List of air show accidents and incidents in the 20th century

This is a year-by-year list of aviation accidents that have occurred at airshows worldwide in the 20th century.

2000

* August 18 – Airbourne 2000 show (Eastbourne, East Sussex, England) – former Red Arrows pilot Ted Girdler was killed when his Aero L-29 Delfín jet failed to pull up from a diving roll and crashed into the English Channel.
* June 18 – Willow Grove 2000 Sounds of Freedom Air Show ( Willow Grove, Pennsylvania) – Two crew members of an F-14 Tomcat were killed when their aircraft lost altitude and crashed into a wooded area. They were demonstrating a low speed "landing wave-off maneuver" at the time of the accident.
* March 18 – Wings Over South Texas (Kingsville NAS, Texas) – Pilot Maj. Brison Phillips was killed when his F-16 Fighting Falcon crashed at an air show while thousands of horrified spectators watched. Phillips had been attempting a Split S maneuver, in which the pilot rolls the airplane until it is upside down and then drops in a dive. The plane hit the ground and exploded, scattering debris for half a mile in a field about six miles north of the naval base about 12:45 p.m.

1999

* October 3 – California International Airshow (Salinas, California) – Pilot Wayne Handley was seriously injured when his custom built Turbo Raven crashed during maneuvers. The NTSB attributed the crash to pilot error, but Handley attributed it to an engine malfunction.
* September 18 – Reno Air Races (also known as National Championship Air Races) Pilot Gary Levitz, 61, a 30-year race veteran of Grand Prairie, Texas, was racing his highly modified Mustang P-51, which disintegrated during the Gold Unlimited race, scattering debris and damaging a house in Lemmon Valley, just east of the Stead Airport Base, where the races were being held. The NTSB had determined that the tail empennage failed in flight causing the aircraft to break apart.
* September 12 – Harriman-West Airport airshow – Both pilots were killed when a Cessna 337C and a Cessna 305C collided in midair while conducting in-trail fly-bys.
* July 29 – EAA Airventure airshow ( Oshkosh, Wisconsin) – Pilot Laird Doctor was seriously injured when his F4U Corsair collided with a stationary F8F Bearcat during its takeoff roll. The Corsair crashed in flames beside the runway and was destroyed. Howard Pardue, the pilot of the Bearcat, was not seriously injured but his aircraft suffered major damage.
* June 12 – Paris Air Show (Paris, France) – A Russian Air Force Sukhoi Su-30MKI demonstrator '01' (with canards and vectored thrust), crashed at Le Bourget Airport. At the completion of a downward spiralling maneuver, the tail contacted the grass surface. With almost no forward speed the fighter was able to pull away from the ground, wings level, with an up pitch of 10–15 degrees and climb to ~150 feet (46 m), with the right jet nozzle deflected fully up and flames engulfing the left engine. Sukhoi test pilot Vyacheslav Averynov initiated ejection with navigator Vladimir Shendrikh departing the aircraft first. The Zvezda K-36D-3.5 ejection seats worked perfectly and both crew descended on to a taxiway unhurt. The Su-30 impacted some distance from the crew. The incident was captured on video.
* June 6 – Milan Rastislav Stefanik airport airshow ( Bratislava, Slovakia) – Test pilot Graham Wardell was killed when his BAE Systems Hawk 200 failed to pull out of a low turn and struck the ground. A woman spectator was knocked off a nearby rooftop by the force of the explosion and died of her injuries.
* 30 May – Airshow at Nowra, New South Wales, Australia. A vintage CAC Wirraway crashed during the display, killing pilot Owen O'Malley and observer Phil Lloyd.

1998

* August 15 – Swanton Morley Airshow ( East Dereham, Norfolk, England) – Pilot Christopher Wilkins was killed when his Rollason D31 Turbulent stalled and crashed while performing with the Tiger Club display team.
* 19 May – DARE Airshow (Manassas, Virginia) – Pilot Dr. Miles Merritt was killed when his Sukhoi Su-29 crashed while performing a skidding turn at too low an "altitude".
* March 1 – Mount Gambier Airshow (Mount Gambier, South Australia) – An Air Tractor AT-802A crashed on aerodrome whilst performing a low-level fire-fighting display. The pilot lost control after attempting a sudden steep climb at high speed and he was killed in the crash. There were no other casualties in the incident.

