Posted by athompson on 8/1/2009 1:20 PM Life, Photography    airshow, riat, friat, fairford, raf, uk, england

RIAT, for the uninitiated, is the Royal International Air Tattoo. It is an annual event which is currently housed at RAF Fairford, in Gloucestershire, England. Fairford is on loan to the US Air Force, but each July it opens its doors to the public for RIAT.

RIAT supports the work of the Royal Air Force Charitable Trust. http://www.rafcte.com

Yes, there is Farnborough and Paris, but this is the Largest Military Air Show in the World. Two-plus miles of static displays and constant flying from 10am ‘til 6pm. And I mean constant, there is an aircraft in front of you all the time.

They have one or more themes each year; 2009 was the 100th anniversary of Royal Navy aviation, NATO’s 60th Anniversary, and Sea Search ‘09.

Admittedly, 2009 was not the greatest one I have attended, what with most military aviation being tied-up in one conflict or another. There was a distinct lack of anything from Mig or Sukhoi, but it was still very enjoyable.

It was certainly better than 2008, when the entire event was rained-off because the off-base car parking (“field”) was flooded. Over 170,000 people attend this event, so lack of parking would have been a problem!

I like this event.

But, having said that, there are events a week-or-so either side, where you can see much the same aircraft in the air and for less money. They hey-day of RIAT (or IAT as it was) for me was when you could see enemies parked next to each other in the mid/late 90’s. Aircraft which had only ever been seen testing the UK air defences, parked on the ground. A B52 parked nose-to-nose with a TU-95 Bear. Mig’s and Sukhoi’s displaying (yes, and crashing) on British soil. Incredible.

But, if you want to see more national air display teams in one place than you can shake a stick at, this is usually the place to be. I remember when the new Denver airport was being built and they staged an air display. They were so impressed that they had a three display teams on the roster. At RIAT around that time, they had twelve.

As I said, 2009 was a ‘weak’ year.

But I still recommend it.

When I attend, more often than not, I will buy a FRIAT package (Friends of RIAT). Not cheap, but having a special enclosure, grandstand, left luggage, etc etc, is (mostly) worth it. Two of the three packages include access on pre- and post-show days to watch arrivals, practice, and departures.

Click here for some 2009 images.

Will I be there in 2010? I believe that I will.

If you go too, just remember that you will need sunscreen and rain gear. And you will use both!