The world’s largest military airshow is moving house. On Wednesday, 4 November 2026, the organisers of the Royal International Air Tattoo announced that RIAT will leave RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire and move permanently to MOD Boscombe Down in Wiltshire, starting with the 2027 show.

It ends a 40-year run at Fairford, which has hosted the Air Tattoo since 1985. It also follows a year in which the show never happened at all: RIAT 2026 was cancelled months in advance because Fairford was full of American bombers flying operations against Iran.

Why Fairford Had to Go

RAF Fairford is not an ordinary RAF station. It has long been used by the US Air Force as a forward base for bombers and other specialised aircraft in Europe, and in 2026 that role took over completely. During the height of this spring’s operations against Iran, Air & Space Forces Magazine reports, the base housed around two dozen B-1B Lancers and B-52H Stratofortresses.

With the ramp full of bombers, the July 2026 show was cancelled. Then, on 4 October, the 12 B-1Bs still at Fairford left in a hurry after what US and UK officials described as a likely Iranian-backed plot against the base. An airshow that draws well over 100,000 visitors does not sit comfortably next to that.

Boscombe Down: Britain’s Flight Test Airfield

MOD Boscombe Down is best known as the tri-service home of military aircraft test and evaluation in the UK, the place where new British military aircraft and their modifications are put through their paces before entering service. Recent visitors include the Royal Air Force’s E-7 Wedgetail and the Boeing 757 “Excalibur” flying testbed used for GCAP sensor development. The site is run by QinetiQ.

Unlike Fairford, Boscombe Down has no operational US Air Force presence. The organisers said it was chosen after an extensive review found it met RIAT’s operational requirements, and that it offers “the space, capability and flexibility” the show needs. More details on the arrangements are promised over the coming weeks and months.

Not Just an Airshow

RIAT has a habit of moving. The first Air Tattoo was staged at North Weald in Essex in 1971, it then ran intermittently at RAF Greenham Common until 1983, and it settled at Fairford in 1985. The “Royal” title came in 1996, granted by Queen Elizabeth II.

It is also a fundraiser. Every ticket supports the Royal Air Force Charitable Trust, and the organisers say the 2025 show helped RAFCTE deliver more than 500,000 STEM engagements for young people across the UK. Securing the show’s long-term future, they argue, secures the charity’s too. RAFCTE will keep its headquarters in Fairford.

Smyth has a personal stake: his first job as a newly commissioned RAF officer, in 1991, was on RIAT’s air display operations desk. Defence minister Luke Pollard also welcomed the move. US Air Forces in Europe-Air Forces Africa said it was “aware of and respects” the decision and looks forward to remaining a key partner.

What Changes for Visitors

For now, the essentials: the first show at Boscombe Down runs from 16 to 18 July 2027, and anyone who has already bought tickets keeps them. Enclosure holders will be contacted by the organisers.

Fans will miss Fairford’s enormous expanses of hard standing, which have held RIAT’s huge static displays. But the things people come for, from the Red Arrows to foreign fast jets and heavy metal flown in from across the world, are meant to move with the show.

After a year without a show, RIAT’s organisers needed a home nobody could take away from them at short notice. A flight test centre in Wiltshire is an unusual answer, but it may turn out to be exactly the kind of place that keeps the world’s biggest military airshow flying.

Sources: Royal Air Force Charitable Trust Enterprises, Air & Space Forces Magazine, The Aviationist, QinetiQ, Wikipedia