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PRESS INFORMATION 2020

The Blades Aerobatic Team is the only aerobatic airline in the world, flying dynamic displays and passengers in close formation, with the same safety standards as the European airlines.

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About the blades

Now entering their 15th display season, with over 25,000 hours of flying between them, the pilots of the world-famous Blades Aerobatic Team are amongst the most experienced display pilots in the world.

The team performs its globally recognised display to approximately four million spectators every year. With former RAF Red Arrows pilots at the controls, the team demonstrates the ‘Best of British’ ethos and style in everything they do.

Flying precision, close-formation aerobatics, in 2020 the Blades embark on new adventures to the UAE.

As the only aerobatic display team fully sanctioned by the Civil Aviation Authority to fly fare-paying passengers in close formation, the Blades Aerobatic Team is able to offer ‘Unforgettable Experiences’ from its base in Northamptonshire.

• Only Aerobatic Airline in the world• The Blades’ full time pilots are all former Red Arrows• World Formation Aerobatic Challenge 2017 Champions in China • World Record holders for the highest number of consecutive loops• More than 1000 displays performed

2006

April 06

2018

2018

2011

2019

2017

2015

2012

2017

2006

2008

2018

2007

2009

Blades formed by Andy Offer &

Chris Norton

First corporate event

The Blades Racing Team is launched

for the Red Bull Air Race Master Class

Ben Murphy & the Blades Racing Team have most

successful rookie season in the RBAR Master class

5th Extra 300 purchased

Longest serving Red Arrow, Mike Ling joins the Blades

Ben Murphy takes over as Head of the Blades

Events Team established and supports the launch of the Blades-inspired Aston

Martin Vantage model

Mark Cutmore takes over as Blade 1

The Blades win the Formation Aerobatic

Challenge in China

Blades Aerobatic Team’s 1000th display and launch of the Blades Flight Club

First public display at “Beckingham Palace”

First sponsor joins (Barclays)

Longest serving Blades pilot, Andy Evans becomes Blade 1

First overseas deployment in

Bahrain Myles Garland something takes over as Blade 1

2019 2016

First female pilot, Kirsty Murphy joins

2019

First display at Dubai Airshow

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Performing in front of live audiences of approximately four million people a year, the Blades display is designed to showcase the performance and capabilities of the Extra 300 as an aerobatic stunt plane.

Undertaking aerobatic manoeuvres less than four metres apart in perfect formation, executing high-speed synchronised passes and extreme gyroscopic aerobatics, the team has won not only crowd loyalty, but also international accolades with their cutting-edge displays.

• Demonstrates over 30 separate awe-inspiring manoeuvres

• During the 15 minute display each aircraft covers 25 ‘air miles’

• The aircraft reach speeds of more than 200 miles per hour, with crossing speeds of around 350 miles per hour

• The Blades Aerobatic Display Team is one of very few display teams which is permitted to arrive at a public display over the heads of the crowds

• The Blades are a leading display team renowned worldwide for flying precision and close-formation aerobatics to the highest level. Since the team began in 2006, The Blades have flown hundreds of displays throughout the UK, Europe, Asia and the Middle-East.

Dynamic display

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2020 marks Andy’s third season as Blade 1 and Team Leader. He was one of the original co-founding members of the team in 2006, and has spent the majority of his seasons splitting his flying between the Blade 2 and 4 positions.

With an impressive 8,500 flying hours, Andy is one of the most experienced display pilots in the world with almost 3,000 hours spent flying the Extra 300. He also uses his experience as a Qualified Flying Instructor to teach aerobatics. As the Team Leader, he commands the team during the displays, and manages the itinerary.

Andy joined the RAF in 1985 as a member of Yorkshire Universities Air Squadron, and was awarded his wings in 1989. A former Jaguar pilot, Andy flew on operations over the Balkans and spent three years as the Air Show Advisor to the Royal Saudi Air Force National Aerobatic Team. Andy is also a former Red Arrow pilot, flying with the Team between 1997 and 2000 in positions Red 2, 4 and then 8. After his third year, he subsequently became the first Red Arrow’s pilot to stay at Scampton and work with the Team as the Manager, flying as Red 10.

