What time are Red Arrows in Falmouth on Armed Forces Day

There will be a variety of military air displays taking place across Saturday afternoon, starting with a parachute drop from the RAF Falcons and continuing with a range of aircraft including a Typhoon, Chinook and the Black Cats.

The action will be taking place over Falmouth Bay, starting from 2.20pm with the RAF Falcons display team leaping from planes and parachuting down.

The Red Arrows are then scheduled to arrive at around 3pm for a display lasting roughly half an hour – although if you’re elsewhere in Cornwall you might be lucky enough to get a glimpse on their way to and from the display.

A list of their flight schedule has been published, showing where they will be in the air at what time.

This states that they are due to leave Newquay at 2.50pm, followed by:

2.52pm East of Padstow

2.58pm South East of Blackwater

2.59pm North of Perranwell

3pm Falmouth Bay

3.34pm Over the sea

3.39pm West of Newquay

The timings and route may, however, change depending on the weather or other factors.

The air display is due to continue until 5pm, with the running order of:

Red Arrows

Black Cats

Typhoon

Chinook

Harvard

Merlin Mk 2

Seafire

They also provided a brief glimpse of what's to come when they took part in the flypast to mark the end of the Military Parade, at around 11.14am. 

Sadly the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight will no longer be taking part as scheduled, due to an engine fault being investigated. 

In a statement the RAF said: "The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight is currently investigating a fault on a Merlin engine and has taken the decision to temporarily pause flying.

"Several of our aircraft are powered by the Merlin and as a result these historic aircraft will be unable to support Armed Forces Day events around the country as we would have liked.

"This is hugely disappointing for us and to all those who love to see these iconic aircraft; however, safety remains our paramount concern."

You can see live coverage of today's events in Falmouth here: Armed Forces Day 2023 in Falmouth - LIVE

Aircraft in the display

The Red Arrows will be on display

RAF Red Arrows

The Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, the Red Arrows, is one of the world's premier aerobatic display teams. Representing the speed, agility and precision of the Royal Air Force, the team is the public face of the service. They assist in recruiting to the Armed Forces, act as ambassadors for the United Kingdom at home and overseas and promote the best of British.

Flying distinctive Hawk fast-jets, the team is made up of pilots, engineers and essential support staff with frontline, operational experience. Together, they demonstrate the excellence and capabilities of the Royal Air Force and the Service’s skilled, talented people. Often with their trademark Diamond Nine shape, and combination of close formations and precision flying, the Red Arrows have been displaying since 1965.

Based at RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire, the Red Arrows had flown almost 5,000 displays in 57 countries, by the beginning of this year – the team's 59th season.

The RAF Falcons display team will give a display

RAF Falcons

The Falcons are the UK’s premier military parachute display team, based at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire, they display at venues all over Britain and Europe throughout the year. They have performed many times for the Royal Family and heads of state and set records and introduced many exciting innovations into formation skydiving.

The Royal Air Force is responsible for training and supporting all UK Airborne Forces. As well as providing a distinctive demonstration of freefall and canopy skills during the display season, each Falcons Team member undertakes continual advanced training as Parachute Jumping Instructors in preparation for future employment in support of the Parachute Regiment, the Royal Marines and other specialist units.

The RAF Falcons Parachute Display Team is the only centrally funded, professional, military parachute display team in the UK. Their exciting free fall display, which includes advanced manoeuvres, falling at speeds up to 120mph, and their famous 'hybrid' display which includes the Heart and Crisscross Carousel, captivates all spectators.

RAF Falcons jump from a Hercules

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And although no longer taking part, this is what the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight would have involved: 

The Royal Air Force Battle of Britain Memorial Flight (BBMF)

This commemorates all those who have lost their lives serving in the RAF, or its predecessor the Royal Flying Corps, in all conflicts from 1914 up to the present day. The BBMF fleet of WW2 aircraft is preserved in flying condition as a living tribute to them.

The BBMF’s home is at RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire. During the winter from October to March each year the majority of the Flight’s aircraft are kept on the ground for extensive winter maintenance to prepare them for the next display season and to ensure their long-term preservation.

The BBMF is typically tasked to fly over 100 displays and around 700 flypasts at events each display season – here in Falmouth will be just one of around a thousand aircraft appearances each year.

It had been hoped a Spitfire with a Perranporth connection would be able to return

With so many aircraft to choose from the BBMF can never promote its ‘cast list’ in advance. But it had been hoped that, among its Spitfire flight, will be the Mk Vb AB910 with a strong Cornish connection. It flew 143 operational missions in a remarkable wartime history spanning almost three years on ‘ops’, then was re-allocated to 130 Sqn at Perranporth Airfield in Cornwall, flying convoy protection patrols and escorting daylight bombing raids.

In June 1942 it was delivered to Biggin Hill, taking part in 1942’s fierce battle in support of Operation ‘Jubilee’, the Dieppe Raid. AB910 is now painted in the colour scheme of a 64 Sqn Spitfire at the time of D-Day with full invasion stripes. It is hoped that this most distinctive of all heritage planes will be flying over Cornwall again.

There are 12 BBMF aircraft, and they have remarkable wartime histories of their own, most defying the odds to survive as flying examples of their kind.

An Avro Lancaster, made famous as the Dambusters

Crowds in Falmouth were also due to hear the distinctive thrum of the Avro Lancaster PA474, made famous as the Dambusters. The BBMF has one of only two of these iconic four-engine heavy bombers still airworthy in the world. Originally developed as an evolution of the Manchester, the Lancaster was powered by four Rolls-Royce Merlins. It first saw service with RAF Bomber Command in 1942 and as the strategic bombing offensive over Europe gathered momentum, it was the main aircraft for the night-time bombing campaigns that followed

A C-47 Dakota represents the dogged work of the RAF’s military transport aircraft and crews. The Flight’s six Supermarine Spitfires include the only surviving flying Spitfire from the Battle of Britain. There are also two Hawker Hurricanes of 1944 vintage, including the last Hurricane ever built, PZ865, the ‘Last of the Many’.

Apart from their own history, each of the Flight’s ‘warbirds’ represents a specific aircraft of WW2 with meticulously-researched colour schemes which commemorate particular battles, campaigns or theatres of war, individual units or particular RAF aircrew.

Spitfire MK11a