Red Arrows Reveal Historic Tail Fin Redesign

The Red Arrows aerobatic team has revealed the first livery change in its history, after unveiling a newly redesigned tail fin.

Sky News was given exclusive access to film the team's nine pilots at RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire as they headed into the skies with their new-look Hawk T1s, featuring elements from the Union Flag.

It replaces a one-off tailfin design brought in for 2014 to mark the Red Arrows' 50th display year.

Squadron Leader David Montenegro, known as Red 1, said: "This year we have put a new tailfin on which really signifies the next 50 years of the team, continuing to represent all of the RAF personnel that protect and defend the United Kingdom."

As the new team leader, it is his job to choreograph the display that will be performed around 80 times between May and September.

"It is a huge task but we do it by a building-block approach.

"Really for me it's visualising how I want the display to be for 2015, putting it on paper and the great bit about doing the job is taking it off the paper and putting it in the air over a five-to-six-month process."

The Red Arrows fly as many as five training sorties a day to get the display absolutely precise and every flight ends with a thorough debrief.

There may only be nine pilots but the whole team, including engineers and essential support staff, totals 120.

Squadron leader Mike Ling is taking questions from Sky News viewers on his job.

Corporal Drew Paxton is one of the so-called circus engineers, selected to travel to displays in the seat directly behind the pilot and carry out vital last-minute checks.

"It's a massive privilege and huge honour to be picked to be a circus engineer as not many people in the Air Force get to do it," he said.

"There are about 80 or 90 engineers ... and if we didn't have them, they are the lifeblood of the squadron, and this squadron simply would not work."

Everything must be checked meticulously, including the potentially life-saving kit worn by the pilots - such as their "anti-G trousers".

Flight Lieutenant Tom Bould, who flies as Red 5, said. "The G-trousers ... once I start pulling G ... will start to inflate.

"When they inflate, my muscles have to tense against them and when they tense against it the blood doesn't pool in my legs.

"It will stay in my torso and that will make it easier to keep the blood pumping to my head because I now have a supply to it from my torso."

But the danger always remains, as was shown in 2011 when flight lieutenants Jon Egging and Sean Cunningham died in separate incidents.

So far, two of the nine planes have received their new tailfin design. The rest will be completed by mid-to-late March, when the Red Arrows head overseas for their spring training.