Blade 1, Andy evansFormer Red Arrows Pilot

& Team Manager (Red10)

A Co-founding member of The Blades

Qualified Flying Instructor

Front line Jaguar Pilot in the Royal Air Force

a total of Over 8,500 flying hours

One of the most experienced Extra 300 pilots in the world

(3,000 flying hours)

Flown over 1200 public & private displays

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Kirsty joined the Blades in spring 2016 in the Blade 3 position, and now flies as Blade 2. Previously she was in the RAF for 17 years, where she flew the Tornado GR4 operationally in Iraq and she was also a Qualified Flying Instructor on the Hawk T1. Kirsty was also the first, and is still, the only female RAF pilot to be selected for the Red Arrows, displaying with them between 2010 and 2012. In her final year with the team she was selected to be the Executive Officer. In total she flew 136 public displays and 133 flypasts in 11 countries.

Kirsty also supports a number of high-end events as a Blades Events Consultant. She organises mulitple prestigious events such as the Red Arrows Vanquish handover event at RAF Scampton and most recently the handover of 24 Aston Martin DBS59 limited edition cars at Le Mans.

Kirsty is married to Ben Murphy and mum to their young son, Orson.

• 5th season with the team

• An instructor on the Extra 300

• First, and only to date, female Red ArroW’s pilot

• Aviation Ambassador for the department of transport

• events consultant for the blades

BLADE 2 Kirsty Murphy

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Mike joined the Blades from the Royal Air Force and as the longest-serving pilot in the Red Arrows. He completed 10 years on the team including four display seasons flying as part of the Diamond 9 formation and six years commentating and supervising.

At the end of his final season in 2018, Mike hung up his red suit having flown 2585 sorties in Red Arrows aircraft, played a part in 700 public displays and taken the Hawk jet to 46 different countries; as far west as New York and as far east as China.

Having joined the Royal Air Force after finishing his A-levels, Mike’s first tour was teaching Basic Fast Jet Training on the Tucano, where he achieved Qualified Flying Instructor status at the age of 22.

After his instructional duties Mike trained for 8 months in Canada and was then posted to RAF Leuchars in Scotland to fly the Tornado F3 as an air defence pilot, including operations as part of the Quick Reaction Alert force responsible for securing the skies of the UK and the Falkland Islands.

2020 is Mike’s second season with The Blades after 21 years in the RAF and a record 10 years in the Red Arrows.

• longest ever serving red arrow’s pilot

• 2585 sorties in the red arrows aircraft

• qualified flying instructor on the extra 300

BLADE 3 mike ling (lingy)

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Ben joined the team in 2015 as Blade 2, and became the Team Leader in 2017, before handing over leadership to

Andy Evans for the 2018 display season. Before joining the Blades, Ben flew fast jets, including the Harrier. In 2006, Ben

was selected to join the Red Arrows and flew as Red 2, and then as synchro pair leader. He led the team during 2010 and

2011.

2018 saw him join 13 other elite race pilots in the Master Class of the Red Bull Air Race World Championship; in his

first season, the Blades Racing Team finished 7th, which was the best ever result for a Challenger Class pilot moving up

into the Master Class.