1997

* October 12 – (Duxford, Cambridgeshire, England) – The last airworthy World War II German Messerschmitt Bf 109 crashed while being flown by Air Chief Marshal Sir John Allison, Commander-in-Chief of RAF Strike Command. He was unhurt despite the plane coming to rest upside down. The plane, known to be difficult to land due to poor visibility from the cockpit and its narrow-track landing gear, had overshot the runway while landing following the malfunction of its Daimler-Benz DB 605 engine.
* September 20 – Sixth Annual Confederate Air Force Airshow ( San Marcos, Texas) An Aerotek Pitts S-2A aerobatic biplane piloted by James Kincaid crashed at the bottom of a snap roll and dive maneuver in front of a crowd of approximately 15,000. The pilot died from his injuries later that day. Witnesses reported that the plane did not have sufficient airspeed at the start of the sequence to keep from crashing at the bottom of the dive.
* September 14 – Chesapeake Air Show (Middle River, Maryland) – A Lockheed F-117, ''81–793'', of the 7th Fighter Squadron, 49th Fighter Wing, at Holloman AFB, New Mexico, lost its port wing at 1500 hrs. during a pass over Martin State Airport, and crashed into a residential area of Bowley's Quarters, Maryland damaging several homes. Four people on the ground received minor injuries and the pilot, Maj. Bryan "B.K." Knight, 36, escaped with minor injuries after ejecting from the aircraft. A month-long Air Force investigation found that four of 39 fasteners for the wing's structural support assembly were apparently left off when the wings were removed and reinstalled in January 1996, according to a report released on December 12, 1997.
* July 26 – Ostend Airshow (Ostend, Belgium) – Captain Omar Hani Bilal of the Jordanian Air Force display team, the Royal Jordanian Falcons, was killed when he lost control of his Walter Extra EA300s. His plane crashed at the end of the runway and burst into flames near a Red Cross tent and spectator stands. On the ground, eight were killed and forty injured.
* June 22 – Wings Over Long Island Airshow – ( Westhampton, New York) – Two planes racing collided over Francis S. Gabreski Airport in front of 15,000 spectators. Pilot Dick Goodlett died when his aircraft crashed and burst into flames. The second plane crash-landed, critically injuring pilot Chris Kalishek.
* June 1 – Air Show Colorado 1997 (Broomfield, Colorado) – Ret. Colonel "Smiling Jack" Jack M. Rosamond was killed when he lost control of his restored F-86 Sabre Jet during an acrobatic loop at the (then known as) Jefferson County Airport. Unseasonably high temperatures combined with the natural high elevation (5,673 ft) of the airport was thought to make the air less dense than expected, leading to poor effectiveness of flight control surfaces. Nobody else was injured in the accident.

1996

* September 14 – Bob Heale of Spokane was killed while performing at Spokane's Fairchild Air Force Base when his French CAP-10 crashed on its belly onto a dirt field in windy, rainy conditions at the annual Aerospace Days show. Investigators focused on possible mechanical problems with the 21-year-old plane. Bob Heale had been a regular performer at the Silverwood Theme Park in Athol, Idaho.
* August 4 – Three Rivers Regatta (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) – Pilot Clarence Speal was killed when the left hand wings on his biplane folded back which caused him to lose control and crash into the Ohio River.
* July 21 – Barton Aerodrome air show ( Barton-upon-Irwell, Greater Manchester, England) – The last de Havilland Mosquito known to be airworthy (serial number RR299), a T Mk III built by D.H. at Leavesden in Spring 1945, crashed with the loss of both crew after suffering loss of engine power when performing a wing-over manoeuvre. The incident was captured on video.
* July 14 – Flying Legends Air Display (Duxford, Cambridgeshire, England) – Pilot Michael "Hoof" Proudfoot was killed when his Lockheed P-38 Lightning aircraft crashed and cartwheeled while performing a roll maneuver. Several aircraft on the ground were damaged or destroyed.
* June 2 – Bartlesville Biplane Exposition (Bartlesville, Oklahoma) – Two Biplanes clipped wings on landing, all four aboard killed: William Watson, 71; John Halterman, 51; Rodney Bogan, 41; and Annette Delahay, 45.
* 4 May – Sertoma Cajun Air Festival ( Lafayette, Louisiana) – Pilot Joe Hartung, 44, perished when the Canadian-built Harvard Mk. II he was flying hit the runway while performing a low altitude roll.
* April 27 – Shiloh Airshow (Stoneville, North Carolina) – Pilot Lindsey Hess escaped injury when his Pitts S2 A crashed inverted on the runway following his attempt to cut a ribbon with the plane.
* April 16 – EAA Sun 'n Fun ( Lakeland, Florida) – Pilot Charlie Hillard was killed when his Hawker Sea Fury flipped over while landing in a crosswind.

