Breitling Jet Team
| Breitling Jet Team | |
|---|---|
 Breitling jet team at Air 04, Payerne, Switzerland |
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| Active | 2003-present |
| Country | France |
| Type | Civilian aerobatic display team |
| Garrison/HQ | Dijon, France |
| Website | http://www.breitling-jet-team.com |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Trainer | Aero L-39 Albatros |
The Breitling Jet Team is the largest civilian aerobatic display team in Europe. Based in Dijon, France, it flies seven Aero L-39 Albatros jets. Since the 2010 season all of the fleet received a new livery in the colours of sponsor Breitling.
The team flies a display lasting 18–20 minutes and includes close formation flying, opposition passes, solo routines and synchronised manoeuvres. The team displays across Europe and the Middle East and each year undertakes a busy schedule of engagements, including major international airshows and Breitling corporate events.
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[edit] History & Origins
The Breitling Jet Team was established in early 2003 and initially flew four L-39s, before progressing up to the strength of six aircraft in 2004, adding three more for the 2008 season for a total number of nine jets. Although the Breitling Team is recently established, the team's origins go back much further.
[edit] Patrouille Martini
Jacques Bothelin, the team's leader, originally began performing in airshows in 1980 with French-designed Mudry CAP 10 aircraft. In 1982 he progressed onto flying as part of a team of three SIAI-Marchetti SF260s, which was sponsored by Martini. The team was called Patrouille Martini (Patrouille meaning 'Patrol' or 'Team' in English). Also at this time, Jacques Bothelin established Apache Aviation at the team's Darois home base to handle the operational aspects of running a full-time aerobatic team. The Martini Team flew for five years with the SF260s, before the team took delivery of Swiss-manufactured Pilatus PC-7s in 1988.
[edit] Patrouille Ecco
In 1990 new regulations were introduced in France banning the advertising of alcohol, meaning Martini had to withdraw from the sponsorship. Ecco, a temporary employment agency, stepped into the breach and the team was renamed Patrouille Ecco in time for the 1991 season, with the team's colours changing from the Martini white to Ecco green and white. At this time, a fourth PC-7 was added to the team. During the 1990s Team Ecco displayed at numerous airshows around Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.
[edit] Patrouille Adecco
In 1997 Ecco merged with a Swiss firm, Adia, forming Adecco - and with this the team's name changed again to Patrouille Adecco, with the team's colours shifting to the corporate Adecco red-and-white. In 1998 the team suffered a setback when Adecco pulled out of its sponsorship. Consequently, Jacques Bothelin and Philippe Laloix flew during 1999-2001 with two PC-7s as "Les Apaches", the name being derived from the Apache Aviation firm.
[edit] Khalifa Jet Team
In late 2001 the Algerian company, Khalifa, offered to sponsor Apache Aviation. The result was that the PC-7s were sold and the L-39 jets arrived as their replacement. The new team was known as the "Khalifa Jet Team", and the team was launched in March 2002 prior to making its debut displays in May 2002. Over the summer of 2002 the team worked up from an initial two-ship formation to a full four-aircraft team. Over the course of 2002 the team appeared at no fewer than 43 events in six European countries.
[edit] Breitling
Despite this success, however, in early 2003 Khalifa pulled out of the sponsorship. There were concerns about the team's future, but then Breitling stepped into the breach and invested further in the team to allow the outfit to expand from a 4-ship to the 7-ship formation it flies nowadays.
[edit] External links
- Breitling jet team home page
- Blog about Breitling Jet Team (fr)
- Video about Breitling Jet Team in Mexican TV (Spanish)
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Breitling Jet Team |
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