This is a year-by-year list of aviation accidents that have occurred at airshows worldwide in the 21st century.
2026 Sep 5 – Tanagra Air Base, Greece – A McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom 2 of the 338th Fighter-Bomber Squadron crashed into a cliff during the annual Athens Flying Week airshow while attempting a high speed low flyby over the southernmost runway. Both pilots were found deceased at the crash site.
May 17 – Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho – Two United States Navy EA-18G jets collided in midair during an air show. All four air crew safely ejected.
2025 November 21 – Dubai Air Show (Dubai, UAE) – An Indian Air Force pilot was killed when his Tejas fighter aircraft crashed during a flight demonstration. August 28 – Radom Airport, Warsaw, Poland – A Polish Air Force pilot, Maciej "Slab" Krakowian, was killed when his F-16 crashed during a rehearsal for the Radom Air Show. The show was subsequently canceled. April 24 – Langley Air Force Base, Virginia – Pilot Rob Holland was killed when his MXS-RH crashed while landing. Holland was scheduled to perform that weekend. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) found that the accident was caused by a loose counterweight plug, which jammed the elevator and caused a loss of flight control. March 28 – Australian International Airshow (Avalon, Victoria, Australia) – A member of the Paul Bennet Sky Aces formation aerobatic team crashed while flying a Wolf Pitts S-1-11X. The pilot was injured and the plane was written off. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) found that the pilot had started a series of snap rolls too low, and had insufficient height to recover. March 22 – West Coast Air Show (Saldanha, South Africa) – Pilot James O'Connell died after his Aermacchi MB-326 crashed during a performance.
2024 October 20 – Air and Space Expo (Las Cruces, New Mexico) – Charles Thomas “Chuck” Coleman, a test pilot who was a flight instructor for the cast of the 2022 movie Top Gun: Maverick died after his Extra 300L crashed during a performance. October 5 – Old Rhinebeck Airport, Rhinebeck, New York – At about 14:56 EDT, an experimental amateur-built Coughlin Fokker D.VIII replica, N94100, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident. The commercial pilot was fatally injured. August 16 – Le Lavandou, France – A pilot was killed when his Fouga Magister crashed into the Mediterranean Sea during an airshow. The Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety (BEA) concluded that the pilot suffered either a G-induced almost loss-of-consciousness (A-LOC) or full G-induced loss-of-consciousness (G-LOC) and lost control of the plane. July 12 – Gdynia Naval Aviation Brigade's 30th Anniversary event (Gdynia, Poland) – A military pilot, Robert “Killer” Jeł, was killed when his M-346 Bielik crashed into the ground during rehearsal. The pilot was taking part in exercises as part of the M-346 aerobatic team. June 2 – Beja Airshow (Beja, Portugal) – One Spanish pilot was killed and one Portuguese pilot was injured when two Yakovlev Yak-52 aircraft, part of the YAKSTARS aerobatic display team, crashed midair during an aerial demonstration. The airshow was suspended after the accident. The Portuguese Office for the Prevention and Investigation of Accidents in Civil Aviation and Rail (GPIAAF) attributed the collision to a loss of situational awareness and a lack of training. May 25 – L'Aquila Airshow (Parchi di Preturo Airport, L'Aquila, Italy) – A helicopter pilot was killed when he was run over by a fuel tanker maneuvering for routine aircraft refueling operations on the airport runway. The airshow was suspended after the accident. May 25 – Battle of Britain event (RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire, England) – A Spitfire crashed in a field just before 1.20pm, killing the pilot. May 12 – Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport, Fort Lauderdale, Florida – Two jets touched wings during a formation flight at an air show. An emergency was declared, but the planes landed without incident. May 5 – San Xavier Airshow (Murcia, Spain) – An aerobatic pilot was killed when a vulture flew into his cockpit, causing his Extra 300 to crash. April 23 – Lumut, Malaysia – Two Malaysian Navy helicopters, an Airbus Helicopters H125 Fennec and a Leonardo AW139 collided while flying in formation prior to an airshow. Ten crew members were killed. January 13 – Ban Na, Banglamung, Chonburi, Thailand – A Raj Hamsa X-Air Hanuman piloted by an Austrian pilot and German co-pilot crashed into a rice paddy while en route to take part in a children's day airshow. The plane's pilot was killed on impact and the co-pilot seriously injured.