1995

* September 9 – ( Johannisthal, Germany) – A DASA-operated Messerschmitt Bf 108 Taifun, ''D-EFPT'', crashed during an airshow, killing pilot Gerd Kahdemann and passenger Reinhard Furrer, a former astronaut who had flown in space for Germany in 1985 during the STS-61A mission aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger. After completing an aerobatic display, the Bf 108 was seen to climb and attempt an aileron turn with increased pitch which developed into a barrel-roll into the ground at a ~90-degree angle. A piece of the airframe that came loose while the aircraft was inverted was found to be the starboard wing leading edge slat.
* September 2 – Canadian International Air Show (Toronto, Ontario) – Seven Royal Air Force crew members were killed when their Hawker Siddeley Nimrod MR.2P stalled during a low altitude turn and crashed into Lake Ontario.

1994

* June 11 – Ray Mabery was killed at Selfridge Air National Guard Base in Mount Clemens, Michigan when his Canadair T-33 crashed during an unplanned roll.
* April 3 – Ian Reynolds died at a Warbirds Over Wanaka display in Wanaka, New Zealand when his de Havilland Canada DHC-1 Chipmunk 22A crashed after he misjudged the arch of his dive.

1993

* October 3 – Lanseria Air Show, Lanseria International Airport, Johannesburg, South Africa – Silver Falcon 5, an Atlas Impala Mk1 no 489 piloted by Charles Rudenick, crashed at Lanseria Airport after structural failure. The pilot initiated the ejection sequence half a second before impact. He came out horizontally with the fuselage vertical and a high downward velocity. He was killed when "sucked" into the crash fireball.
* August 22 – Prairie Air '93 Air Show – ( Bloomington, Illinois) – A Pitts Special flown by Charlie Wells crashed while performing a Lomcevak. Wells was killed instantly when the plane hit the ground. No one on the ground was injured, and the airshow continued despite the accident, however no more aerobatic planes performed for the remainder of the day.
* August 8 – Stockholm Water Festival ( Stockholm, Sweden) – A JAS 39 Gripen, ''39102'', crashed on the central Stockholm island of Långholmen, near the Västerbron bridge, during a slow speed manoeuver. Lars Rådeström, the same pilot as in the 1989 incident ejected safely. Despite large crowds standing by watching, no one on the ground was seriously injured. This crash was caused by a PIO.
* July 24 – Lebanon, New Hampshire – A biplane collided with a parachutist in the opening act of the Lebanon Airshow. Both the pilot and the parachutist died as a result of the collision. No other injuries were sustained.
* July 24 – Royal International Air Tattoo – (Fairford, Gloucestershire, England) – Two MiG-29s of the Russian Air Force "Test Pilots" aerobatic team collided in mid-air and crashed away from the public. No one was hurt on the ground, and both pilots (Alexander Beschastonov and Sergey Tresvyatsk) ejected safely. Investigators later determined that pilot error was the cause; one pilot did a reverse loop and disappeared into the clouds, the other one lost sight of his wingman and aborted the routine. The incident was captured on video.
* June 27 – Concord, New Hampshire – Ron Shelly and his daughter Karen Shelly Duggan, who performed a father daughter wing walking act, were killed when their plane crashed after failing to come out of a roll.
* 2 May – ( Marine Corps Air Station El Toro, California) – A vintage F-86 Sabre crashed and exploded in the middle of a runway after civilian pilot James A. Gregory failed to come out of a vertical loop several hundred feet in front of spectators. The impact killed the pilot and sent flaming debris along the runway. No one on the ground was injured. The incident was captured on video.

