The Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) is the world's largest military air show, held annually over the third weekend in July, usually at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, United Kingdom in support of The Royal Air Force Charitable Trust. The show usually attracts a total of 150,000 to 200,000 spectators on both days.

Contents 1 History 2 2008 Cancellation 3 RIAT 2009 4 1993 MiG-29 accident 5 2002 G.222 incident 6 References 7 External links

[edit] History

The first Air Tattoo was staged at North Weald airfield in Essex with just over 100 aircraft taking part. The event was founded by Timothy Prince and Paul Bowen. From these small beginnings the show became the International Air Tattoo in 1976, and recognition of its unique status was granted by Her Majesty The Queen in 1996, when the current Royal International Air Tattoo title was adopted in 1996. From 1973 to 1983 RIAT was held at Greenham Common before moving to RAF Fairford in 1985.

• The first Air Tattoo at RAF Fairford was held in 1985. It became an annual show from 1993. Due to runway repairs at RAF Fairford the show temporary moved to RAF Cottesmore, Rutland in 2000 and 2001.

• In 1996 the show was awarded a Royal warrant to use the prefix Royal and it therefore became the current Royal International Air Tattoo.

• In 2003 the air show was recognized by the Guinness World Records as the largest military air show ever, with an attendance of 535 aircraft.

• In 2006 around 300 aircraft from 24 countries were on display.

The shows have had a number of air show firsts, including the first display and landing of the then top secret stealth aircraft B-2A Spirit bomber outside of the United States of America during the 1997 "50 Years of the USAF" anniversary theme and in 2008 the first appearance of the state of the art F-22 Raptor in Europe.

Although the show is a showcase for the world's military, it has become an important precursor to the Farnborough Airshow held every even years in the following week. It allows the military aerospace industry to display and present itself outside of the commercial pressures of the Farnborough show.

[edit] 2008 Cancellation

The 2008 airshow was to feature two themes, the 90th Anniversary of the Royal Air Force and Global Engagement. The United States Air Force Air Combat Command's F-22 Raptor Demonstration Team had made the first trans-Atlantic flight for the new stealth aircraft to participate in the 2008 Royal International Air Tattoo.^[1] On Friday July 10, 2008, the day before the air show opened to the public, HM The Queen Elizabeth II presented under harsh weather conditions new colours to the RAF and RAF Regiment in front of selected guests and VIPs. Following a week of heavy rainfall this made the already waterlogged car parks and some portion of the apron unusable. Safety concerns for the hundreds of thousands of expected visitors led the organisers to a last minute cancellation of the public section of RIAT for the first time in the show's history.^[2]

[edit] RIAT 2009

Wikinews has related news: Report from Royal International Air Tattoo 2009

RIAT 2009 was held on 18 & 19 July. The themes ^[3] were the Centenary of Naval Aviation (Fly Navy 100), Sea Search '09 and the 60th anniversary of NATO. Some displays had to be cancelled, such as the BBMF or modified, or cut short, due to poor weather condidtions and low cloud.

[edit] 1993 MiG-29 accident

In 1993 two MiG-29s of the Russian Air Force collided in mid-air and crashed away from the public. No one was hurt on the ground.^[4] After having ejected, the two pilots landed safely.^[5] Investigators later determined that a pilot error was the cause, after one pilot did a reverse loop and disappeared into the clouds, the other one lost sight of his wingman and aborted the routine.

[edit] 2002 G.222 incident

In 2002 the nosewheel of an Italian Air Force G.222 transport aircraft collapsed while doing a tactical landing. Nobody on the ground was hurt.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] References

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Royal International Air Tattoo

• Official website
• Photos from RIAT 2007
• BBC features on the Royal International Air Tattoo, past and present
• Michael Pead :: Photos of the Fairford Airshow
• RIAT 2006 photo set

Reviews of Previous RIATs

• Review of RIAT 2008 - airshows.org.uk
• Review of RIAT 2007 - aircraftinaction.co.uk
• Review of RIAT 2007 - airscene.org.uk
• Review of RIAT 2007 - airshows.org.uk
• Review of RIAT 2006 - airscene.org.uk
• Review of RIAT 2006 - airshows.org.uk
• Review of RIAT 2006 - checksix-online.com
• Review of RIAT 2005 - airshows.org.uk
• Review of RIAT 2005 - airscene.org.uk
• Review of RIAT 2005 - aircraftinaction.co.uk