They met with their Croatian counterparts “Wings of Storm”.
The Red Arrows aerobatic display team from the United Kingdom arrived in Zadar with its 11 airplanes (BAE HAWK T-1) to visit the aerobatic display group of the Croatian Air Force “Wings of Storm”, reports Antena Zadar on June 3, 2017.
Members of the aerobatic team were greeted by UK Ambassador Andrew Dalgleish, Assistant Defence Minister Petar Mihatov, Chief of Staff of the Air Force Base Colonel Mario Pleša, as well as pilots and leaders of the “Wings of Storm”, Darko Belančić and Damir Barišić.
When they arrived at the Zemunik airport near Zadar, the Red Arrows made a ceremonial overfly, followed by a meeting with Wings of Storm members.
British Ambassador Andrew Dalgleish expressed his satisfaction with the visit of the British aerobatic group, which is the result of cooperation and friendship between the two national aerobatic groups, as well as the partnership of the ministries of defense. “We have had excellent cooperation with the Croatian army and navy, and now we have expanded it to our air forces as well. We want to intensify our cooperation further and this is an excellent example of our countries’ partnership,” said Dalgleish.
The leader of the Red Arrows, Major David Montenegro, was pleased that members of his group were in Zadar and added that the Wings of Storm were an excellent team. “The aerobatic elements performed by the Wings of Storm are extremely demanding, and therefore they have our respect. Our wish is to organise joint activities of our groups when we fly to or from Cyprus, where we practice our flying program”, said Montenegro.
The leader of the Wings of Storm, Captain Darko Belančić, pointed out that they were pleased to welcome one of the world’s most famous aerobatic groups. “During our last meeting at the Royal International Air Tattoo last year, when we won the prize for the best overall performance, we initiated the idea of a possible visit of the Red Arrows to Zadar,” said Belančić.
The British aerobatic group RAF Red Arrows was founded in 1965 and has so far performed more than 4,800 displays in 57 countries worldwide. The full program includes about 25 elements and takes about 25 minutes. The Red Arrows are recognisable by their dynamic and attractive maneuvers accompanied by the colours of the British flag. The whole Red Arrows squadron consists of about 120 members.
The first joint appearance of the Wings of Storm and the Red Arrows took place at the international air show on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Frecce Tricolori in 2010 in Italy.
