Red Arrows to get new jets replacing ageing Hawk

Red Arrows to get new jets replacing ageing Hawk highlights the UK government’s decision to refresh the Royal Air Force display team’s fleet as part of a wider military-spending boost. The defence investment plan commits the Ministry of Defence to invest £360m in developing a new British Jet Trainer System, explicitly including “new jets for the Red Arrows to replace the ageing Hawk”. The Hawk entered service in the 1980s, and last month the team said it would fly with fewer aircraft at most displays to extend the type’s lifespan. Former Red Arrows pilot Andy Wyatt welcomed the announcement, calling it “much-needed certainty”. The DIP also allocates £1.1bn to upgrade RAF Typhoon fighters at RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire, while planning early retirement for the Shadow R1 surveillance aircraft based at RAF Waddington.