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Seventy military aircraft will take to the skies on Saturday in a flypast for King Charles.
Members of the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force will all form part of the spectacular display that had initially been scheduled for the day of the Coronation but was cancelled at the last minute due to bad weather.
The aircraft will take-off in the morning from 15 different locations across the UK, say government planners, before joining up across the south-east of England and flying towards London.
The rearranged flypast now forms part of Trooping the Colour – or the King’s Birthday Parade – which is to be the first one King Charles has attended as monarch.
Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton said: “We are very proud to be able to showcase our capabilities to our Commander-in-Chief, on this historic occasion for His Majesty the King.
“We have planned a fitting and appropriate tribute for our monarch, that should be a true spectacle for the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth.”
Saturday’s display will feature a mix of aircraft ranging from the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight dating back to the 1940s and the C-130 Hercules on its final ceremonial flight before retiring from service,
There will also be multiple Typhoon fighter jets and an Envoy IV CC1, making its flypast debut.
At the front of the flypast will be a Juno HT1 piloted by Flight Lieutenant Tom Knapp from 60 Squadron, No.1 Flying Training School based at RAF Shawbury.
The event will culminate in a spectacular show of red, white and blue from the pilots of the RAF Red Arrows – who were among only a small handful of personnel able to fly in difficult conditions on the day of the Coronation in early May.
Many of the aircraft that will be seen over The Mall and Buckingham Palace on Saturday afternoon, have been actively involved in operations around the world this year including NATO Air Policing missions in eastern Europe and the evacuation of British citizens from Sudan.
Air Officer Commanding 1 Group, Air Vice-Marshal Mark Flewin added: “It is a great honour to be part of His Majesty the King’s Birthday celebrations, where the flypast is an opportunity for us to showcase formation, precision and excellence in the air to our Commander-in-Chief on such a special occasion.”
The King’s Birthday Flypast will follow Trooping the Colour, which takes place on Horse Guards Parade in the centre of London in the morning.
More than 1,400 soldiers are involved in that event along with 200 horses and 400 musicians and it begins at 10am, finishing shortly before 12.30pm.
It is then anticipated that members of the Royal household will move to the Palace balcony ahead of the flypast, which is expected to arrive over the capital at around 1pm.