Under perfect weather conditions on March 5, 2026 RAF Northolt in west London hosted its 34th nightshoot. It is now 17 years since Philip Dawe and his great team of volunteers with particular note to Lee Barton and family, ran the first of RAF Northolt’s now famous events. Of course, none of these would be possible without the support of RAF Northolt and the many Station Commanders including the latest; Group Captain Lee Wales. The focus has always been to raise monies towards the continued preservation of the Stations historic Building 27 Operations Building which played such a key role during the Battle of Britain in WWII. This building was used by ACM Hugh Dowding to develop what was to become the world’s first Integrated Air Defence System.

For this edition of the event it was quite amazing that given the developing conflict and crisis in the Middle East, there were few cancellations but it was perhaps no surprise that the proposed Royal Navy 815 NAS AW159 Wildcat HM2 attendance was cancelled. This was however at short notice with the Squadron rapidly preparing two Wildcats to help bolster defences at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus. The other cancellations were two civilian operated aircraft which were due to weather limitations for the return journey after the event. It was also noticeable that there was no participation from home-based No.32 Squadron aircraft one assumes as a result of world events although both aircraft have attended previous events.

That said, this edition of the nightshoot brought excellent attendance once again from French, German and UK forces, as well as from the home-based London Air Ambulance with both of their Airbus Helicopters H135’s on display at the head of the static line.

French Air and Space Force AS332L1 Super Puma (2233)

The French Air and Space Force (L’armee de l’air et de l’espace) have become firm and regular supporters of Northolt events and this occasion was no different. On this occasion, Escadron d’Hélicoptères 03.067 “Parisis” attended with one of their three Airbus Helicopters AS332L1 Super Puma’s which are based at BA 107 Vélizy – Villacoublay. Prior to its arrival at Northolt, the aircraft briefly visited Biggin Hill in Kent, before landing at Battersea Heliport in west London where Aeroresource were also able to capture the aircraft during its brief stop. Sadly the aircraft did not perform a ground run during the event but still a very welcome edition none the less.  

French Navy Falcon 10MER (32)

Further French participation came from the Aéronavale, who sent their special‑anniversary‑marked Dassault Falcon 10MER from Escadrille 57S, based at BAN Landivisiau. The six Falcon 10MER aircraft that were in service are now entering the twilight of their careers, and the attendance of this wonderful aircraft was especially noteworthy. The type currently fulfils a dual role as a radar training platform (MER stands for Marine Entraînement Radar) and as a light transport and liaison aircraft. The squadron has already begun replacing the fleet, with three aircraft withdrawn so far. The first two modified Pilatus PC‑24 replacements have already been active at the factory in Stans, with the first example very recently delivered to Le Bourget for integration trials. At present, it is planned that the remaining three Falcon 10MERs will remain operational until the end of 2026, providing a period of overlap during which both types will operate side by side.

German Navy Dornier Do228-212 (54+04)

Adding to the naval theme, Marinefliegergeschwader 3 “Graf Zeppelin” based at Nordholz sent one of their ‘colourful’ Dornier Do223-212NG which routed Nordholz-Montpellier -Evreux enroute to Northolt. This routing enabled the crew to visit German units at both French airfields. The German Navy operate two examples of the aircraft and the primary role is environmental protection missions in the North Sea and Baltic. For these tasks they carry radar, infrared and ultraviolet sensors, microwave radiometers and fluorescence lasers, as well as photographic equipment to find and analyse environmental pollutants. 

RAF Embraer Phenom T.1 (ZM333)

The Royal Air Force’s sole representative was an Embraer Phenom T1 from 45 Squadron based at RAF Cranwell which was located at the end of the event aircraft line. These aircraft are used for multi-engine flying training for pilots and mission training for aircrew.

Army Air Corps Wildcat AH1 (ZZ384)

Completing the UK military participation was an Army Air Corps Leonardo Wildcat AH1 from 1 Regiment based at RNAS Yeovilton. The aircraft arrived just prior to the event as ‘CARBON09’ with an operational fit comprising a general-purpose machine gun mounted to the side access of the airframe. This aircraft departed as the same callsign during the evening which provided a great photographic opportunity for the assembled crowd.

It certainly was another enjoyable evening at Northolt. We look forward to the next night photoshoot on October 1, 2026.

You can find out more about the RAF Northolt nightshoots here: https://www.northoltnightshoots.com

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