The Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) will hold a Blue Impulse display flight at the 2025 Japan International Exposition (Osaka-Kansai Expo) from July 12 to 13. On the morning of July 11, the day before the event, seven T-4 Blue Impulse aircraft, including a spare plane, arrived at Kansai International Airport.
The Blue Impulse was scheduled to fly a display on April 13, the first day of the Expo, but after a preliminary flight on April 10, the main event was canceled due to bad weather. Many members of the public, Osaka Prefecture, Expo officials, and the Ministry of Defense expressed their disappointment, and the members of the Blue Impulse were particularly disappointed. A second date was therefore arranged relatively quickly.
On July 11, the seven aircraft took off sequentially from the Matsushima base at around 7:00 a.m. and reached the Kansai Airport control area at around 8:15 a.m. The first aircraft landed at 8:24 a.m., and the last aircraft, No. 7 (reserve), at 8:41 a.m.
This time, unlike the previous landing in April, the Blue Impulse landed on Runway B (west side). Since Runway B is allocated for takeoff in normal operations at Kansai International Airport, this is a special measure for the Blue Impulse, which is unfamiliar with civilian airports. In addition to the land route, a C-130 transport aircraft flew in on July 9 to bring in the support equipment necessary for the Blue Impulse operation, and Runway B was used on that occasion as well.
Landings were made by the first and second aircraft, third aircraft, fourth and fifth aircraft, and sixth and seventh aircraft, either in two-aircraft formation or as a single aircraft, and then three or four aircraft followed the follow-me-car (lead vehicle) to the aircraft parking area. The spots allocated to the Blue Impulse this time were 259 and 260, which were not visible to the public.
© Source travel watch
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