Articles
Sion World Economic Forum Air Policing
The annual World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting at Davos in Eastern Switzerland attracts many world leaders and important visitors to it and, as can be imagined, requires a high level of security - especially in these times of heightened alert states not only in Europe but around the world. In [...]
AeroResource 2016 Highlights
If social media is to be believed, 2016 was the worst year in the history of the world, with several “shock” events like the EU referendum result and the election of Donald Trump dominating headlines. In the aviation enthusiast community, it has seemed somewhat quieter. 2016 saw additional retirements from [...]
Aircraft Carrier Operations – USS Dwight D Eisenhower
Deployed in support of Operation INHERENT RESOLVE since June 2016, the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Dwight D Eisenhower, or “The Mighty Ike”, has been conducting daily strike missions against so-called “Islamic State” in both Syria and Iraq, from both the Arabian Gulf with US Navy 5th Fleet and more recently [...]
USS Dwight D Eisenhower – Operation Inherent Resolve
Weighing in at a cool 95,000 tonnes, the Nimitz class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Dwight D Eisenhower (CVN 69) is the second of ten such vessels that form the cornerstone of United States Naval Aviation. The Nimitz-class carriers are the largest and most powerful warships in the world, and are [...]
Lightning Preservation Group Double Twilight Scramble
With the 2016 airshow season all but a fading memory and the dark nights drawing in at a pace, ‘nightshoot season’ is in full swing all around the country. November 12th saw the turn of the Lightning Preservation Group as they took centre stage with three home-grown interceptors, during their [...]
Aviation Nation 2016 – Nellis AFB Open House
The Nellis Air Force Base open house or to give it the official title, Aviation Nation, is a renowned event that is often considered a bucket list show. The many attractions of Aviation Nation are easy to see with Nellis being one of the most famous fighter bases in the world, [...]
San Francisco Fleet Week 2016
Since the inaugural event in 1981, San Francisco Fleet Week has gained a reputation as being one of the best in the United States, not only for its naval participants but also for the air show held over the weekend of the event. With the hopes of good lighting and [...]
RAF Brize Norton Nightshoot
In the last 12 months or so, more and more nightshoots have started appearing all over the country ranging from small quiet civilian affairs to busy evenings on an operational airbase. On Saturday October 29, it was the turn of one such base to open its doors for around 200 [...]
Northolt Nightshoot XXI
With the number of nightshoots at RAF Northolt now sitting in the twenties, there really is no introduction needed for the nocturnal activities that take place on the West London base’s flightline. AeroResource’s Jamie Ewan and Ben Montgomery joined around 200 photographers ‘under the lights’ for the latest instalment and second [...]
Ostrava NATO Days 2016
Found in the north-eastern corner of the Czech Republic near the border with Poland, the small city of Ostrava is the capital of the Moravian-Silesian Region and, since its inception in 2001, been the setting for the annual NATO days show. Duncan Monk reports from Ostrava NATO days 2016. This [...]
Old Buckenham Airshow 2016
Set on the grounds of a former Eighth Air Force heavy bomber base, Old Buckenham Airshow 2016 made a welcome return in late July with two days of flying action. Whilst the 2016 show may not have had Hollywood royalty attending like the previous year, there was a promise of [...]
RAF Cosford Jaguars final prowl
After the withdrawal of the SEPECAT Jaguar from Royal Air Force frontline service on April 30, 2007, a number of airframes were destined for a new role within the service as part of 238 Squadron, No1 School of Technical Training (No1 SoTT). However, with technology and methods evolving, some of [...]
Bucharest International Air Show 2016
The air arms of Eastern European states have long attracted Western enthusiasts. However, as more and more of these ex-communist nations become integrated with Europe and NATO, their military equipment tends to follow suit leading to interesting, and often colourful, Soviet types being replaced with grey fighters from the USA. Whilst Romania [...]
KC-135 60th Anniversary
On August 31, 1956 at just after 1pm local time, a new Boeing jet took to the skies for its first flight. That jet, Boeing KC-135A Stratotanker 55-3118 named ‘City of Renton’, started a story that is now 60 years old – and continuing! In 2016, the KC-135 is still [...]
Royal International Air Tattoo 2016
The Royal International Air Tattoo is often the highlight of the UK’s Aviation calendar and attracts an interesting array of aircraft, new and old, from around the world. Anticipation for the show is even higher in Farnborough years when global aircraft manufacturers descend on the UK to try and secure [...]
King’s Lynn Tornado Trail
It seems that over the last few years, towns and cities around the UK have taken to decorating their streets with various decorated models such as dragons, sheep, gorillas and pigs. However, for the last two years, King’s Lynn’s decorations have been somewhat aviation themed with Spitfires in 2015 and [...]
RNAS Yeovilton Air Day 2016
Always a favourite with enthusiasts, RNAS Yeovilton Air Day 2016 had a tough act to follow after the great lineup at the 2015 show. In addition, with the withdrawal of the ‘Junglie’ Sea Kings from service, the question many were asking was could the finale of the show still live [...]
RAF Cosford Air Show 2016
RAF Cosford has, for the second year in a row, gained the distinction of becoming the Royal Air Force’s premier event and having been a fixture on the UK airshow calendar for many years now, it has become a ‘must’ for aviation enthusiasts up and down the country – and [...]
NATO Tiger Meet 2016
Between May 16 and 27, Ala 15 of the Ejército del Aire (Spanish Air Force) hosted this years edition of the annual NATO Tiger Meet (NTM) at their Zaragoza Air Base home. Two years have passed since the Ejército del Aire made firm its proposal to organise the ‘meet’ at [...]
Italian Air Force Flying Training
The Aeronautica Militare Italiana (AMI) is significantly modernising its flying training. In 2015, Alenia Aermacchi’s T-346A advanced jet trainer entered service and 2016 will see the recently announced introduction of Tecnam’s P2006T for basic multi-engined training. Within a few years, the Alenia Aermacchi M-345 High Efficiency Trainer (HET) looks poised [...]
Luchtmachtdagen 2016
After a year of absence in 2015, the annual Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) Luchtmachtdagen returned this year to Vliegerbasis Leeuwarden, in the North of the Netherlands. Whilst the theme of the show was once again Operatie Luchtsteun (which literally translates to Operation Air Support) it was clear that for [...]
First F-35 Lightning IIs arrive in United Kingdom
Wednesday 29th June 2016 saw a significant milestone for the F-35 program, as the first deployment of the Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II to the United Kingdom commenced with three aircraft landing at RAF Fairford, including one of the first three examples for the Royal Air Force. Plans for the F-35 [...]
Anatolian Eagle 2016
Large multi-national air exercises where combined air operations can be executed against strategic and tactical targets provide excellent training opportunities for all participants, but the requirements to host this type of exercise are such that there are only three training centres in the world where they can take place. Of [...]
Exercise Tac Blaze 16 – Carlisle
With the sleepy airfield at Carlisle converted into a forward operating base for some serious helicopter hardware, AeroResources’ Kevin Paterson decided it was time to dust off the cameras, charge the radios and head for the fence line for Exercise TAC BLAZE 16. Each year, Carlisle Lake District Airport in Cumbria [...]