1992

* June 29 – Quad City Airshow ( Davenport, Iowa) – An AV-8B Harrier leaving the airshow crashed on takeoff, killing pilot Maj. Jeffrey Smith.
* June 27 – Woodford Airshow (Woodford, Greater Manchester, England) – David Moore was killed when his Supermarine Spitfire Mk.XIV crashed into the runway at Woodford Aerodrome during a low level loop.
* April 5 – Valiant Air Command Warbird Air Show (Titusville, Florida) – Harry Doan 62, landed Skyraider taxied and went off the runway flipping in soft sand, nose end first crushing and killing pilot.

1991

*August 11 – Byron's Original Aviation Expo ( Ida Grove, Iowa) – Pilot Mack Stevens Orr, a member of the Confederate Air Force, died following the crash of his T-6 Texan during a reenactment of the bombing of Pearl Harbor.
*August 5 – Northeast Flight '91 Airshow (Schenectady, New York) – Five crew members of a Canadian forces Sea King H-3 helicopter were injured when their craft lost altitude while hovering, crashed and flipped on its side.
*June 23 – Quad City Air Show ( Davenport, Iowa) – Pilot Rick Leonard was killed during an air race when the wing of his Monnett Sonerai I separated while making a turn.
*June 22 – Redding Airshow, California. Pilot Gordy Drysdale, 43, of Stockton was killed when his T-34 failed to complete a low altitude roll and impacted the ground near spectators. Two were hospitalized in serious condition. A 34-year-old man suffered back injuries when hit by debris and a woman, 30, sustained several fractures as a result of the crash. Drysdale was the tail pilot of the four-member Brew Angels aerobatic team, which was performing a stunt called an end-tail roll.
*26 May – Schofields Airport (Blacktown, New South Wales, Australia) – The pilot of a Bellanca Decathlon was killed when his aircraft stalled and crashed.

1990

* September 23 – ( Baltimore County, Maryland) – 62-year-old pilot Jack B. Poage died after crashing his red-and-white Pitts S-2B during an air show at Martin State Airport after he added a fourth corkscrew maneuver to three that were expected during a nosedive. He pulled the aircraft out of the corkscrew but had insufficient altitude and the Pitts Special hit the ground on its belly. Carroll County Regional Airport, which he managed at the time, was given the additional name Jack B. Poage Field in his honor.
* September 16 – (Pápa, Hungary) – A Hungarian MiG-23MF "04" crashed during an aerobatic display. The pilot, Major Károly Soproni died.
* September 9 – (Salgareda, Italy) – A Soviet Su-27 coded "14 Red" crashed during an aerobatic display, killing its test pilot Rimantas Stankevičius.
* August 2 – ( Oshkosh, Wisconsin) – pilot John Lewkowicz died after crashing his Boeing Stearman A75N-1 during an air show at the annual EAA National Convention Wittman Field. The aircraft was engaged in performing aerobatic maneuvers, entered a slow roll to the left, and at approximately the inverted position, the aircraft departed controlled flight. It then entered into an uncommanded snap roll to the left. The aircraft completed three-quarters of the roll, stopped in knife-edge flight and descended approximately 200 to 300 feet into the terrain.
* July 2 – Friendship Festival (Buffalo, New York) – Pilot Giff Foley was killed when his AT-6 lost altitude and crashed into the Niagara River.
* July 1 – National Capital Air Show ( Ottawa, Ontario, Canada) – Harry E. Tope was killed when his P-51 Mustang crashed into a golf course.
* June 30 – Groton Air Show (Groton, Connecticut) – Russell Gage was killed while attempting to roll his aircraft on takeoff.
* June 17 – ( Oklahoma City, US) – A small aircraft piloted by aerobatic champion Tom Jones crashed while performing during the Oklahoma City air show "Aerospace America." He was killed in the crash that was attributed to a low altitude stall.
* 27 May – Memorial Day Air Show (Tuskegee, Alabama) – Pilot Albert Butler was killed while attempting a rollover at a low altitude.

1989

* October 8 – Indian Air Force Day (New Delhi, India) – Wing Commander Ramesh 'Joe' Bakshi of the Indian Air Force was killed when his Mirage 2000 crashed while performing a Downward Charlie (a series of downward rolls in the vertical plane, pulling out with wings level at a specific height). A dozen spectators were injured, one fatally, from the explosions and fire.
* September 3 – Canadian International Air Show (Toronto, Ontario) – Captain Shane Antaya, flying for the Canadian Forces Snowbirds team died after a mid-air collision during a demonstration when his Tutor crashed into Lake Ontario. During the same accident, team commander Major Dan Dempsey safely ejected from his aircraft.
* June 8 – Paris Air Show (Paris, France) – During a low-speed, high angle-of-attack portion of Mikoyan's test pilot Anatoly Kvochur's routine display flight, a bird sucked into the turbofan of his MiG-29's right engine caused it to malfunction. After steering the MiG away from spectators, Kvochur managed to eject from the MiG seconds before his aircraft hit the ground. The incident was captured on video.