BLADE 3 &Race team pilot

ben Murphy

• 6th season with the team

• Most successful Rookie Race pilot to finish the RBar world championship

• 4th Overall in the 2019 RBAR World Championship

• Previous Leader of the Red Arrows and The Blades

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2020 is James’ third season with The Blades Aerobatic Team, joining directly from RAF Coningsby, where he flew the Typhoon on the Operational Conversion Unit. Despite being born in the UK, James’ family moved to New Zealand when he was ten, where his passion for fast-jets resulted in him being selected for the RNZAF whilst in his final year at school. He was selected for fast-jet training flying the Aermacchi MB339, becoming the youngest qualified fast-jet pilot in the RNZAF at the age of 20. Due to the RNZAF disbanding the fast-jet programme, James accepted an offer from the RAF and he returned to the UK in 2002. He completed his training on the Hawk T1 and he was selected to be a first tour flying instructor in 2003 teaching advanced jet training to students at RAF Valley. In 2006, James completed his Tactical Weapons Course and was selected to fly the Harrier where he served with 1(F) Sqn at RAF Cottesmore, flying in Afghanistan directly supporting UK and coalition troops on the ground. In 2011, James was selected to fly for The Red Arrows, and in 2014 he became Synchro Leader. He left the RAF in early 2018 with 3,000 flying hours.

• Fast-jet pilot for the RNZAF at the age of 20

• Front line Harrier pilot

• Typhoon instructor

• Ex Red Arrow’s pilot

• Also flies in the blade 2 position

BLADE 4 james mcmillan

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Arthur is one of the UK’s most recognisable Aviation and Paralympic sports broadcasters, identified by Channel 4 in 2010. Arthur received rave reviews for his presentation of Channel 4’s Paralympic Games 2012, as well as being named by BAFTA as a ‘breakthrough brit’ and nominated for a Grierson award for best documentary presenter. Joining the Royal Marines from school, Arthur specialised in signals and data transfer and served in Sierra Leone before a crash in 2017 forced a change in his future. Not one to give up, Arthur qualified as a pilot before being identified by Channel 4 as a rising talent. Over the last eight years Arthur has presented four paralympic games, three aviation documentary series and a multitude of one off specialist factual films.Aside from media work, Arthur has strong partnerships with a number of corporate clients including Embraer, NATS and charity partners, ‘the people’s mosquito’.

• Paralympic games presenter

• aviation documentary presenter

• holds a ppl

• second season with the blades as a guest commentator

guest commentator arthur williams

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WING SPAN: 8m

LENGTH: 6.96m

NEVER EXCEED SPEED: 220KTS

MANOUEVRING SPEED: 158KTS

EMPTY WEIGHT: 685KG

CERTIFIED TO: +/- 10G

PROPELLOR TYPE: 3-BLADED MTV-9

RANGE: 350NM

SEATS: 2

the aircraftextra 300

A low-wing, high performance aircraft designed for the most advanced aerobatic manoeuvres.

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UNFORGETTABLE FLYING EXPERIENCES

Cutting Edge. Dynamic. Exhilarating. A flying experience with the Blades is truly unforgettable.

The Blades’ Extra 300L aircraft, flown by former Red Arrows pilots, will take to the sky and loop, spin and roll, allowing guests to experience the breath-taking exhilaration of close formation aerobatics.

Each flight is highly flexible to meet the individual passenger’s comfort level. The pilot will adapt the flight accordingly so everyone achieves a specially tailored flight experience.

Whether you are an individual, a small private party or a large corporate group, the Blades deliver a range of ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ events suitable for your requirements.

“i never wanted it to end and can’t wait for the next time i can go flying. i am so lucky to have experienced this and would recommend it to any adrenaline seeker .” Zana Gradus

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Partners

The Blades are delighted that for a sixth consecutive year, the 2020 prime sponsor for the team is Aerobytes, a world-leading flight safety Flight Data Monitoring (FDM) software-company, with over 210 airline customers.

The Blades charity partner for a sixth consecutive year is the RAF Benevolent Fund. The RAF Benevolent Fund provides assistance and support to any member of the RAF family. Since the partnership began, the Blades Team has raised over £110,000 for the charity and are looking to add to this in the charity’s centenary year.

Visit the team’s website: www.theblades.com

To book your flight with the Blades, please contact Josephine Ashpole: josephine.ashpole@theblades.com

For general event and PR enquiries, please email: Hannah Jones: hannahjones@theblades.com or call on: +44 (0)1604 671309

Check out the team’s social media channels:

Twitter: @thebladesteam Facebook: @TheBladesOffical

Instagram: thebladesofficalLinkedIn: The Blades