France
End in sight for French nuclear Boeings
With all the C-135FRs now replaced with Airbus A330 MRTTs, the final three French Boeing KC-135RGs of the 4/31 Sologne Refueling Squadron are all that is left of the mighty Boeing fleet. Frédéric Lert details how their retirement is now planned for 2025
Yorkshire Air Museum ‘Hurricane’ honours French night-fighter hero
Elvington’s Yorkshire Air Museum (YAM) has repainted its full-scale Hawker Hurricane replica into a night-fighter scheme to honour Lt Col Yves Mahé, a French pilot that served with 253 Squadron.
How Air France and airport operator Groupe ADP prepared for the Paris Olympics
Competitors, delegates and fans flooded into Paris for the Olympic Games and more will be attending the upcoming Paralympic Games. Richard Schuurman spoke to Air France and Groupe ADP to find out how they prepared for the influx
Debut for privately owned Turbo Firecat
Conair Turbo Firecat F-AYFT, owned by the Amicale Alençonnaise des Avions Anciens and based at Alençon in northern France, made its first public appearance in the association’s hands in the static park at the Royal International Air Tattoo at RAF Fairford on 19-21 July.
How the Qatari air force has assisted with Paris Olympic Games security
The Qatar Emiri Air Force (QEAF) utilized its C-17A Globemaster III heavy-lift strategic transport fleet to establish an air bridge between Al Udeid Air Base, near Doha in Qatar, and Paris-Le Bourget Airport, France, from July 9-11 to deliver security forces to assist their French counterparts during the 2024 Summer Olympic Games, writes Babak Taghvaee.
Metrea acquires French air force Stratotanker fleet
Metrea has completed the acquisition of the French Air and Space Force’s (FASF) KC-/C-135 aerial refuelling fleet.
RAF joins major exercises in Indo-Pacific
The Royal Air Force has sent aircraft and personnel to participate in two major exercises in the Indo-Pacific region.
DC-3 D-Day Squadron plans for Overlord 80th anniversary
The D-Day Squadron, a mini-US aerial armada, is returning to Europe to mark the 80th anniversary of the Normandy landings. The Squadron’s Moreno Aguiari told Tom Allett about the organisation’s forthcoming transatlantic adventure
French photo-mapping B-17s that flew on into the 1980s
As of 1960, aircraft belonging to France’s Institut Géographique National had reputedly performed photo-mapping of more than 60 per cent of the world. A fleet of B-17 Flying Fortresses contributed much to this impressive feat, and the IGN kept them operating until the eighties, from the North Pole to deepest Africa
B-17G crash memorial ceremony
A commemorative ceremony will be held in the town of Cornebarrieu, near Toulouse in southwest France, on May 7, 2024 to remember a US Army Air Force navigator killed on a June 1944 mission.