Happy New Year to you all. We wish you health, happiness and success in all your endeavors. 2011 should be a very good year as we hope many people will come and fly with us. We do not provide a simple jet fighter ride, but the experience of a lifetime! Flying a jet fighter is fun, lots of adrenaline, and the opportunity to meet a friendly team who loves sharing the passion. In 2011, like in 2010, we will still operate three aircrafts, in 4 bases (one is actually travelling one week per month in Switzerland). You can fly: L39 Albatros in Paris L39 Albatros in Bordeaux Fouga Magister in Beauvais (north of Paris). All three destinations are totally unique. The jet fighters are also unique and flown by fantastic pilots who truly enjoy making the experience full. When flying in Paris, you can enjoy the beautiful landscape of west Paris and Normandy. When flying in Bordeaux, you will experience the beauty of the beach – flying just feet from the water – and when flying from Beauvais, you will enjoy flying along the cliffs of Etretat, just feet from the water. Each flight is composed of three phases: 1/ we test you. We will do a few maneuvers such as rolls and sharp turns to see how you react. 2/ we do a little bit of sight seeing – at very low level and following the terrain so that you can enjoy the speed. 3/ Full aerobatics. This is where fighter pilots earn their medals as they sustain high levels of Gs doing rolls, loops and other funny maneuvers. Want to see what it feels like ?

Live n’ deadly TV Presenter Steve Backshall is doing a bit on the Peregrine Falcon. And to demonstrate how incredible this bird of prey is, he decided to replicate the maneuvers of the Falcon in our jet fighter. We had tremendous fun being around Steve and his crew and were quite interested as well as finding out how Steve would cope with G force and the jet fighter experience. Check it out on the BBC Live’n’deadly show and on their website. In the meantime, here are some pics of the day of filming.

Fly the L39 Albatros in Switzerland. With winter coming fast, we are very pleased to announce that we will add more flights in Switzerland this winter. Flying on a bright day, with clear blue sky, crisp air, cold temperatures and the snow capped mountains is more than extraordinary. The beauty of flying in Switzerland is that as soon as you take off, it’s already magical. Our L39 Albatros jet fighter is based in Sion, which is a valley in the middle of a triangle made of Montreux, Bern and Lake Maggiore.

Article 117S is NPO Saturn manufactured vectored thrust engine for he ne SU-35, themselves a major upgrade of the AL-31F, with greater thrust, longer service life and better economy. The 117S engine was able to raise maximum thrust from 12.5 to 14.5 tonnes A new fan propeller with the diameter increased from 905 millimeters to 932 millimeters, new high and low pressure turbines and a new digital control system were used on the engine. With this engine, the new SU-35 is the most maneuverable fighter today.

VSS Enterprise achieves manned free flight from over 45,000 ft (13,700 metres) and successfully glides to land at Mojave Air and Spaceport. 10th October 2010, Mojave, CA. Virgin Galactic, the US company developing the world’s first commercial manned space flight system and tourism business, is delighted to announce the successful completion today of the first piloted free flight of SpaceShipTwo, named the VSS Enterprise. The spaceship was released from its mothership at an altitude of 45,000 ft (13,700 metres).

Sukhoi aircraft holding has begun ground and flight trials of the modernized fourth generation Su-33 naval fighter. Modernization works and trials are being carried out at the KnAAPO aircraft plant in Komsomolsk-on-Amur under a state defense order in 2010. Su-33 (Su-27K) is a multi-role carrier-based fighter with horizontal takeoff and landing, and aerial refuelling capability. The fighter features folding wings and horizontal tail for hanger storage. It was designed to defend naval ships from airborne attacks.

