The Malta airshow is a recurring event and was on our bucket list for some time. After being cancelled in 2020, we took the opportunity in 2021 to go there during a lull in the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. And it proved to be an altogether delightful experience.
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Kleine Brogel housed a special mini-Tiger Meet in September 2021. Due to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, the event was scaled down considerably. Nonetheless, a fair number of aircraft visited for the 60th anniversary of the NATO Tiger Meet association and the 70th anniversary of 31 Smaldeel. Of course, the Sanicole airshow in the same weekend meant some extra visitors and lots to be enjoyed for the capacity crowd during the Spotter's Days. Let us look at some of the participants.
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Sweden is a country with a great aviation heritage and one of few countries still developing its own fighter jets. Every few years, one of its air bases opens its gates to the public, to get a taste of both. Raw power displayed with the SAAB 35J Draken, the ultimate development of what was once Europe’s most advanced fighter aircraft.
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The Royal International Air Tattoo is surely one of the greatest, if not the greatest, air show on earth. Held at RAF Fairford, the events hosts a record number of air forces and an all-day long flying programme appeases even the most travelled aviation enthusiast. On this page we present you with some of the highlights of the RIAT’s 2019 edition.
We kick off with a true Cold War warrior from Romania, this MiG-21MF LanceR-C of the Romanian Air Force came in for a low-level-high-speed pass, when the pilot pulled its aircraft away from the public in spectacular fashion.
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This year's China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition (中国国际航空航天博览会), or simply Airshow China, showcased the J-20. We report on these and the other Chinese gems.
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The Feria Internacional del Aire y del Espacio (FIDAE) is an important trade show, well estabished and arguably the premier such venue on the Southern hemisphere. Therefore, there is always a good international attendance. Let us start with the Peruvian delegation and their C-27J 329. The last of the quartet was delivered in October 2017.
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In 2012, we visited the second instalment of the KADEX trade show in Kazakhstan. With memorable performances of the MiG-31 and indeed the Su-27s of the Kazakh Air Force.
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The final instalment of the Libyan Aviation Exhibition, LAVEX, was held at Tripoli-Mitiga in 2009. Before the uprising that left the country divided and in turmoil. Aviagraphers were there and here is a pictorial impression of what once was a potent air force.
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Poland is a country with a great love for aviation, which is underlined by many aviation events organized annually. One of these fixtures is the air show at Radom, a favorite among aviation enthusiasts.
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The biennial Moscow Air Show (MAKS) held at Zhukovsky airport, is the most important Russian aviation trade event and features a wide array of Russian aviation products.
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Without doubt, the NATO & Czech Air Force Days at Ostrava (Czechia) are among the best-organized air shows our team has ever visited. Little can the organizers do when the event is marred by bad weather, as was the case with the 2017 edition.
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Rionegro and indeed Colombia is a place to return to. This year one of us could not resist the temptation and went there to see the ever impressive airshow.
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The biennial LIMA exhibition is held at the summer holiday resort island of Langkawi, Malaysia. An excellent event that showcases the current airpower and naval assets of Malaysia. Also, many foreign forces contribute and make this a must-see airshow.
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Ten years ago, one of the Aviagraphers went with two other photographers to Morocco during the 50th anniversary of the Air Force. To visit Meknes Open Doors was the primary goal. This was a couple of years before the first instalment of the now well-known bi-annual Marrakech airshow...
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This yearly event offers an opportunity to take photographs of the current HAF fleet. It had been quite some years since we last went there, so about time for a re-visit. Having said that, the star visitor was not a Greek aircraft at all...
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Most of you cannot have missed that North Korea staged the very first Air Festival at Wonsan open to foreigners in September 2016. Of course, Aviagraphers were on scene.
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Less known than the international Dubai Air Show, the Al Ain Air Championships is another major aviation event organized in the United Arab Emirates. The airport of Al Ain in the emirate of Abu Dhabi hosts this spectacular biennial show. Desert sand dunes provide a great backdrop for the championships, in which the public is heavily involved by voting for the winner... The Saudi Hawks, displaying their green and white BAe Hawks jet trainers, were first to show off their display skills, to the delight of the local public who came out in numbers.
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Slovakia became an independent country after the peaceful break-up of Czechoslovakia in January 1993. As decided, the new air force inherited half of the former country’s fleet of MiG-29 fighters, including the type’s maintenance facilities. Additional deliveries of MiG-29s followed and gave air force a credible fighter force. Many years later, Slovakia remains one of only a few European countries that still flies these smoky twin tails. A good reason to visit Slovakia and get a taste of Eastern European military aviation, as it used to be.
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