1988

* September 5 – Farnborough Air Show (Farnborough, England) – A Soviet Antonov 124 suffered engine failure and aborted its takeoff.
* August 28 – Kleine Brogel Air Base (Peer, Belgium) Pilot Ari Piippo was killed when the Aermacchi M-290 RediGO he was demonstrating failed to come out of a spin.
* August 28 – Ramstein airshow disaster ( Ramstein, (Germany)) – Three members of Italy's Frecce Tricolori Air Force Display Team flying Aermacchi MB-339's were involved in a mid-air collision. Three pilots, Lt. Col. Ivo Nutarelli, Lt. Col. Mario Naldini and Cap. Giorgio Alessio were killed, wreckage from the collision landed on the spectators, killing 31 people outright, mortally wounding 39 more and seriously injuring 346.
* August 7 – Leopoldsburg, Belgium – Belgian Air Force pilot Michel Duvivier was killed when his Mirage 5 jet crashed at an air show organized by the Belgian Air Force.
* June 26 – Habsheim Airshow (Mulhouse, Alsace, France) – While performing a gear down low speed pass, Air France Flight 296, a chartered Air France Airbus A320 lost altitude and crashed into a treeline. Three of the 136 persons aboard were killed.
* 31 May – Warwickshire Air Pageant ( Baginton, England) – RAF Flight Lieutenant Peter Stacey was killed when his Meteor T.7 lost altitude and crashed during a descending turn. Lieutenant Stacey was said to have stayed with the aircraft and steered it away from a residential area prior to the crash.
*April 24 – Marine Corps Air Station El Toro, California – Marine Corps Colonel Jerry Cadick, then commanding officer of MAG-11, was performing aerobatics before a crowd of 300,000 when he crashed his F/A-18 Hornet at the bottom of a loop that was too close to the ground. The aircraft was in a nose-high attitude, but still carrying too much momentum toward the ground when it impacted at more than 300 mph (480 km/h). Col. Cadick was subjected to extremely high G forces that resulted in his face making contact with the control stick, sustaining serious injuries. He broke his arm, elbow and ribs, exploded a vertebra and collapsed a lung. Col. Cadick survived and retired from the Marine Corps. The F/A-18 remained largely intact but was beyond repair.
*April 11 – Sun 'N Fun Fly in Lakeland, Florida – Pilot Ron Cox was injured after making a hard landing due to an onboard fire that occurred during a stunt presentation.

1987

* September 6 – Mammoth Lakes Air Show – Civilian stunt pilot Gary Loundagin, 42, of Livermore, California, was killed when his vintage T-34B aircraft crashed, he had executed a loop maneuver with insufficient altitude for recovery. The aircraft impacted next to the runway but did not explode. The high elevation of the airport was probably not accounted for by Loundagin, contributing to the mishap.
* August 8 – Fairfield County Air Show, Lancaster, Ohio – Pilot James King was killed when his biplane crashed while performing at the air show.

1986

* June 28 – SHAPE International Air Show, Chièvres Air Base, Belgium – After hovering a Hawker Siddeley Harrier GR.3 with a rearward movement, parallel to the public line at about 200 meters of altitude, R.A.F. Flt. Lt. Brian D. Weatherley ended with a nose down attitude that seemed steeper than usual. The aircraft nose kept going down past a recoverable angle. The pilot ejected while the aircraft was pointing straight towards the ground, still roughly stationary. He hit the ground before his parachute opened and later died from injuries sustained in the ejection. The aircraft (XW769) fell to the ground without explosion, but was deemed unrecoverable.
* July 24 – RAF Brawdy Air Show, Wales UK. A US Phantom jet crashed into the sea off the coast. Eyewitness accounts at the time suggested something had fallen off the plane, before it rapidly headed for the sea, away from the crowds. The pilot and copilot both died. There were no injuries on the ground.
* 26 May – Berlin Municipal Airport (Milan, New Hampshire) – Pilot Robert Weymouth, known as "The Flying Farmer", was killed when he failed to recover during a descent.
* 26 May – Mildenhall Air Show (Mildenhall, Suffolk) – The crew of a RAF Meteor was killed following the mid air collision with a RAF Vampire. The crew of the Vampire was able to parachute to safety.

