Farnborough Airshow 1958, the Fairey Rotodyne was the star attraction, with its “tip-jet” powered rotors, transitioning from an helicopter vertical takeoff and hover to autogiro flight, exceeding helicopter speeds. In 1962, the last time it was held annually, the Hawker P.1127, the VTOL precursor to the Harrier jump jet, made its debut, like the corporate de Havilland DH.125 Jet Dragon, the de Havilland Trident and Vickers VC10 airliners. From 1966, foreign aircraft were allowed if that they had British major components, like the Rolls-Royce-powered Aermacchi MB-326 trainer and Fokker F27 turboprop airliner, as the Red Arrows, the RAF aerobatic display team, debuted
Jet Age Military aviation had entered the jet age somewhat earlier, during the closing stages of World War II. In the early postwar years, the increasing use of jet aircraft had little significant impact, serving mainly to continue the slow but steady improvements in performance seen in the past. Supersonic flight brought about a step change in aircraft performance. The Bell X-1, first to break the sound barrier in level flight, was an experimental rocket-powered type, and production jets which followed it into service could fly little faster. The first jet aircraft designed from the outset for supersonic flight was the British