Blue Eagles
Blue Eagles History
The aerobatic team of The Aviation Army Corps of The Royal Air Force Blue Eagles is founded in the spring in 1968 by five instructors of Aviation Army School at the base Middle Wallop. With the help of five helicopters Bell-47G3B1 Sioux which were taken from The School, the instructors made demonstrations in their free time in the summer and with their participation in airshow in Farnborough in the same year, they evoked real furor. On the grounds of the success in the first season the team received standing statute. Blue Eagles took part in aviation holidays in Iceland, Scotland and Germany until 1974. However The Army Corps didn't have possibility to support standing aerobatic team and it was made a decision about its transforming. Fortunately, a group of enthusiasts of the school in Middle Wallop formed an aerobatic team on volunteers basis and they worked out in their free time. They changed several names: Eagles, Army Eagles, Sparrow - hawks, Silver Eagles and flew in formations with different machines like Sioux, Gazelle, Lynx and Scout, and sometimes they flew in formations using historical airplanes and helicopters.
In 1992 called Eagles the team fit out with four helicopters and in next year The Army Corps in view of that had limited Lynx who is too necessary for The Corps, made a decision to refurnish the team with one Lynx and four Westland / Aerospatiale Gazelle called Silver Eagles. In 1994 the team regained its present name Blue Eagles.
For the first time in the team during the season 2001 one woman is appointed like a aerobatic pilot and this fact is a precedent on a world scale.
What are The Blue Eagles
The team has one helicopter Lynx AH Mk1 and four Gazelle SA341B. By contrast with other teams the leader isn't a commander of the team. The commander's position is realized by a officer of The Army Corps. The leader flies on Lynx with a call sign Eagle 1. The assistant pilot flies on Lynx too and he helps the leader watches the other helicopters. At the same time the leader makes one of the most amazing maneuvers. The land support of the team is realized by 8 persons: a manager of the team who bears the responsibility about the presentation of the team at the audience - he gets into the first contact of the audience with the team in the form as talks; a head of the land insurance; a head of the vehicles; a photographer; a inspector; a inspector of avionics and two mechanics.
The show of Blue Eagles includes many and varied formation maneuvers, cross-over in different directions, etc. and the most amazing are performances of loop and wing-over which are realized by Lynx. The machines aren't colored specially for the team and they are equipped with smoke-generator who drops orange full-blast.