2023 November 12 – Aeroclub Villa Cañas Airshow (Santa Fe Province, Argentina) – An Aero Vodochody L-29 Delfin jet was destroyed when it impacted the ground during an aerobatic maneuver. Both occupants onboard sustained fatal injuries in the crash. September 17 – Reno Air Races (Reno, Nevada) – Two North American T-6 Texan aircraft collided mid-air on the last day of the final Reno Air Races, killing both pilots. The accident occurred after the conclusion of the race, as the planes were coming in to land after placing first and second in their race. The other races were halted, making this the last race ever to be held at Reno. Nobody on the ground was injured. The NTSB concluded that the pilots failed to see and avoid each other while landing, as they did not follow the standard flight legs. September 16 – Turin Caselle Airport, Caselle Torinese, Italy – A MB-339A/PAN MLU from the Italian Air Force Display Team's Frecce Tricolori crashed on takeoff after striking a bird while preparing for their attendance at the Vercelli Airshow the following day. The pilot ejected safely, but the plane struck a vehicle carrying a family, killing a five-year-old girl and seriously injuring the remaining occupants. September 10 – Börgönd Aviation Day Airshow (Fejér County, Budapest, Hungary) – A North American T-28 Trojan crashed , killing both pilots and injuring 4 on the ground. August 13 – Thunder Over Michigan (Ypsilanti, Michigan) – A MiG-23UB jet aircraft crashed due to an unexplained loss of engine power. Both pilots ejected safely. July 23 – Stow Maries Great War Aerodrome, Essex, England – The propeller engine of a Fournier RF4D, G-AWGN, failed during an aerobatic display routine. The pilot made a glide approach and landed safely. Upon landing, the left wingtip smoke generator caught alight and was extinguished by the fire service. July 16 – Selänpään Aerodrome, Kouvola, Finland – An Extra EA-300 aerobatic aircraft crashed at an airshow, killing the pilot. The Safety Investigation Authority (OTKES) stated that this was due to the pilot attempting an unplanned maneuver that he "did not have the ability and skill" to perform. May 20 – Zaragoza Air Base Families Day (Zaragoza Air Base, Zaragoza, Spain) – A EF-18A Hornet of the 15th Wing of the Spanish Air Force crashed during a solo display after experiencing technical problems. The pilot safely ejected from the plane and suffered a pelvic fracture.
2022 November 12 – Wings Over Dallas Airshow (Dallas, Texas) – A mid-air collision between a Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress, Texas Raiders, and a Bell P-63 Kingcobra resulted in six fatalities. The NTSB determined that the proximate cause of the collision was a failure of the pilots to see and avoid each other, but found underlying issues with the event organization, including the lack of a pre-briefed separation plan and reliance on real-time instructions from the air boss to maintain aircraft separation. September 18 – Reno Air Races (Reno, Nevada) – An Aero L-29 Delfín crashed during lap 3 of 6 during the Jet Gold race. The pilot, Aaron Hogue, experienced a G-LOC during an aggressive roll and died in the crash. August 26 – Air Ambulance Display (Shobdon Airfield, Herefordshire, England) – A Pitts S-1S crashed during an aerobatic practice flight in preparation the display. The plane entered a dive at the top of a climbing vertical rolling maneuver and did not have enough height to effect a safe recovery. The pilot was fatally injured. August 14 – Cheb, Czech Republic – A Hawker Hurricane crashed during an airshow performance, killing the pilot, Petr Pačes. The Air Accidents Investigation Institute (UZPLN) determined that the pilot lost control as he attempted to recover from a stall when performing a maneuver in an unexpected manner. July 4 – Field of Flight Air Show and Balloon Festival (Battle Creek, Michigan) – Chris Darnell, a driver performing in the Shockwave Jet Truck display, died during his routine. The act involved a truck racing a jet down the runway. As the driver headed toward a wall of fire, a tire failed, causing the truck to spin out of control, flip and burst into flames. June 19 – Duxford Airshow (Duxford, Cambridgeshire, England) – A 1943 De Havilland Dragon Rapide flipped and crashed on the taxiway, as its right main landing gear tyre had deflated. The plane was carrying eight passengers and a pilot, who were uninjured. The plane suffered serious damage. April 24 – Eloy, Arizona – A Red Bull Cessna 182 crash landed after a plane swap stunt went wrong during a livestreamed demonstration. The stunt involved bringing two Cessnas into a nosedive, when each pilot would then jump out, skydive across and enter the other plane to land. Both pilots were uninjured in the accident, but later had their pilot's licences revoked by the FAA for failing to adhere to flight regulations.
2021 September 4 – Bournemouth Air Festival (Bournemouth, England) – A Boeing Stearman crashed into Poole Harbour. The aircraft was part of the Aerosuperbatics formation wingwalking team. The pilot and his wingwalker suffered only minor injuries. The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) determined that the plane suffered an engine failure due to a failure of the oil inlet pipe. August 20 – Wilkes-Barre Scranton Airport, Avoca, Pennsylvania – A North American T-6 Texan GEICO Skytypers plane crashed during preparations for the Great Pocono Raceway Airshow. Pilot Andy Travnicek died in the crash. The accident caused the entire team to lose their sponsorship with GEICO, leading to them withdrawing from the airshow industry in 2022. The plane suffered a partial loss of power and stalled while the pilot attempted an emergency landing. April 17 – Cocoa Beach Air Show (Cocoa Beach, Florida) – A Grumman TBF Avenger made an emergency landing in the ocean near Patrick Space Force Base. No one was injured.
2020 May 17 – Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada – Before a public flyby of the Snowbirds, one CT-114 Tutor crashed after takeoff due to a birdstrike. Capt. Jenn Casey was killed and Capt. Richard MacDougal was seriously injured. January 24 – Iztapa Airshow (Iztapa, Guatemala) – A Zivko Aeronautics Edge 540, painted in Red Bull livery, slammed into a ramp during a private airshow, killing the plane's pilot and two people on the ground. The investigation found that the pilot began to perform solo aerobatic maneuver without prior coordination, and flew in an unsafe manner due to compromised depth perception combined with excessive confidence.
2019 November 1 – Witham Field, Stuart, Florida – A pilot was killed while preparing for the Stuart Air Show when his Grumman OV-1 Mohawk crashed and caught fire when he failed to recover from an "overbank" roll. October 2 – Wings of Freedom Tour (Bradley International Airport, Hartford, Connecticut) – A Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, owned by the Collings Foundation, crashed due to pilot error and engine/maintenance issues. Seven occupants of the 13 on board were killed and six were injured, along with one ground injury. The aircraft was destroyed by fire.