RAF A400M and C17 flights over the skies of Birmingham in May 2020

There has been several test flights by the RAF A400M and C17 over the skies of Birmingham, and the rest of the country since British Airspace went quite since lockdown came into force. So the RAF have been having test flights. During April 2020 I kept missing seeing the planes, although saw it once but not camera ready. 7th May for A400M and 11th May for the C17.

On Thursday 7th May 2020, I was made aware that the RAF A400M was scheduled to fly over the skies of Birmingham, just didn't know when. Sometime after 7pm that evening, I could here it coming, so rushed up to get my camera and take some zoom ins as it circled over Birmingham. I've got Super Zoom, but it was going beyond optical zoom on my bridge camera to digital zoom. And was a bit hard to lock onto the plane as it flew around, but tried my best. Gallery below of the nine photos I got.

Monday 11th May 2020 update: saw it again, accept it was an RAF C17. See the photos further down the post. Actually rushed up the stairs twice to get my camera, the C17 went around about twice.

The Airbus A400M is a four engine turboprop military transport aircraft. In the UK, it has been in service with the Royal Air Force since 2014. They had an order of 25, but that was reduced to 22.

With a clear blue sky that evening, also caught some shadows on the military plane as it flew overhead. This after 7pm in the evening.

dndimg alt="RAF A400M" dndsrc="../uploadedfiles/RAF A400M (May 2020) (1).JPG" style="width: 100%;" />

dndimg alt="RAF A400M" dndsrc="../uploadedfiles/RAF A400M (May 2020) (2).JPG" style="width: 100%;" />

dndimg alt="RAF A400M" dndsrc="../uploadedfiles/RAF A400M (May 2020) (3).JPG" style="width: 100%;" />

dndimg alt="RAF A400M" dndsrc="../uploadedfiles/RAF A400M (May 2020) (4).JPG" style="width: 100%;" />

dndimg alt="RAF A400M" dndsrc="../uploadedfiles/RAF A400M (May 2020) (5).JPG" style="width: 100%;" />

The A400M has four sets of propellers.

dndimg alt="RAF A400M" dndsrc="../uploadedfiles/RAF A400M (May 2020) (6).JPG" style="width: 100%;" />

dndimg alt="RAF A400M" dndsrc="../uploadedfiles/RAF A400M (May 2020) (7).JPG" style="width: 100%;" />

dndimg alt="RAF A400M" dndsrc="../uploadedfiles/RAF A400M (May 2020) (8).JPG" style="width: 100%;" />

dndimg alt="RAF A400M" dndsrc="../uploadedfiles/RAF A400M (May 2020) (9).JPG" style="width: 100%;" />

Before that, the only none commercial plane I've seen while on a daily walk on lockdown was this Embraer Phenom 300 - G-CKAZ. On Friday 24th April 2020. It was going on a round trip from Birmingham Airport and back. Then it went up again and back to BHX.

dndimg alt="Embraer Phenom 300" dndsrc="../uploadedfiles/Embraer Phenom 300 (April 2020).JPG" style="width: 100%;" />

Update on the 11th May 2020. Saw another military plane flying over the skies of Birmingham, thought it was the A400M, but no, it was the C17 Globemaster.

It was originally developed for the United States Air Force in the 1980s to the early 1990s. Also known as: McDonnell Douglas/Boeing C-17 Globemaster III. The Royal Air Force started receiving them in the late 1990s. They received several of them in the 2000s and 2010s.

Saw it twice around 1pm at lunchtime. The C17 has four sets of jets.

dndimg alt="RAF C17" dndsrc="../uploadedfiles/RAF C17 Globemaster (May 2020) (1).JPG" style="width: 100%;" />

The second return so I up I went to get some more photo zoom ins.

dndimg alt="RAF C17" dndsrc="../uploadedfiles/RAF C17 Globemaster (May 2020) (2).JPG" style="width: 100%;" />

dndimg alt="RAF C17" dndsrc="../uploadedfiles/RAF C17 Globemaster (May 2020) (3).JPG" style="width: 100%;" />

dndimg alt="RAF C17" dndsrc="../uploadedfiles/RAF C17 Globemaster (May 2020) (4).JPG" style="width: 100%;" />

Photos taken by Elliott Brown.

Follow me on Twitter here ellrbrown. Thanks to all my followers.