Part 1: 2024 Royal International Air Tattoo – Arrivals
Story and photos by Del Laughery
Every year, over 100,000 people, 1,500 exhibitors, and nearly 100 civil and military aircraft descend on RAF Fairford to participate in the Royal International Air Tattoo air show. It’s touted as the largest air show in the world, and whether that’s true or not, it’s the best show I’ve been to for a number of reasons, and only some of those reasons are what aircraft are there and how they’re displayed, both in the air and statically.
First, the air show is three days long. There’s an abbreviated show on Friday, and two full shows Saturday and Sunday. Okay, that’s not much to write home about when it comes to air show schedules, but the organizers of the show have broken the code on how to fulfill the secret wishes of aviation fanatics and photographers like me. They offer tickets to be on the show grounds during the two full days of aircraft arrivals and the one action-packed day of departures. Yes, that’s right, attend during these days and you get to see and photograph aircraft that are only on static display during the show days.
For my money, these are the best days to be there. I’m not knocking the show, mind you. It’s terrific. But the arrival and departure days give you a flying glimpse at everything that will be on the field. U.S. domestic shows offer no such opportunity, which is a shame in my book as well as a missed opportunity for the U.S. Military to garner some free press.
The photos included in this article are limited to arrival shots taken on Wednesday and Thursday. Please check out Jeff Serpa’s article and photos from the show here: https://photorecon.net/raf-fairford-riat-2024/. It’s my hope that you enjoy them all.
