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Allied Capabilities on Display During the Royal International Air Tattoo 2025

NATO Allied Air Command

Jul 21 2025

RAMSTEIN, Germany -- From July 18 to 20, 2025, over 20 Allied Nations came together at the Royal International Air Tattoo (RIAT) at Fairford, United Kingdom, showcasing the full spectrum of NATO air capabilities under this year's theme, 'Eyes in the Skies'.
RIAT 2025 highlighted the vital role aviation plays across all air specializations, with fighters from Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Greece, Italy, Poland, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States, alongside rotary-wing assets, tankers, transport aircraft, intelligence, surveillance, and airborne control platforms.
This multinational participation demonstrated NATO's maritime patrol, search and rescue, advanced aerial surveillance, reconnaissance and intelligence, and airborne early warning capabilities.

Regarding the latter domains, NATO operates around the clock with their own "eyes in the skies" thanks to the E-3A AWACS and RQ-4D Phoenix assets.
NATO's own Airborne Early Warning and Control Force (NAEW&C Force) ensures situational awareness to support NATO's Integrated Air and Missile Defence. In addition, it ensures airborne Command and Control, which enables battlespace management in contested environments. The NAEW&C Force conducts a wide range of NATO missions, including air policing, counter-terrorism support, crisis response, and non-combatant evacuation operations (NEO).
NATO's E-3A AWACS aircraft has the capability to detect, track, and identify potentially hostile aircraft at low altitudes while providing fighter control of Allied aircraft. It can track maritime contacts and coordinate with surface forces, underscoring its essential role in NATO's integrated defence.
NATO's RQ-4D Phoenix high-altitude long-endurance remotely piloted aircraft is another example of NATO's ability to project ISR capability flexibly across the entire Alliance territory. Operated by the NATO Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Force (NISRF), the RQ-4D ensures informed decision-making and effective response wherever and whenever the Alliance requires.
Reinforcing NATO's transatlantic ties, the United States Air Force contributed a B-1B Lancer to the flypast, under the umbrella of the Bomber Task Force (Europe) mission. This flypast highlighted the strategic reach and deterrence capability the U.S. brings to the Alliance and demonstrated NATO's ability to conduct long-range strike operations.

RIAT 2025 provided more than 175,000 spectators over three days with a dynamic flying display combining stealth fighters, rotary-wing platforms, tankers, and ISR assets in complex, choreographed scenarios demonstrating Allied interoperability and readiness to operate seamlessly across complex operations.

Story by Allied Air Command Public Affairs Office