..screen grab from the Planes TV live stream of the arrivals of the Pakistan Air Force JF-17 Thunder at Fairford, another 'first' for RIAT. This is not the elderly 'A' variant from 2007 but a new 'C' version of Chinese design.
The JF-17C, the latest variant of Pakistan's JF-17 Thunder fighter jet, is capable of launching advanced air-to-air missiles, primarily the Chinese-made PL-10 and PL-15. The PL-10 is a short-range, infra-red guided missile, while the PL-15 is a long-range missile with active radar guidance, providing the JF-17C with beyond-visual-range (BVR) capabilities. Bottom photo; arrival of the PAF Il 78 MP Midas support aircraft..
The 59th nation to have participated in the show at Fairford is the Egyptian Air Force - an Egyptian Air Force Antonov 74 flies into Fairford for the first time. The EAF operates 3 of these tactical transports, an updated version of the An 72 fitted with glass cockpit, better radar and having longer range. High-mounted engines to avoid FOD. They are based at Cairo International with the 533rd Wing. First flew in 1983.
A single Rockwell B-1 Lancer of the 34th Bomb Squadron, part of the 28th Bomb Wing at Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota (tail Code 'EL') arrived at RAF Fairford for the 2025 RIAT yesterday, Tuesday 15 July.
The 34th Bomb Squadron is one of the oldest active squadrons in the United States Air Force, formed on 10 May 1917, less than a month after the United States' entry into World War I. It was the 34th that carried out the famed 'Doolittle' raid on Japan - note the tail fin B-25 anniversary artwork.
Video of the arrival run and break by 'Ted Coningsby'. A single click on the red button to watch here
The last six months or so have seen some dreadful aviation accidents/crashes and the Air India Dreamliner/787 crash on 12 June 2025 just after takeoff from Ahmedabad, India has to be one of the most notorious/awful. There has been much discussion/speculation on various online forums and among the plethora of youtube pilot 'experts'. There are the usual calls for all discussion/speculation to be clamped down on - once the self-appointed 'experts' have had their 'say' of course. In this instance the 'conclusions' are not pleasant reading for the airliner crew/pilot fraternity as once again we find ourselves facing a situation where the responsibility for the deaths of 240 or so hapless passengers may have to be placed firmly at their door. Even despite the reluctance of the official interim report to call a spade a spade. This crash is among the worst of the last ten years or so - and yet we still have to wait another 12 months or so for the 'official' verdict. Those poor families..
..The Air India B787 interim accident report focuses on the operation - apparently shortly after takeoff - of the (mechanical) fuel cut off switches. That they were operated - mechanically and not as the result of some glitch or accidental movement caused by vibration - is apparently confirmed by the CVR (voice recorder) and the time stamp details. But there must have been more said after the 'why did you operate the cut off' and the response 'I did not do so' - in fact why even say it out loud? Put them back on to 'Run' immediately rather than wait ten seconds. (no it wasn't just a 'couple of seconds' as some have said). Nor does the report state what the engines were doing prior to these switches being flipped off and on - was the non-flying pilot attempting to restart the engines after a loss ofpower?
Below; extract from the incident report showing the fuel cut off switches and the throttle control module recovered from the crashed airliner.
As former B777 captain Dan Gryder shows in his 'Probable Cause' video (below) it is the action of just 4 seconds to switch both fuel cut off switches back into the run position. Of course, still climbing out, the aircraft was too low to recover, as probably the (culpable?) pilot intended. There is no further comment published in the interim report. A former air investigator commented on the BBC;
" ..it is very disappointing to read a report which provides a few salient details but leaves more questions unanswered.."
The pilot flying the take off (both hands on yoke) is not likely to have operated the switches but would he have noticed the other pilot (aircraft captain, hand perhaps covering the throttles as is normal practise) doing this manual action twice in quick succession? Would he not have exclaimed ' what are you doing?!' He may have been too stunned/numb to immediately react. There's no clue from the abridged (?) transcript from the CVR of the tone and inflection of the crew's words. In the shock of the moment did the crew use their native tongue, and was at least some of what they said lost in translation? Likewise the response, "I didn't do so." Was this indignant? Defensive? Accusatory?
As the BBC commentator put it, " the very worst reports are those designed to be read 'between the lines'... " - intimating that this is what we have here.
