Trooping the Colour: When is the flypast, what aircraft will participate and official route

Seventy military aircraft are set to fly over Buckingham Palace at the weekend as part of the Trooping the Colour for the King’s birthday. The Red Arrows will be joined by some familiar aircraft including Spitfires and the RAF Battle of Britain Memorial flight, which includes the Hurricanes.

On Saturday, June 17, King Charles III and Queen Camilla will take to the balcony of Buckingham Palace alongside other members of the royal family to watch the aircraft fly over London. Like most royal celebrations the armed forces are set to play a key role in the Trooping of the Colour.

The flypast is expected to be similar, if not what was initially planned for the coronation flypast which was cancelled due to the rain. However the display has been upgraded from the originally planned 60 aircraft to 70 to celebrate the occasion

Seventy aircraft will take to the skies during the display that will feature aircraft from the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force and will fly over The Mall in central London before making their way over the top of the iconic palace. The Red Arrows display team are normally the last to fly in the display, sending out red, white and blue smoke as they fly over Buckingham Palace.

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.”

When will the flypast be?

The flypast will take place in the afternoon on June 17, following the Trooping of the Colour. The display will begin at 1pm, with the first aircraft making their way over Buckingham Palace before the Red Arrows close the event at 1.06pm.

Which aircraft will feature in the Trooping of the Colour flypast?

The Trooping the Colour flypast will feature 70 aircraft including the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight (BBMF), which dates back to the 1940s and the C-130 Hercules, that will be flying on its final ceremonial flight before retiring from service.

The flypast will also feature multiple Typhoon fighter jet aircraft and the Envoy IV CC1, which will make its flypast debut. At the front of the Trooping the Colour will be a Juno HT1 and will finish with the iconic RAF Red Arrows.

Here are the aircraft in formation that are set to fly:

1. Juno HT1 - x3
2. Wildcat HMA2 & Merlin HM2 - x2
3. Wildcat AH1 & Apache - x4
4. Wildcat AH1 & Merlin Mk4 - x2
5. Chinook x3 & Puma HC2
6. BBMFLancaster, Hurricane x2 and Spitfire
7. Phenom T1 & Texan T1 - x4
8. C-130J Hercules -x3 
9. C-17 Globemaster III
10. Voyager and A400m Atlas
11. Poseidon MRA1 & Typhoon - x2 
12. F-35B Lightning - x6
13. Typhoon FGR4 
14. Envoy IV
15. Red Arrows 

What routes will the aircraft take during the flypast?

The official route  has been announced ahead of the Trooping of the Colour flypast by Military Air shows.The site has created a map revealing the flight path of the aircraft for Saturday (June 17).

Most of the aircraft will get into position off the Norfolk coastline before making their way over Colchester and down to London. Restricted airspace over England can give a good idea as to the route most of the aircraft will take to get into formation.