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Formation flying: how display teams fly a metre apart

At an airshow, nine jets pass in front of you almost touching at hundreds of kilometres an hour, then fan apart and meet again perfectly lined up. It is not magic and it is not an autopilot. It is a simple method, repeated thousands of times.

  • Curious
  • General aviation
  • 6 min read
  • 18 October 2026

The question

Display teams sometimes fly two metres or less between one aircraft's wingtip and its neighbour. The UK's Red Arrows fly nine Hawks, the US Thunderbirds six F-16s and the Patrouille de France eight Alpha Jets. Romania has its own team too, the Hawks of Romania, flying Extra aerobatic aircraft. So how do they never touch?

Everyone follows the leader

The secret is that only the leader flies “normally”. The leader looks ahead, watches the ground, picks the line and sets the rhythm for the whole formation. The other pilots, the wingmen, do not look at the ground and hardly look at their instruments. Their eyes stay on the leader's aircraft from the start of the display to the end.

Each wingman learns a “sight picture”: two or three points on the leader's aircraft that must always stay lined up. For example, the leader's wingtip sitting exactly over the tail fin, and the wing seen as a thin line.

WING EDGE-ON= same height WINGTIP ON THE FIN= right distance
What the wingman sees. If the leader's wing shows as a thin line, both aircraft are at the same height. If the wingtip sits on the top of the fin, the distance and angle are right. When the lines drift apart, the pilot corrects at once with small inputs.
Why it works

The human eye is very good at spotting when two things stop being lined up, far better than it is at judging a distance. So the pilot never “measures” two metres: they just keep a picture that always looks the same.

The leader flies for everyone

A good leader is predictable. No sudden moves, and every manoeuvre is called on the radio in a stretched-out voice, like a conductor: “Smoke… on”, “Pulling… now”. The whole formation moves on the last word, in the same split second.

When the formation changes shape, the leader stays put and everyone else moves to their new place, all measured from the leader. Try it below.

In a turn, the outside works hardest

In a turn, the formation swings around the same centre but on circles of different sizes. The aircraft on the outside has a longer path to cover in the same time, so it has to fly slightly faster: it needs more power. The one on the inside has a shorter path and takes power off. The difference is only a few kilometres an hour, but without it the formation would come apart.

TURN CENTRE
  • OUTSIDE: longer path, more power
  • INSIDE: shorter path, less power
A right turn, with the leader in magenta. All three finish the turn at the same moment, but the one on the outside travels furthest. That is why its pilot's hand never rests on the throttle.

What 5 g feels like

In a tight loop you are pressed hard into the seat. At “5 g” your body weighs five times its normal weight: your arm feels like lead and your blood wants to drain towards your feet. Pilots tense their leg and stomach muscles and breathe in a set rhythm to keep blood in the brain. All while holding the picture on the leader perfectly still.

Try being a wingman

The leader below is being bounced around by turbulence. Keep the cross on the top of its tail fin for 20 seconds. Your aircraft reacts a little late, just like a real one, so small calm movements win.

Common myths

“They fly on autopilot”

No. Every aircraft is hand-flown all the time, and positions are held by eye alone.

“Sensors tell them the distance”

No instrument shows them how close they are. All the information comes from the sight picture.

“They can do it straight away”

Teams train all winter. They start with two or three aircraft, well spread out, and close up step by step. Only after months of flying do they reach the display distance you see at the show.

“The one behind sits right behind the leader”

The aircraft behind the leader (called the “slot”) flies slightly lower. That keeps it out of the rough air left by the leader's engine and wings.

Test yourself

1. Where does a wingman look during the display?

At the leader's aircraft, at its reference points. The leader is the one looking ahead and at the ground.

2. The formation turns left. Who needs more power?

The aircraft on the right, on the outside of the turn. It has the biggest circle, so the longest path.

3. Why does the aircraft behind the leader fly slightly lower?

To stay out of the rough air left by the leader. There, it would be shaken about and lose its position.

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FlightDesk Aero articles are for information and training. Formation flying is only learned with a qualified instructor and specific training.