“Your Questions Answered” - Head of Air Operations

[Tommy]

Hi all,

We’re pleased to announce that Peter Reoch, Head of Air Operations at RIAT, has agreed to join the UKAR Podcast for a “your questions answered” style interview at the end of this month which we hope to release in early July, to whet appetites immediately before the show.

Peter will be answering your questions about aircraft participation at RIAT (questions re tickets, FRIAT, transport etc will not be a part of the podcast, as that’s not his job).

We want this to be member-driven, so, if you’ve got a burning question(s) you want to know about aircraft participation at RIAT, flying or static, please use this thread. If you want a question anonymously posted, DM me and I’ll copy it here without your name attached.

A general point for my own sanity, please keep this thread clean and clear of responses/discussions etc. Questions only.

Deadline for questions to be posted here is Sunday 23rd June 2024

Diolch,

Tom

[Tommy]

I’ll add - this pod will only be as good as our members make it. If we don’t have much engagement, then RIAT are unlikely to agree to any others in the future.

“Use it or lose it”, as folk say.

I’ll periodically bump it so people can see/have visibility.

[capercaillie]

Sounds good and great to see personal involvement from the main man.

Appreciate when an air arm has said they cannot attend, it means they cannot attend. However when said air arm then reveals a wonderful special paint scheme later in the year closer to the show date. Do you go back to that air arm and put in a special request/plead if they could send that airframe or is it left well alone as they have already said no attendance that year?
Example - German Navy Lynx that has just been revealed ahead of the Tigermeet. (appreciate they have two special scheme Sea Kings as well).

Secondly as a follow up to that on a similar vein, once an air arm has declared what it intends to send, and its listed on the website, would you do an Oliver and ask for more if something else appealing from them appears. Again I'll use the Germans as the example, the Air Force is sending two Tornados from WTD61 and TLW51, more than generous, both have special schemes, so fingers crossed. However TLW33 the remaining unit also has a special scheme this year, would you consider politely asking for that as well?

[MiG_Eater]

OK here's a few questions that have been asked numerous times but I would love to get the answers from the horse's mouth!

1) For years British airshows including IAT and RIAT had military acts using flares. Why did this stop and can we ever hope to see a return at RIAT?

2) Is there a consistent approach to paying for privately owned aircraft to attend the airshow? We saw the SwAFHF on static in 2022, but have not seen them display, despite Midlands Air Festival enjoying the Draken for two years running. Is there a reason for this?

3) It has been commonplace to see extremely rare aircraft on static display. Has there been attempts to lure these air arms into providing such aircraft (without formal demo teams) to take part in flypasts so that the audience can enjoy the aircraft in the air? Examples might include the Su-22 and Phantom from last year.

4) When can we expect the return of the USAFE burger tent in Park and View!?

[Riat_guy]

Got one regarding the German air force and one regarding the RAF:

Do you know if the Germans are planning on sending any of their special scheme aircraft for their 2 tornados or their typhoon demo that they are bringing?

Have the Raf said whether they are planning on bringing Blackjack this year at all - for a spare or a static aircraft (subject to on the day availability obviously)

[JMC]

1) Was the rumour true about Indian Jaguars last year? and if so, what happened at the last hurdle?

2) With 2024 being your 3rd show (I think?), how are you finding life at RIAT compared to Cosford?

3) What has been your favourite RIAT moment so far?

4) On Peters wishlist what takes the number 1 spot for future shows?

[rdchawk]

Who comes up with the running order of the flying display and what factors affect the running order??

Does Farnborough actually help or hinder getting participants??

What really happened to Moley??

[Danhaz]

This is such a brilliant idea!

1) How much work goes into getting an air arm that previously has not attended the show, to bring an aircraft, such as Serbia this year. We have also seen attempts from Zambia as well!

2) How do you go about deciding on themes for the show such as "Training the next generation" and "Pushing the boundaries in air and space"

3) Do teams / operators ever come to you to suggest special flypasts?

4) With the recent success of Midlands Air Festival hosting a number of classic jet aircraft like the Draken, Gnat and F86 (Was on schedule before cancelling), is there an opportunity for these aircraft types to return flying at RIAT?

[Morgangalley]

Here’s a few

How do you go about asking what aircraft to bring to the show from each air arm?

What goals do you usually aim for with each flying and static display? How many air arms and individual aircraft do you aspire to get each year?

What is the process of getting countries to confirm and arrive from far afield like the Koreans and Brazilians from 2022?

Do you ever manage to secure some static items from exercises such as Cobra Warrior?

