first UK airshow appearance of a German Air Force Airbus A400M and the last airshow appearance of the QinetiQ Alpha Jet. RIAT 2017 RIAT 2017 took place between 14th-17 July 2017. The show was a tribute to the 70th anniversary of the United States Air Force (USAF) and saw the return of the Thunderbirds demonstration team for the first time in 10 years. The show featured a special flypast from the USAF that included a C-130 Hercules, three F-15E Strike Eagles, two F-16 Fighting Falcons, a KC-135 Stratotanker and on the Sunday a special appearance from a B-2 Spirit stealth bomber. There was also a display from the F-22 Raptor on the Sunday of the show. A Sea King Helicopter from the Belgian Air Component performed a search and rescue demo. The flying display also saw the Ukrainian Air Force Sukhoi Su-27 as a last minute addition as well as the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight Avro Lancaster bomber flying with three Spitfires and a Hurricane in a formation known as Thompson formation. Notable static displays included two F-4 Phantoms from the Hellenic Air Force, a second Ukrainian Su-27 and an Ilyushin Il-76. The USAF provided many aircraft for static including a B-1 Lancer, B-52 Stratofortress and a Lockheed U-2 reconnaissance aircraft. RIAT 2018 RIAT 2018 was staged over 13–15 July 2018. The 2018 show featured 302 aircraft from 43 air arms and 30 nations, and featured a celebration of the 100th Anniversary of the founding of the Royal Air Force. One of the most anticipated highlights of the show included a special "Dambusters Tribute Flypast" featuring an Avro Lancaster of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight accompanied by a Panavia Tornado and Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II aircraft, all operated by the No. 617 Squadron RAF. Other flying highlights included displays by the USAF Heritage Flight; a Ukrainian Air Force Sukhoi Su-27; a Royal Canadian Air Force McDonnell Douglas CF-18 Hornet; a French Aéronavale Dassault Rafale duo; the Italian Air Force's Frecce Tricolori aerobatic display team, and the RAF's Red Arrows. Visitors on Saturday were treated to a rare flypast by a USAF Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit stealth bomber that had made the round trip from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, United States. In the static aircraft display there were examples of aircraft from around the world including debut appearances by an Embraer KC-390 from Brazil, a Kawasaki