Red Arrows Begin Atlantic Crossing on Operation Eagle Hawk — Eight Island-Hop Legs to Reach Maryland for America 250 Tour

The Red Arrows are flying their first American tour since 2019. Operation Eagle Hawk kicked off on 17 June with an ambitious month-long journey across the Atlantic, island-hopping toward Maryland by late June. By 19–20 June, all aircraft had touched down in Greenland—the first checkpoint in a multi-stop refueling strategy forced by the Hawk T1’s 750-mile range and complete lack of in-flight refueling capability.

This deployment is historic for the team. Wing Commander Sasha Nash, who took command in January 2026, is the first female Officer Commanding of the Red Arrows—and she’s leading the formation on its most significant international tour since 2019. The display will feature seven Hawks in aerobatic sequence, a deliberate reduction from the traditional formation to preserve spares as the aircraft approaches retirement in 2030. For major state occasions, though, the team will assemble nine jets, including a high-profile 4 July flypast over New York City. The Red Arrows are deploying 11 Hawks total for this operation.

Route and Logistics — A Masterclass in Atlantic Planning

Getting Hawks across the Atlantic is a puzzle. Squadron Leader Stuart Roberts, the team’s Display Supervisor, laid out the challenge: “The aircraft can only travel about 700–750 miles, depending on the weather conditions, in one go. We don’t have any air-to-air refuelling capability, so the routing needs to take us from our base at Waddington all the way around via Iceland, Greenland, Northern Canada, before we finally make it down into the US.”

The team departed RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire on 17 June, transited Scotland, and landed in Iceland the same day before heading north. Each leg demands careful fuel planning, weather assessment, and backup diversion options. Two Airbus A400M Atlas transport aircraft carry engineers and equipment. A Royal Navy P-8 Poseidon provides search-and-rescue overwatch. An Envoy IV communications relay aircraft rounds out the support package—a logistics footprint tested and proved during the successful 2024 “Maple Hawk” Canada tour, which validated this exact routing.

America 250 Showcases — Six Events Across Six Weeks

Once the Hawks reach Martin States Airport in Maryland, the team will fly 13 confirmed display appearances across six major events:

Sail 250 Maryland & Airshow Baltimore (27–28 June) is the immediate American kickoff. Then comes the crown jewel: the International Aerial Review over New York City on 4 July. Wing Commander Jon Bond, the team’s Red 1 and Team Leader, told the BBC: “We’ve got a massive flypast over New York on the 4th of July, with an incredible amount of aeroplanes… I’ve been told there’ll be in excess of 140 or 150 aeroplanes, with many nations taking part.” The Canadian Forces Snowbirds and over 100 allied aircraft will participate in what could be the largest peacetime aerial review in recent history.

The FourLeaf Air Show at Jones Beach, New York (5–6 July) follows next, keeping momentum on the East Coast. Mid-July brings a westward shift: the Great State of Maine Air Show in Brunswick (11–12 July), then Thunder Over Michigan at Willow Run, Ypsilanti (17–19 July), and finally EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, Wisconsin (24–26 July)—the world’s largest general aviation airshow, attracting over half a million spectators annually.

Wing Commander Nash said: “I hope the Red Arrows’ trademark combination of close formation flying, speed and world-class precision will excite and inspire the hundreds of thousands of people attending these shows.”

What’s Next

The next confirmed milestone is arrival in Maryland and the debut at Sail 250 Maryland & Airshow Baltimore on 27–28 June. More U.S. appearances may be announced in coming weeks. The Red Arrows will remain deployed through late July, with the Oshkosh finale marking the end of Operation Eagle Hawk before the return flight to Waddington.