The first of six Hawk 129 advanced jet trainers for the Royal Bahrain Air Force (RBAF) was formally handed over in a ceremony at the show yesterday (pictured below).
Flown by BAE Systems Test Pilot Nat Makepeace and Lt Col Omar Ebrahim Mohamed Al Mahmood, the aircraft arrived at Farnborough leading the Hawks of the Red Arrows aerobatic team. The aircraft was then handed over to His Highness Sheikh Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Crown Prince of Bahrain and Commander-in-Chief of the Bahraini Defence Force, with Colonel Hamad bin Abdullah Hamad Al Khalifa, Commander of the RBAF also in attendance.
The Hawks were ordered at Farnborough four years ago by the ruler of Bahrain, His Majesty, Shaikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, and will form part of an integrated flying training system, giving Bahrain an indigenous aviation training capability.
Flown by BAE Systems Test Pilot Nat Makepeace and Lt Col Omar Ebrahim Mohamed Al Mahmood, the aircraft arrived at Farnborough leading the Hawks of the Red Arrows aerobatic team. The aircraft was then handed over to His Highness Sheikh Salman bin Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Crown Prince of Bahrain and Commander-in-Chief of the Bahraini Defence Force, with Colonel Hamad bin Abdullah Hamad Al Khalifa, Commander of the RBAF also in attendance.
The Hawks were ordered at Farnborough four years ago by the ruler of Bahrain, His Majesty, Shaikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, and will form part of an integrated flying training system, giving Bahrain an indigenous aviation training capability.
Source: Flight Daily News