While Dan Gryder speculates his theory (see video below) it has been reported by Indian media that the investigation is NOT focussing on a human action causing the fuel switches to appear in the CUTOFF position, but on a system failure. Service Bulletins by Boeing issued in year 2018 recommending to upgrade the fuel switches to locked versions to prevent inadvertent flip of the switches, as well as the FAA/GE issued Service Bulletin FAA-2021-0273-0013 Attachment 2 relating to loss of control issue (also see above) were NOT implemented by Air India. The stated MN4 computer with faulty soldering, that might weaken and lose contact due to the thermal stress after a number of cycles, interprets data and commands fuel metering valves - with the lost contact attaching the MN4 processor to the EEC intermittent electrical contact, loss of signal processing and engine control faults can occur. The SB writes under conditions for the SB: "An LOTC (Loss Of Thrust Control) event has occurred due to an EEC MN4 microprocessor solder ball failure." According to discussions in the industry it may be possible with the number of cycles VT-ANB had already completed, the solder balls were weakened sufficiently to detach the MN4 from the EEC momentarily due to loads during the takeoff rotation leading to the loss of control of thrust and shut down of the engines.
Maybe there will be more in the official accident report to be published in around 12 months time. In the mean time all we can do is 'speculate' as the authorities leave an information 'vacuum'. Incidentally 'Mentour Pilot' has recently highlighted a Chinese air crash caused by a murder/suicide pilot where the official report will not/has not been published for reasons of 'social cohesion'.
In the short 8-minute video below Dan Gryder offers his analysis. Just a single click on the red button enables you to watch this short video here.
A good friend to this blog is Leigh Smith. Leigh is a tremendous photographer and has kindly shared these images of a recent excursion to RAF Lakenheath;
" As the forecast was good, I decided to visit Lakenheath for "Quick Climb Friday". I arrived just before 09.00 and was astounded to see how busy the forest entrance area and official viewing area was! I found out that the 1st FW Langley-Eustis Raptors are still in residence! I missed the launch of five Raptors, but decided to hang around for their return! I saw four of the home-team F-35As launch as 2 pairs and all of them did quick climbs from Runway 23, which meant that I didn't get the hoped for shots!.."
The 1st Fighter Wing, stationed at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, operates and maintains nearly half of the U.S. Air Force's F-22 Raptor fleet. The wing's primary mission is to provide air superiority through the F-22, including maintaining readiness, deploying globally, and training F-22 pilots. The 1st FW is composed of the 1st Operations Group, the 1st Maintenance Group, and other supporting units.
Turkish defence company BAYKAR were showing off their Bayraktar Akinci drone in Paris. Akinci is a high-altitude long-endurance (HALE) unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) that first flew in 2019 and entered service with the Turkish Armed Forces on 29 August 2021.
The aircraft has a 5.5+ ton maximum takeoff weight (MTOW), of which over 1,350 kg (2,980 lb) is payload. Akıncı is powered by two turboprop engines of either 450 hp (460 PS; 340 kW) or 750 hp (760 PS; 560 kW) and is equipped with electronic support and ECM systems, dual satellite communication systems, air-to-air radar, collision avoidance radar, and advanced synthetic-aperture radar. It is apparently the first UAV capable of launching a cruise missile.
On 7 July 2021, Bayraktar Akıncı set an altitude record by cruising at 38,039 feet (11,594 m) for 25 hours and 46 minutes covering a distance of 7,507 km. On 10 July 2021, Bayraktar Akıncı conducted a 13 hours and 24 minute long flight with a 1360 kg payload. During the flight Akıncı was equipped with the NEB bunker buster bomb developed by TUBITAK SAGE, making it the heaviest bomb ever carried by an UAV.
Just back from three weeks in Paris. And, yes, we went to the 55th Paris air show, the first since 2019 I think, due of course to Covid. It was packed with visitors and Paris itself was sweltering in a 36 C heatwave over the public weekend. As to the show, the 'best' day was the Friday when I got there early and was able to get through the gate without too much hassle while on Saturday the scenes of carnage to get in at the two gates 'L' and 'O' were incredible. I had the bright idea of trying to get into the show via the museum entrance - until some officious person with a scanner barred my way. No digital tickets at the museum entrance. Undeterred I went into the town and found a phone shop willing and able to print my 18 euro digital ticket out on paper from my phone! Friday was great but the crowds on Saturday made the whole experience rather unpleasant. And on Sunday I took the advice of a friend and stayed outside the perimeter fencing, heading instead to the car parks at the end of runway where I hooked up with a few other knowledgeable enthusiasts. There was a police presence here of course but standing slightly back from the fence we were not bothered by officialdom. Everything in the show took off and landed directly over our heads - providing a view of the flying display that was second to none and far better than being in the show, which was great!