“We’re very pleased with the Government of Israel’s decision to move forward with the U.S. government’s Letter of Offer and Acceptance for the F-35,” said Tom Burbage, Lockheed Martin executive vice president and general manager of F-35 Program Integration. “This is another step in the longstanding relationship between Lockheed Martin and the nation of Israel. The Lightning II will strengthen Israel’s national security posture both militarily and industrially.” The F-35 Lightning II is a 5th generation fighter, combining advanced stealth with fighter speed and agility, fully fused sensor information, network-enabled operations, advanced sustainment, and lower operational and support costs. Lockheed Martin is developing the F-35 with its principal industrial partners, Northrop Grumman and BAE Systems. Two separate, interchangeable F-35 engines are under development: the Pratt & Whitney F135 and the GE Rolls-Royce Fighter Engine Team F136. “We’re very pleased with the Government of Israel’s decision to move forward with the U.S. government’s Letter of Offer and Acceptance for the F-35,” said Tom Burbage, Lockheed Martin executive vice president and general manager of F-35 Program Integration. “This is another step in the longstanding relationship between Lockheed Martin and the nation of Israel. The Lightning II will strengthen Israel’s national security posture both militarily and industrially.”The F-35 Lightning II is a 5th generation fighter, combining advanced stealth with fighter speed and agility, fully fused sensor information, network-enabled operations, advanced sustainment, and lower operational and support costs.Lockheed Martin is developing the F-35 with its principal industrial partners, Northrop Grumman and BAE Systems. Two separate, interchangeable F-35 engines are under development: the Pratt & Whitney F135 and the GE Rolls-Royce Fighter Engine Team F136.

General Electric has defeated the Eurojet consortium in a contest to provide the engine for a new version of India's long-delayed Tejas light combat aircraft. The US manufacturer has won a deal to supply 99 F414-INS6 turbofans for the Tejas MkII, following a selection decision by India's Aeronautical Development Agency.

Everyone knows what it’s like for an airplane to land: The slow maneuvering into an approach pattern, the long descent, and the brakes slamming on as soon as the plane touches down, which seems to just barely bring it to a rest a mile later. Birds, however, can switch from barreling forward at full speed to lightly touching down on a target as narrow as a telephone wire. Why can’t an airplane be more like a bird, asked MIT researchers, who have demonstrated a new control system that allows a foam glider with only a single motor on its tail to land on a perch, just like a pet parakeet.

The last flying example of one of Britain’s most iconic historic aircraft, Avro Vulcan XH558 is once again facing a funding crisis which could lead to her being permanently grounded and the Nuneaton Based Air Cadets are urging air enthusiasts and members of the public to pledge their support in a bid to help to keep her flying. Air Cadets from 121 (Nuneaton) Squadron recently had a visit from members of the Vulcan to the Sky Trust, who came along to talk to them about the last flying example of one of Britain’s most recognisable historic aircraft Avro Vulcan XH558. David Wilson and Ann Raske of the Vulcan to the Sky Trust described how after a career of 33 years of service, XH558, the Spirit of Great Britain, was the last Vulcan to fly with the RAF. Her final service flight was on 23rd March 1993 to Bruntingthorpe Aerodrome in Leicestershire. They then went on to detail the 14 years of work, which had gone into restoring her to an airworthy condition and how on the 18th October 2007, Vulcan XH558 roared into the air again. An unforgettable day for the Vulcan to the Sky team. Unfortunately the Leicestershire based Vulcan to the Sky Trust who operate the Vulcan XH558 have suffered badly under the current financial climate, with some commercial sponsors withdrawing support. As a result the trust has until the end of October this year, to raise the £400,000 needed to keep her in the air otherwise the aircraft could be sold off to a private collector, possibly in Russia or the US, and may never fly again. Flt Lt Paul Hincks of 121 (Nuneaton) Squadron said, “The financial situation will eventually improve but if XH558 stops flying now we will never see her back in the air again. Generations of young people have been inspired by the sight of the Vulcan’s unique delta wing shape and sound of its four mighty Olympus engines. Hopefully with the support of the public Vulcan XH558, Spirit of Great Britain, will continue honouring the past and inspiring future generations of air minded young people.