Paris Air Show in pictures: Highlights of the flying display
June 20, 2025
For many airshow attendees, the flying display is the highlight of the day, and a rare chance to witness fighter jets, helicopters and huge commercial aircraft up close.
Paris Air Show 2025 laid on a spectacular display each day, featuring leading aircraft from all sectors of the aerospace industry. Here are the highlights from the AGN team.
Beta showcases electric powered flight
The little Alia from Beta Technologies was interesting to see, given it’s an all-electric aircraft that’s very close to receiving certification. It rolled down the runway silently, taking off rapidly and showcasing its agility in the air.
Enjoy the quiet flight of the Alia in the video below:
Beta flew the aircraft in CTOL (conventional takeoff and landing) configuration, although it’s intended to eveneucally become an eVTOL. The CTOL variant is expected to be certified in late 2026, while the VTOL type is looking to 2027 for certification.
The fighter jet flying display highlights from Paris Air Show
As a French firm, Dassault Aviation had a strong showing at the Paris Air Show, with displays from its defence and business aviation sectors.
Each day, the Dassault Rafale participated in the flying display, showing off its acceleration, rotation and low-speed manoeuvrability.
Participating also was the fantastic Lockheed Martin F-35A, one of the most advanced fighter jets in the world. Hearing the F135 turbofan roaring as the aircraft sped past was sure to make every visitor stop and look to the skies.
The commercial and business aircraft in the flying display
Dassault brought its Falcon 6X off the flight line to conduct a spectacular flying display that showcased the jet’s speed and manoeuvrability.
Also in the mix was ATR’s 72-600, which despite being a turboprop, performed some impressive moves in the sky. ATR has had an excellent week at the show, with several announcements and lots of media engagement.
The biggest aircraft in the flying display, and always a treat to see up close, the enormous Airbus A350-1000 wowed visitors with some tight turns and graceful elevations across the blue skies.
Military and special mission aircraft in the flying display
The Airbus A400M was incredible to see in the flying display at Paris Air Show. Its outstanding short field takeoff capabilities saw it rising from the runway at pace, soaring into the sky at an eyebrow raising angle.
A rare aircraft to see in Europe, the Conair Firecat is a firefighting aircraft developed in Canada from surplus Grumman S-2 Trackers acquired from the US Navy. France, too, acquired 14 Firecats in the 1980s, and further modified them to create the Turbo Firecat we saw today.
Several helicopters flew during the flying display at Paris Air Show, including the NH90 and Airbus EC665 Tiger.
But the real rotorcraft highlight was seeing the Airbus RACER take flight. This experimental high-speed compound helicopter has been developed by Airbus Helicopters from the Eurocopter X³. It took its first flight in 2024, so to see it perform at the show was a real treat.
