Euros Dominate Fast Jet Displays At Paris

As sister site DoDBuzz just pointed out the European fighter jet-makers are out in force today. In fact, the only fast jets I've seen make aerial demonstrations on this rainy day have been the Rafale about an hour ago, what appeared to be an AleniaAermacchi M346 advanced jet trainer and a Eurofigther Typhoon a half hour ago.

Wait a second, a USAF F-16 out of Spangdahlem Air Base is taking off as I write this. Bout time.

The only American planes I saw in the air before this were the gorgeous Breitling-sponsored Lockheed Super Constellation (pics from today's flight here) and a U.S. Air Force C-130J Hercules.  Read up on the history of the Super Connies in U.S. service. They did everything from troop transport duities to serve as early AWACS planes in the EC-121 variant.

And, sigh, no sign of the F-35 making a surprise appearance. We'll keep our fingers crossed.

This fits with what a Boeing PR-guy told me last week when I was asking about the Chicago-based company's presence at the show. He basically said big B was going to make a minimal appearance compared to previous years; heck, there wasn't even a Super Hornet flying display today.

Stick around, we've got some cool videos for you later today.