They are fast, red and the best aerobatics team in the world. Earlier this year, the Red Arrows returned to Biggin Hill to commemorate the 40th anniversary of their first-ever public display. SAMANTHA PAYNE caught up with Squadron Leader Dicky Patonnas to discover what being an Arrow is all about ...

WITH the News Shopper-sponsored Biggin Hill International Air Fair just days away, I recommend if you have never seen the Red Arrows in action, do so it will transfix you.

Watching the dynamic team fly in their various formations is a vision in itself.

What is so mesmerising about the Red Arrows is their precision as they glide through the sky.

Their exact positioning never falters and the pilots know one wrong move and it is curtains.

Squadron Leader Patonnas was selected to lead the Arrows last September and is enjoying every minute.

He said: "It's a fantastic job. But for those 20 minutes you are up in the sky you need to have 110-per-cent concentration all the time.

"When you are flying towards another aircraft at 450mph, you are concentrating so much, you don't have time to think about the moment as you are already thinking way ahead from where you are.

"The adrenalin rush kicks in afterwards when you have finished the show."

Performing at Biggin Hill back in May was a momentous occasion for him, not only to celebrate the Red Arrow's first public display, which took place at Biggin Hill Airport in 1965 it was also where he first learned to fly.

He said: "I won a sixth form scholarship when I was 16 and then joined the RAF College at Cranwell in Lincolnshire two years later."

From then, the 34-year-old went up the ranks and was selected to join the Arrows when he was 27.

He stayed from 1998 to 2000 as one of the pilots.

He was a flying instructor for 18 months, training young pilots to use Jaguar aircraft .

He added: "I prefer flying so this was different for me.

"But I appreciated bringing someone through their training, who would then go and serve in war if necessary. It's all part of the bigger picture."

"I'm in my first year as leader and I run a team of 100 men and women.

"I would just like to say all the displays would not be possible without their support."

During the Arrows' trip to Biggin Hill, 300 young people from 22 schools and youth organisations in London and the south east joined them for a private birthday party.

HRH The Princess Royal also attended the glittering event to mark the historic occasion.

Squadron Leader Patonnas said: "I hope our 40th birthday party was an experience our guests will remember for the rest of their lives.

"Perhaps one of them will be inspired to become a Red Arrow of the future."

What next for this high-flyer?

"After being a squadron leader, I want to work with Typhoon Eurofighter jet aircraft. The technology is really awesome and increases what you can do as a pilot."

  • Ticket information for the Biggin Hill International Air Fair:

The Red Arrows will be appearing at the News Shopper-sponsored Biggin Hill International Air Fair on its first day only September 3.

It is still not too late to be part of the fun-packed event, which this year marks the 60th anniversary of VE Day and the 65th anniversary of the Battle of Britain.

Tickets for the event cost £16 for adults and £5 for children, while tickets for a family-of-five cost £36.

For more information and to book, call 0870 756 3727.

FACTS ABOUT THE WORLD'S BEST AEROBATICS TEAM

  • The Red Arrows were formed in 1964 as an all-RAF team
  • They are also known as the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team
  • The Red Arrows team initially flew seven Folland Gnat trainers
  • In their first season the Red Arrows flew at 65 shows across Europe
  • The Red Arrows grew to nine members in 1966
  • In 1979 the Red Arrows switched to the BAE Hawk trainer aircraft
  • The Red Arrows have put on displays in more than 50 countries
  • It costs between £15m and £20m to run the Red Arrows team each year
  • The Red Arrows currently fly the Hawk T. Mk.1 aircraft
  • The Hawk T. Mk.1 aircraft has a 9.39m wing span
  • The Hawk T. Mk.1 aircraft is 11.85m long and 4m high
  • The aircraft's maximum speed at sea level is 645mph
  • The aircraft can fly at a maximum altitude of 48,000ft
  • The first display by the Red Arrows was at RAF Little Rissington on May 6, 1965
  • The first public display was on May 9, 1965, at the French National Air Day.
  • The Red Arrows practice for six months from October to April to prepare for the summer display season
  • The first public display in the UK was on May 15, 1965, at the International Air Fair at Biggin Hill
  • The Red Arrows have performed more than 3,400 times
  • The Red Arrows team is based at RAF Scampton, near Lincoln