What do you look forward to welcoming to Fairford in the coming weeks?

What flying displays do you hope to secure in the future?

As a fast jet fanatic myself, what are your top 5 fast jet solos?

[Cole]

How did you manage to convince the Spanish Navy to bring Harriers every year like clockwork!, after them not attending for many years?

Which of the acts that you have secured are you most proud of?

[Brevet Cable]

The obvious one at the moment.....If the BBMF are still grounded, is there a contingency for adding a different display ( team or singleton ) in their slot(s) ?

[purple_95]

When the news first broke in late 2022 that an F-104 would be heading to Italy for the Italian Airforce 100 years events, there was a lot of talk it would also attend RIAT, was this ever a realistic possibility or was it just people just speculating on social media ?

Would it ever be possible to have the hot air balloons back prior to the main flying display as used to be the case in the 1990s ?

What is the process for picking the annual themes. I understand things like 50 years since the F-16 first flew lend themselves to a theme but how are the ones not based around a first flight or x number of years since an air force was formed decided upon ?

[lynothehammer]

Only one from me, certainly looking forward to this podcast.

This isn't travel related but back in 2010 there were buses that took people from the viewing areas over to the live side of the airfield (pretty sure there was a small fee) after the last aircraft had arrived. Could this be a thing again for the future ? it was a great opportunity to get some different photos.

[JMC]

When the news first broke in late 2022 that an F-104 would be heading to Italy for the Italian Airforce 100 years events, there was a lot of talk it would also attend RIAT, was this ever a realistic possibility or was it just people just speculating on social media ?

Taken from 11th May update in 2023: 'We are just putting the finishes touches to our plans and awaiting the final approval from the Italian Air Force to announce their modern day aircraft which will be on display in this special ITAF100 exhibition. We did engage with Starfighters Inc to explore the possibility of their TF-104G participating at RIAT 2023, however this will not be possible.'

[Brevet Cable]

OK....one more....
Was there a conscious decision not to have a 'D-Day 80' theme this year - and if so, what was the rationale behind it?

[verreli]

Without going into specific instances, what are some of the reasons an ongoing country fails to attend? Much effort must be expended on both sides for something to not materialise. I can't be the only one who makes a prayer and does a 'rain dance' when they see a juicy nation - perhaps rain dance was the wrong term given the weather last year.

[Danhaz]

Another question on themes

Back in 2020 before the obvious cancellation the theme was "fast jets"! Is there any possibility for this to become a future theme?

[Skylinerworld]

My question may not be asked / answered since it was all a bit controversial at the time, but worth a try:

What was the reason for the Argentine B737 cancelling last year?

[Dreadnought]

My question would be who decides what day and time the aircraft arrive?

[JMC]

Another from me.

5) Who gives permission to allow certain displays to overfly the crowd?
(I remember there was a time when it was only RAF assets. Over time we’ve seen an increase in international participants doing so, Korean Black Eagles/Thunderbirds/Saudi Hawks etc..)

[DeanW]

We regularly hear about people contacting air arms directly regarding their potential RIAT participation. How does that impact your ability to secure participants?

[Nath30]

A few questions from me


How is the F-16 static lineup looking compared with what you had hoped when thinking about the idea?

Will the F-16 static assets be routed via alpha/bravo or as prior routed via which works at the time?

Will this year see the return of the flying helicopter participation parking on the grass in the green end of the show ground?, this definitely livens up the arrival days for those in west park & view.

[CJS]

Great idea, well done for arranging it UKAR!

As a general question, I'd be fascinated to know where the ideas come from for the set pieces that RIAT is famous for? Do you all throw ideas around and see which ones stick, then contact the relevant air arms?

I'd also be interested to know if there are contingency plans in place for replacements for the BBMF, should they not be available following recent tragic events.

[theairplanespotter]

First I wanted to thank Peter and the team! My first RIAT was in 2011, when I was only 10 years old, and it sparked a passion that has only grown since then. Since that RIAT, I have attended RIAT 2018 and RIAT 2022 (Wish I could attend more but I live in Brazil), thanks to the dedication of the team in making it the worlds best airshow.

My questions is : How long does the process from the first invitation till confirmation take?

Also, what is the one that you specifically fought the most for them to come?

Sorry if my english is not 100%, I am Brazilian.

Thanks!

[AARDVARK]

In recent years the set piece finale that RIAT used to be known for has gone , is there any reason why this is and is there any plans to try and bring them back , i always felt this would make RIAT stand out against other shows!