The Folland Gnat is a British compact swept-wing subsonic fighter aircraft that was developed and produced by Folland Aircraft.

The Folland Gnat was a single-seat jet fighter and training aircraft that served with the British, Finnish, Indian and Yugoslav air forces. The HAL Ajeet, or Gnat 2, is also included. Gnat F1 GN-110 on pole at the air defence memorial near gate to Jaeger Brigade Air Defence Battalion at Rovaniemi airfield.

The Folland Fo.144 Gnat T.1 is the most famous variant, being the aircraft chosen for the world-famous RAF aerobatic display team, the Red Arrows, and its1964-1965 predecessor the Yellowjacks. Gnats were operated by the Red Arrows from 1965 until replaced by the British Aropspace Hawk T.1 in 1979.

This Gnat was testflown in Jun-1958 as G-39-8 and acquired the same month by the Yugoslav Air Force for evaluation with serial 11601. It was withdrawn from use in 1962 and handed over to the Muzej Vazduhoplvstva Beograd on 31-Aug-1963.

Feb 6, 2023 · XK724 was the first of six Gnat F.1s ordered by the Ministry of Supply for evaluation purposes and first flew on 26th May 1956. The airframe went on to gun firing trials at A&AEE Boscombe Down until 1956 when she transferred to Folland Aircraft Ltd for development flying.

Perhaps the most widely known of the RAF's jet trainers as a result of its outstanding performances in the hands of the pilots of the Red Arrows aerobatic team, the diminutive Folland Fo.141 Gnat was designed originally as a light fighter, as recounted in the entry for the Midge.

The Folland Fo.141 Gnat is a single-engine single- or two-seat light fighter and trainer aircraft produced by the British manufacturer Folland Aircraft Limited, later by Hawker Siddeley.The Fo.144 Gnat Trainer is the two-seat trainer variant.

Dec 20, 2024 · Motoring journalist, RV builder and pilot Colin Goodwin relishes the chance to fly the Folland Gnat, former RAF trainer and first Red Arrows’ mount.

Jul 15, 2021 · The Gnat F.1 would become a significant aircraft in the IAF and rapidly proved that it was as capable a fighter as Petter had envisaged. With the outbreak of the Indo-Pakistani war on September 1, 1965, several squadrons had been re-equipped with these aircraft and the Gnat played a prominent role in the conflict.

Derived from the even-more-diminutive Fo.139 Midge prototype, the all-metal construction Gnat possessed outstanding performance features including a 10,000 foot-per-minute climb rate, and a roll rate in excess of 360 degrees per second.