Friday Night’s SkyDrive London 2025

The RCAF’s Snowbirds performed at the Airshow London during the “golden hour” sunset lighting

Photos by Shawn Byers and Ken Kula, story by Ken Kula

According to Airshow London, it has been named “the Best Air Show in North America by USA Today’s 10 Best Contest in 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025”. That’s a pretty high praise, and all of the credit is coming from the show’s spectators each year. What makes the show a yearly sell-out, and why is it so popular? Three concepts come to mind: 1) it’s a legitimate three-day air and ground show, 2) the “Skydrive” format seems to be quite appealing, and 3) the participating static display aircraft and flying performers, especially the active military and recently added warbirds has evolved to equal and surpass the historic past of the old London International Air Show’s world-class standard.

USAF C-5M Galaxy was silhouetted by the setting sun

USMC MV-22A Osprey bathed in the sunset’s warm glow

The three-day event adds the opportunity to see flying in a different light – an evening air show on Friday offers very different lighting from a morning to mid-afternoon weekend show, and the addition of dusk and after-darkness afterburner passes, plus this year’s GhostWriter show were special treats seldom seen. Although the evening began with a mid-level overcast, it broke up as the sun got lower on the horizon, and most of the clouds had cleared out to offer a beautifully clear night sky by the end of the flying events.

Nighttime aerial pyrotechnics by Nate Hammond in his GhostWriter act 

Let’s review the 2025 Friday Evening Skydrive air show, which summed up why the show is so popular. Instead of paraphrasing the description of what is the Skydrive, let’s take the description and anecdotes directly from the show’s web site:

The Skydrive concept

As seen from the Blue Zone parking area, a New Jersey-based F-16 Fighting Falcon arrives during the Friday evening’s opening at the 2025 SkyDrive in London, Ontario

The Skydrive format began shortly after Covid shutdown restrictions were relaxed, it allowed people to attend the show without coming into close contact with others… in fact, the first show didn’t have a static display at all, spectators just stayed in or near their vehicles for safety to see a full flying show. Today, a full static display is presented; it carries the same quality and wide-ranging variety as did the pre-Covid Airshow London and earlier London International Air Show events for which the show is famous for. Here’s a run-down of what the Friday evening air show offered in 2025: 

The Static Display

This specially painted F-15 Eagle was from the Oregon Air National Guard, and would soon be retired to the AMARG Boneyard after the show

A South Carolina Air National Guard “Swamp Fox” F-16 wears special Wing colors

Airshow London’s static display has always been full of military aircraft of diverse types. It’s a great time to see Canadian military aircraft from the oldest to the newest. This year a new CC-330 Husky tanker/transport was shown, it is a multi-role Airbus A-330 conversion of a passenger jet. Older RCAF aircraft included a quartet of trainers – CH-139 and CH-146 helicopters, plus CT-102 and CT-145 fixed wing aircraft. All four types are scheduled to be replaced with newer models during the next few years. The U. S. Air Force, Air National Guard, Navy, Marines and Coast Guard were all represented on the ground and in the air too. Colorful Air National Guard F-15C and F-16C fighters, and a Navy E-2D Hawkeye wore some noticeable color schemes. 

Warbirds

Timmermans Legends of Flight Spitfire and Mustang 

London-based ITPS Grumman HU-16 Albatross

Timmermans Hunting Percival Provost on static display 

The inclusion of warbirds at a London air show is a relatively new addition and are well received. The Timmermans Legends of Flight displayed their Spitfire Mk. XVIII, TF-51D Mustang, FG-1D Corsair, Sea Fury FB.11 and a Harvard IV. Additionally, another Harvard Mk.II and a Hunting Percival Provost trainer joined the warbird area… some flew during the daytime shows on Saturday and Sunday. The International Test Pilot School’s HU-16 Albatross was parked with the larger military transports up the ramp from the aforementioned single engines planes. 

The Flying Show: Arrival of a pair of Atlantic City based F-16s to open the show

New Jersey Air National Guard F-16 in striking colors arrives at London

Part of the fun at an Airshow London event are the military jets’ arrival to the airport. Normally, fighters will do up to three low passes with strong pitch ups close to the end of the runway for training. A pair of Atlantic-City New Jersey based F-16s opened the evening’s air show by arriving from the south and made their three approaches each, initially ending with an “overshoot” – that is a low pass and return to the downwind leg for another approach. There’s lots of afterburner noise during arrivals!

