Orlik Aerobatic Team
Poland’s only military formation aerobatic team, flying home-built PZL-130 Orlik turboprop trainers from the 42nd Air Training Base at Radom since 1998.
Orlik Aerobatic Team: how the team came to be and what it flies today
Born for Fairford
The team was formed at Radom on 15 April 1998, according to Polish aviation press, after Polish military aviation was invited to take part in the Royal International Air Tattoo at Fairford. Its pilots were instructors of the training base at Radom, flying the PZL-130 Orlik, a tandem-seat turboprop trainer designed and built in Poland. The team made its international debut at Fairford in July 1998, and the English-language Wikipedia records its first performance as having taken place in April that year. It began with five aircraft and grew quickly as it found its feet on the European circuit.
Nine Orliks and a pause
In 2001 the team became a separate squadron within the training centre at Radom and expanded to seven aircraft. By 2003 it was flying nine PZL-130TC-I Orliks, making it one of the larger formation teams in Europe at the time. Military authorities suspended its activity at the end of 2005, after 49 air shows, 20 of them abroad. The team was revived in mid-2007 under Lieutenant Colonel Arkadiusz Leśniewski, who led it as commander and flight director until 2018, and it has settled on seven aircraft since 2011.
The TC-II era
Between 2007 and 2012 the team flew a mix of five TC-I and two upgraded TC-II aircraft, and from 2013 the whole formation has used the PZL-130TC-II, the trainer on which Polish Air Force students fly before moving on to the M-346 Bielik. On 27 April 2023, during a display marking the opening of Warsaw-Radom airport, two of the team’s aircraft touched in flight; both landed safely, nobody was hurt, and parts that fell from the aircraft landed on private property. The state aviation accident commission investigated.
Radom’s ambassadors
The team has displayed in the United Kingdom, Spain, Greece, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Lithuania, according to Radom press, and its pilots remain serving instructors of the 42nd Air Training Base. In 2025 the team, then led by Major Michał Jabłoński, was named official ambassador of the International AirSHOW Radom. That show was cancelled after the fatal crash of the F-16 Tiger Demo aircraft during rehearsals on 28 August 2025, and the Ministry of National Defence has since said it is not planning a Radom show in 2027.
Orlik Aerobatic Team in numbers
The team
- Formation
- 7 aircraft
- Seven PZL-130TC-II Orlik
- Five aircraft in 1998, nine at the 2003 peak
- Pilots are instructors of the 42nd Air Training Base
Flew seven aircraft as standard since 2011
The aircraft
- Flown
- PZL-130TC-II Orlik
- PZL-130TC-I Orlik (1998–2012)
- PZL-130TC-II Orlik (2007–; whole formation from 2013)
Home
- Based at
- Radom
- 42nd Air Training Base Radom
- Suspended 2005–2007
- Home of the AirSHOW Radom
The display
- Aircraft in the display
- 7
Every type Orlik Aerobatic Team has flown
| Aircraft | Years | Number | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| PZL Warszawa-Okęcie PZL-130TC-I Orlik | 1998–2012 | 9 | Nine TC-I aircraft flown in 2003; five TC-I alongside two TC-II from 2007 to 2012. |
| PZL Warszawa-Okęcie PZL-130TC-II Orlik | since 2007 | 7 | Two TC-II in the formation from 2007; the whole team on TC-II from 2013. |
What Orlik Aerobatic Team is known for
- International debut at the Royal International Air Tattoo, Fairford, in July 1998 (dlapilota.pl; AirSHOW Radom).
- Flew nine PZL-130TC-I Orliks in formation in 2003 (dlapilota.pl).
- 49 air shows, 20 of them abroad, between 1998 and the 2005 suspension (dlapilota.pl).
- Re-equipped entirely with the PZL-130TC-II in 2013 (dlapilota.pl).
- Official ambassador of the International AirSHOW Radom 2025 (AirSHOW Radom).
Who leads Orlik Aerobatic Team
- Major Michał Jabłoński · Team leader, 2025 season
Orlik Aerobatic Team, year by year
Team formed at Radom ahead of an invitation to the Air Tattoo at Fairford
First international display at the Royal International Air Tattoo, RAF Fairford
Becomes a separate squadron within the Radom training centre and grows to seven aircraft
Flies nine PZL-130TC-I Orliks in formation
Activity suspended by the military authorities after 49 air shows
Team revived with seven aircraft under Lieutenant Colonel Arkadiusz Leśniewski
Whole formation converted to the PZL-130TC-II
Two team aircraft touch in flight during a display at Radom; both land safely
Named official ambassador of AirSHOW Radom 2025; the show is cancelled after the F-16 crash of 28 August
The cost of flying this close
Display flying is among the most demanding flying there is. These are the accidents on record, with the findings as published.
Two PZL-130TC-II Orlik. Mid-air contact between two team aircraft during a display at the opening of Warsaw-Radom airport. Both aircraft returned to the airfield damaged; detached parts fell on private property. No injuries. The state aviation accident commission investigated. No fatalities.
Everything people ask about Orlik Aerobatic Team
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Around Orlik Aerobatic Team
Every fact, checked
- Orlik Aerobatic Team (Wikipedia)
- 20-lecie Zespołu Akrobacyjnego Orlik (dlapilota.pl)
- Rocznica utworzenia Zespołu Akrobacyjnego Orlik (dlapilota.pl)
- Orlik Aerobatic Team of the 42nd Training Air Base (AirSHOW Radom)
- Groźna przygoda Orlików nad Radomiem (Defence24)
- 28 lat Zespołu Akrobacyjnego Orlik (Twój Radom)
- Polish F-16 crashes at Radom, pilot killed, show canceled (AeroTime)
- Air Show Radom 2027 nie odbędzie się (Interia)
Verified 2026-10-02.