And thanks to 'Tanguy' for putting up with my chat all afternoon!
Inside the airfield itself, there were lots of weird and wonderful contraptions on display ..and I don't mean the F-35. Some of them even flew, but the idea that we'll get 'real' electric planes worthy of the name is just pie in the sky in my humble opinion. I mean there were some electric craft flying - including the American Beta team which has decent range and endurance and everything else but still looks a long long way from being a 'useful' machine. Besides, the last person to design a machine that looked like a bird was Leonardo da Vinci! The Beta Technologies machine did recently become the first electric machine to fly into an airport in the New York/ New Jersey region. The company have also raised millions of $$$ in funding since 2017.
Day 2 of the Iran-Israel war 2025 and Tom Cooper has written a neat blog post on Iranian F-14s. Of the 79 Tomcats originally delivered, there were still some 60-odd in service during the 1980s and this figure had gradually declined to around barely one dozen still flying operationally in 2025. Two machines were last seen 'in action' during a US drone incursion during March 2025 and now, following Israeli strikes, there are 'rumours' that more F-14s have been destroyed...Tom's 'substack' blog is here
Breaking: Ukrainian drones are attacking two Russian strategic bomber bases thousands of kilometers from Ukraine.
There are reports on damage to aircraft and infrastructure.
Photo/video #1-2 show Olenya airbase in Murmansk Oblast about 2,000 km from Ukraine, #3-4 Belaya in… pic.twitter.com/jWoR0Cd9uk
— Euromaidan Press (@EuromaidanPress) June 1, 2025
The more you read about this operation the more incredible it appears - 117 drones transported -by duped Russian drivers in special containers - to within close proximity to four widely dispersed Russian long-range aviation bases and then commanded - via the Soviet's own telecoms networks - to go and seek out some of the Russian strategic bomber force, potentially wiping out up a third of it. A master-stroke of asymmetric warfare. According to Ukraine's SBU security service the 01 June 25 drone attacks on four of Russia's long-range aviation hit :
34% of strategic carriers of cruise missiles at the main airfields of the Russian Federation .
34% hit claim by Ukraine= ~44–48 aircraft damaged or destroyed.
Estimated total Russian strategic bomber fleet: ~130–140 cruise missile-capable bombers.
Tu-95MS: ~50–60 total (22–27 active; some reports mention 45 older variants).
Tu-160: Fewer than 20 operational.
Tu-22M3: ~60 in service (40 recently observed at Olenya airbase).
Russian Bomber Losses from Ukrainian Strikes
Tu-95MS Strategic Bombers
Dec 2022 (Engels-2): At least 1 damaged
Apr 2024 (Engels-2): 3 bombers hit
Jun 2025 (Operation “Spider’s Web”): Included among 40+ aircraft hit (exact number unspecified)
Minimum confirmed: 5 x Tu-95M
Tu-22M3 Strategic Bombers
Dec 2022 (Dyagilevo): At least 1 damaged
Aug 2023 (Soltsy): 1 destroyed
Jun 2025 (Operation “Spider’s Web”): Included among 40+ aircraft hit (exact number unspecified)
Minimum confirmed: 2 x Tu-22M3
Many of the Tupolevs in the drone footage appear to have literally piles of rubber tyres distributed across their upper surfaces. Is this to tell US satellites they're unserviceable or similar? If so, then the Ukranians have wasted their time on a few of these decrepit airframes. Or do they disrupt radio waves or similar?
Edit - it seems that the tyres are to break up the outline of the aircraft so that the drone can not recognise it as a target.....but then that doesn't make sense..these bases were 1000s of kms from Ukraine. They weren't expecting to be attacked by drones..
An assessment of the losses as seen in the video footage was posted by Tom Cooper on his ACIG.INFO board
- 8 Tu-95MS, nearly all FMC-examples (or 'fully mission capable'). Including RF-94132/Voronezh, RF-94127/Vorkuta, RF-94257/Chelyabinsk (one of last two Tu-95MS' manufactured)... (two 'probables' are RF-94117/Izborsk, and RF-94120/Kozelsk). At least three loaded with Kh-101s (AFAIK, the Russians run out of Kh-555s).
- 13 Tu-22M-3: I would say: 2-3 haven't been flown in some time, but the rest is 'legitimate'.
- both of the A-50s which are old, stored airframes. This was a waste of effort.
Still, now it can be said that this is nearly '100% of FMC-part' of the Tu-95MS-fleet, and something like 50% of all the Tu-22M-3s 'still operational as of the last two years' (i.e. well beyond the '30% of the Russian bomber fleet', originally claimed by the SBU).