US Navy’s VFA-106 F/A-18F Super Hornet Demo

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VFA-106 Super Hornet during a rejected landing demonstration… the Weapons and Sensor Operator in the rear seat salutes the crowd

The US Navy’s VFA-106 Gladiators Fleet Replacement Squadron (FRS) serves as the home unit for the Navy’s East Coast Super Hornet Demonstration Team. The NAS Oceana-based team flies a F/A-18F Super Hornet taken from the squadron’s assigned aircraft. With the relatively flat geography of the London area, the 2 aviators and their jet seemed quite low at times as it showed off a lot (but not all) of its performance capabilities. More afterburner noise here too.

Twin Beech and Diamonds dissimilar formation

Diamond Aircraft Industries DA-62 flying with a Beech Expeditor in RCAF colors, another Diamond Aircraft product, a DA-50 RG single engined plane is just outside of this photo to the right

Diamond Aircraft Industries has a Flight Center training and production facility at the London International Airport. The Diamond 62 twin and Diamond DA-50RG are mainly European products, but are found to be operated across North America in good numbers

USAF’s F-22 Raptor Demo

Many of the US Air Force’s F-22A Raptors are based in Virginia, at the Langley Air Force Base. The Raptor Demonstration team is based there, and the team and its two jets made a short trip from there to reach London. On Friday evening, the cloud deck began to rise as the Raptor got airborne, so the flight demonstration had to dance around a few cumulus clouds, but they didn’t affect a full performance. Indeed, the afterburners glowed brightly, and yet again there was much afterburner noise!

The Snowbirds Flight Demonstration Team

The RCAF’s Snowbirds flight demonstration team showed off their graceful and polished performance with their nine CT-114 Tutor jets reflecting the now-bright sunshine in the early evening. 

The KC-135R Demo team

Coming from Altus AFB in Oklahoma, the Air Mobility Command’s flight demonstration team consists of the C-17A Globemaster III and the KC-135R Stratotanker. While both aircraft normally fly together during the day airshows, only the tanker flew during the evening show. The “Y” markings on the tail are a throwback to the 97th Air Mobility Wing’s World War II roots.

The USCG’s MH-65 and MH-60 Flying and Rescue Demonstration

A Coast Guard rescue demonstration isn’t that uncommon at an air show but having two dissimilar type helicopters participate in one display is.  London’s Friday night display was bathed in warm golden hour sunset light. Both helicopters are based at Michigan facilities… the top MH-65 is based at CGAS Detroit (note the Detroit Tigers “D” on the tail, and the MH-60 on the bottom came in from CGAS Traverse City.

The USMC’s MV-22 Osprey Demo

The US Marine Corps MV-22A Osprey transport showed off the wide range of handling capabilities the aircraft utilizes during various missions. From hovering over the runway in helicopter mode to a high-speed pass in airplane mode, the Osprey’s crew did it all as the sun was low on the horizon.

The Red Knight CT-133 Demo

As the sun was setting, the Red Knight CT-133 Silver Star made a series of passes over the runway. The Red Knight was a famous military performer when the RCAF still flew the Silver Star as an active military jet trainer, this aircraft is now privately owned and a proud warbird still showing off in authentic colors.

RCAF CF-188 Hornets arrive from Cold Lake

After sunset, a pair of RCAF CF-188 Hornets arrived from CFB Cold Lake Alberta and “beat up” the field with many approaches and overshoots. While the RCAF has ended their traditional CF-188 flight demonstration team, several “tactical flight demonstrations” are still on the air show calendar, and the Airshow London weekend was one of these. Although the full tactical demo wasn’t performed on Friday night, there was a lot of afterburner and yes, more afterburner noise too.

The Ghost Writer night show

New to the Friday evening show was a civilian performer with pyrotechnics. The GhostWriter is a modified DHC Chipmunk trainer equipped with a large amount of flares, fireworks and sparklers, plus a set of lights on its wings and fuselage for added effect. Now in the darkened sky – except for the almost-full moon – Nate Hammond drew many excited gasps and exclamations of approval as he wove his tapestry of light in front of the crowd. After he landed, the crowd began to leave the grounds… but then a full ground-based fireworks display began with more bright colors and noise!

Airshow London definitely has a number of satisfying attributes which rightly capture praise from spectators. The scope of the show, the Skydrive concept of attendance and parking, and Friday evening’s golden hour (OK, three and a half hour) sunset air show were all spectacular. And we haven’t even begun discussing the Saturday and Sunday shows. For further information and a look at this past air show, go to:  https://airshowlondon.com/