Researched 2026-10-11 from the sources listed below. Airframes move between hangars, workshops and loans: check with National Museum Of Flight before travelling to see this one.
The airframe in brief
| Serial / registration | XX308 |
|---|---|
| Type | British Aerospace Hawk T.1A |
| Built | 1980 |
| Units / operator | RAF Aerobatic Team (Red Arrows), 1985 to 2012 |
| Notable flight | Red 1 in the Concorde flypast over Edinburgh, 1 July 1999 |
| Arrived | Donated by the MoD via RAF Heritage; unveiled April 2018 |
| Museum ref | EF.2017.39.1 |
| Status | On display |
| Where | National Museum Of Flight, North Berwick |
The story of XX308
XX308 was built in 1980 for the RAF as an advanced jet trainer. The Hawk had entered RAF service in 1976, and the Red Arrows swapped their Gnats for Hawks in 1979. XX308 joined the team in 1985. It stayed with the team until 2012.
Its best-known day came on 1 July 1999, when the Scottish Parliament opened. Nine Red Arrows Hawks flew over Edinburgh in formation with a British Airways Concorde. XX308 was in the lead, Red 1, flown by the team leader, Wing Commander Simon Meade.
After retirement the Ministry of Defence gave the aircraft to National Museums Scotland through RAF Heritage. The museum catalogued it as EF.2017.39.1. It spent time in the conservation hangar before being unveiled in April 2018. It went on permanent display in Hangar 4, next to Concorde G-BOAA, the aircraft it had escorted in 1999.
It is the only Red Arrows Hawk on display in Scotland. In 2024 the museum marked 25 years since its Edinburgh flypast.
Seeing XX308 today
Indoors in Hangar 4, in full Red Arrows colours beside Concorde G-BOAA.
| Museum | Adult entry | Airframes | Headline exhibit |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Museum Of FlightNorth Berwick, East Lothian | £15 | 47 | Concorde G-BOAA, which flew British Airways' first commercial supersonic service in 1976 and arrived here by barge and giant road-crawl… |
Also known as: Red Arrows Hawk · Red 1 Hawk · Hawk T1A XX308
- https://www.nms.ac.uk/discover-catalogue/an-introduction-to-red-arrows-hawk
- https://archive.news.stv.tv/east-central/1413343-red-arrow-hawk-to-go-on-display-in-edinburgh-museum.html
- https://media.nms.ac.uk/news/national-museum-of-flights-red-arrows-hawk-and-scotlands-concorde-mark-major-anniversaries
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Museum_of_Flight