Colegio del Aire Aerobatic Team
The Mexican Air Force academy’s instructors fly this PC-7 team from Zapopan, its livery a nod to the P-47 Thunderbolts Mexico sent to the Philippines in 1945.
Colegio del Aire Aerobatic Team: how the team came to be and what it flies today
An academy team for the bicentennial
The team was formed in 2010 by instructors of the Colegio del Aire, the Mexican Air Force’s academy at Military Air Base No. 5, Zapopan, near Guadalajara. Its first display was planned for 16 September 2010, the bicentennial of Mexican independence, in Mexico City. The five Pilatus PC-7s were given a special scheme recalling the P-47 Thunderbolts that Mexico’s Escuadrón 201 flew in the Philippines in the Second World War.
PC-7s at Zapopan
The PC-7 is the academy’s advanced trainer, flown by cadets in their fourth year, and the team uses aircraft that have been in Mexican service for more than four decades. Its routine includes delta loops, barrel rolls in V and diamond formation, a vertical fleur-de-lis, mirror passes and an inverted figure eight. In 2024 it was described as flying six PC-7s and as one of two official Mexican Air Force teams, alongside the EMAATFA T-6C team.
Colegio del Aire Aerobatic Team in numbers
El equipo
- Formación
- 5–6 aircraft
- Five PC-7s in 2010
- Six PC-7s reported in 2024
- Flown by Colegio del Aire instructors
El avión
- Volado
- Pilatus PC-7
- Pilatus PC-7 (2010–)
Hogar
- Con sede en
- Zapopan Air Force Base
- Military Air Base No. 5, Zapopan, Jalisco
- Home of the Colegio del Aire
La pantalla
- Aviones en exhibición
- 6
- Librea
- special scheme recalling the Second World War P-47 Thunderbolts of Escuadrón 201
Every type Colegio del Aire Aerobatic Team has flown
| Aeronave | Años | Número | Nota |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pilatus PC-7 | desde 2010 | 6 | Five aircraft in 2010; six reported in 2024. |
What Colegio del Aire Aerobatic Team is known for
- Formed for Mexico’s independence bicentennial, with a first display planned for 16 September 2010 (aerobaticteams.net).
- Livery inspired by the Mexican P-47s of the Second World War (aerobaticteams.net).
- One of two official Mexican Air Force teams in 2024, alongside EMAATFA (This is Flight).
Colegio del Aire Aerobatic Team, year by year
Team formed by Colegio del Aire instructors on the Pilatus PC-7.
Planned debut over Mexico City for the independence bicentennial.
Described as flying six PC-7s, one of the air force’s two official teams.
A third team, the Águilas Aztecas, is presented by the air force.
Everything people ask about Colegio del Aire Aerobatic Team
What aircraft does the Colegio del Aire team fly?
Where is the team based?
How many aircraft are in the team?
When was it formed?
Around Colegio del Aire Aerobatic Team
Todos los datos, verificados
- Equipo Acrobático del Colegio del Aire (Spanish Wikipedia)
- Mexican Air Force Display Team (aerobaticteams.net, 21 August 2010)
- Mexican Air Force’s little-known EMAATFA aerobatic team makes surprise international debut at Laughlin AFB (This is Flight, March 2024)
- Base Aérea Militar N.º 5 de Zapopan (Spanish Wikipedia)
- Se presenta la escuadrilla acrobática Águilas Aztecas (México Aeroespacial)
Verificado el 2 de octubre de 2026.