon fighters performed a comeback, CH-47 snout helicopter, JAS-39 lion lion fighter, MV-22 Osprey A series of aircraft, including the aircraft and the F/A-18 Hornet fighter, also performed flight performances.
Past and present of the “Tattoo Club”
At present, the world’s well-known airshows include more than a dozen world-class large-scale airshows including China’s Zhuhai Air Show, but they are known as the purest and completely free of commercial transactions, so they are particularly satisfied with the aspirations of the majority of aviation fans. The tattoo will be up.”
The “Tattoo Club” is a military aviation expo with only a variety of static displays and air shows, and its launch and operation are inseparable from the Royal Air Force. In the early 1970s, the Royal Air Force decided to set up a semi-official charitable foundation. Due to the initial difficulties in preparing funds, the British Air Force turned its attention to the British royal family, which always attached importance to aviation. It suggested that it should be organized in the form of a military aircraft exhibition. paragraph. With the support of several princes of the British royal family, on May 31, 1971, the British Air Force Charity Foundation held the first aviation exhibition at North Wilder Airport, which was a hit and attracted more than 100,000 British visitors.
Although the first “Tattoo Club” had only 100 participating aircraft, by 1976, the “Tattoo Club” became the world’s largest military air show. In 1985, the “Tattoo Club” officially moved to Fairford Air Force Base, and the site was no longer changed. The air show was also referred to as the “Fairford Air Show” in China. After 1993, it was changed from once every two years to once a year, and in 1996, it was officially awarded the title of “Royal International Aviation Tattoo Association” by the British Queen. At the “Tattoo Festival” in 2003, there were record-breaking 535 military aircraft exhibiting, which exceeded the number of fighters in the air force of most countries in the world.
According to the mainstream view of international aviation media, the Royal International Tattoo Convention Air Show is recognized as the world’s only five-star air show. Aviation fans from all over the world regard this place as a holy place, and naturally become one of the must-see airshows for every aviation fan. The British people are full of enthusiasm for the previous “Tattoo Club” air show. Many people are driving around with the whole family, calling friends and friends, and camping on the air show site to camp directly, turning the air show into A grand gathering of friends. This shows the mass base of the developed British aviation culture. It is no wonder that the “Tattoo Club” air show is also considered to be the top outdoor event in the UK.