...and the destruction of (at least) some 6-12 Kh-101s is also 'great news', because the Russians have major problems just with trying to make these. So, this attack blew up 'quite a stock': something like 'half a month of air strikes on Ukraine'.
summary above by Tom Cooper
A few additional observations regarding the recent strike on Russia’s strategic aviation assets may help clarify its scale and implications.
Our team currently assesses the operational strength of the Russian strategic bomber fleet to be approximately 70 to 90 aircraft. A… pic.twitter.com/wF6UPGCdTZ
On my other blogs the French aviation press gets good coverage,especially given that noted author Jean-Louis Roba writes regularly for both 'Avions' and 'Aerojournal' - time to devote more coverage to that other regular on French news stands, 'Le Fana de l'Aviation'. A preview of coverage reposted from Le Fana's own site...current issue features the Mirage I - 'Dassault's master-stroke'. The first flight of a 'Mirage' with delta configuration took place on 25 June 1955. Engines were British Vipers.
Issue 4/75
" ..How many times have we all heard the statement "I'm only interested in " (fill in your own peculiar subject)? A quick look through any Air-Britain questionnaire brings to light members dedicated to a wide variety of highly-specialised subjects. Some even apologise for not having a highly-specialised interest!
In the field of aviation history, one salient fact emerges. As time goes by, few people keep to their original narrow subject to the exclusion of everything else. Someone with no interest in World War One aviation can become intrigued by the background to those far-off days. Usually such lack of interest is due to the general feeling that the Royal Flying Corps and its contemporaries were amateurish organisations flying whatever aircraft they could lay hands on, as and when they could get into the air - a sort of "limp-handkerchief" technology (if it moves it's too windy to fly).
When one looks closer at the RFC (and later the RAF) in World War One, the organisation required to maintain a very large air force in action is strikingly similar to that set up in World War Two. There were operational training units, flying training schools, specialised maritime, fighter and bomber schools and flying instructors schools. In the UK, there were coastal reconnaissance and defensive fighter squadrons as in World War Two and by the Armistice there was a sizeable equivalent of Bomber Command being organised at British bases. All these required a large number of aircraft and airfields and a major organisation in the shape of factories, acceptance and repair units and construction teams. Although airfield construction was not as elaborate as in World War Two, due to the lack of concrete runways and dispersals, many stations were of permanent character and a fair number of buildings of that era still exist to this day.
Once one has accepted that the current organisation of an air force goes back sixty years, then one's interest tends to become retrospective. The theory has been put forward that such interest in the past is a result of nostalgia for remembrances of one's youth - which makes your editors very youthful-looking 80-year-olds.
It is this potential change in interests which governs publications like AM. One does not throw away the parts which are not of immediate interest. One files them and in ten years time perhaps they become the basis for a new interest. We would like to think that some of the odder items may have started a few members off into pastures new. One of the fascinations of aviation history is that there are so many facets to a single subject which have all been concentrated into one lifetime.
As aviation does not operate in a historical (or geographical) vacuum, interest can stray to other fields - military and naval history, for example. Unfortunately, we tend to lose people that way. Nevertheless, the diversions can add immeasurably not only to one's hobby but to the understanding of the background to recent history.
So the moral is - keep your paperwork filed away, you never know when you may want it. And to those who want to know how one keeps track of it all for thirty years, please don't write to us as we have never found out. However, why should we always have to file paper? The next twenty years might see a revolution in information storage and distribution.
After all, the Egyptians were using paper three thousand years ago so it is time someone thought of something different.
They have. It's called microfilm..."
" The Zero has flown! Guided into the air by Museum Chief Pilot Mike Spalding, our Zero took flight today for the first time since World War II. Watch out for more images and information in the coming hours, but for the moment - join us in congratulating the team at Legend Flyers, and in celebrating a key milestone for our collection!.."
" ..THEY ARE PAVING THE WAY FOR INVASION. HAMMERING THE CHANNEL COAST DEFENCES IN DAY- LONG BOMBING RAIDS, THE U.S. NINTH AIR FORCE, UNDER BRIG-GEN. ERGUESADA, OF WASHINGTON, D.C., IS NOW PERFECTING THE TACTICS NECESSATY TO GIVE COMPLETE SUPPORT TO GROUND FORCES IN THE COMING INVASION.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO SHOWS: A QUINTET OF THUNDERBOLT PILOTS OF THE 'US. NINTH AIR FORCE WHO ARE NOW HAMMERING AT HITLER'S COASTAL DEFENCES..."