1985

* July 13 – Western New York Air Show '85 ( Niagara Falls International Airport, New York) – Blue Angels Aircraft 5, BuNo ''155029'', and 6, BuNo ''154992'', both Douglas A-4F Skyhawks, collided at the top of a loop, killing Lt. Cmdr. Michael Gershon. The other pilot, Lt. Andy Caputi, ejected safely with only minor injuries. One Skyhawk crashed in the airport grounds while the second fighter fell onto a nearby auto junkyard. The demonstration team resumed their show duties on July 20 at Dayton, Ohio but omitted the maneuver that resulted in the crash, and flew with five planes rather than six.
* 5 May – Lemoore Naval Air Station Air Show – Civilian stunt pilot Kirk R. McKee of Sacramento, California, stalled his AT6A "Texan" aircraft after recovering from a Reverse Cuban Eight maneuver at low altitude. The aircraft crashed in an inverted, nose down attitude and exploded.
* April 27 – An AT-6 crashed during an air show at the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station when it apparently lost power, snagged a power line, smacked into the street and then slid into the chapel, killing the pilot Merrel Richard Gossman, 55, and passenger Robert G. Arrowsmith, 25. No one on the ground was hurt.

1984

* November 11 – Fairview Fly-in and Air Show, Fairview, Oklahoma – Civilian stunt pilot Tom McGuire in a North American SNJ-5, North American T-6 Texan, registered N91047, was recovering from a left aileron roll, the aircraft nose dropped and the aircraft turned 45 degrees to the right of the runway heading, it then impacted the ground in a shallow dive with the right wing low, killing the pilot. No one on the ground was hurt.
* September 4 – A de Havilland Canada DHC-5D Buffalo plane, registered C-GCTC, was damaged beyond repair in an accident during the 1984 Farnborough Airshow. Following a STOL display, the aircraft performed a very steep descending right turn onto the threshold of the runway. Shortly before touchdown the rate of descent reduced slightly. The aircraft then landed very hard. The nose gear collapsed, both wings failed and the propellers disintegrated after contacting the runway. Debris caused some damage to vehicles and three aircraft in the static display area.
* August 12 – A PZL-104 Wilga, registered SP-AFX, was one of three Wilgas flying in formation at an airshow at Fairyhouse Racecourse. The aircraft were about to fly in front of the main stand when the aircraft stalled and crashed, killing the pilot, Jan Baran. There were no other fatalities.
* June 3 – Großostheim near Aschaffenburg, Germany – A Hawker Siddeley Harrier GR3 launched vertically for a demonstration flight in front of the audience. The landing gear was extended during the Harrier was hovering. Because of a leak in the fuel supply fuel dripped onto the landing gear and ignited. The engine was sucking up smoke and lost thrust. From a height of about 90feet the Harrier crashed next to the runway and burst into flames – around 100 feet away from the audience. The pilot was able to escape with the ejection seat but the falling seat killed a spectator.
* April 8 – Canary Islands Air Show ( Canary Islands) – Pilot Augustin Gil de Montes lost control and crashed his Z-50 shortly after takeoff. He was killed along with four spectators and fourteen others were injured after his plane burst into flames and crashed through a barrier where the spectators were standing.

1983

*September 11 – Plainview, Texas – The wings of a Partenavia P.68C separated from the root just outboard of the engine nacelles during a high-speed, high-G maneuver beyond the design parameters of the aircraft and plummeted to the ground, killing the pilot.
*August 26 – Scarborough, UK – Lightning F3 XP753 stalled and crashed 200 yds from the shoreline, killing pilot Flt/Lt Mike Thompson whilst performing an unauthorised flying display at a seafront event.
*July 31 – Experimental Aircraft Association (Oshkosh, Wisconsin) – Arlin Pestes was killed when his Van's Aircraft RV-3 lost altitude and crashed during a formation fly over.
*July 9 – Gadsden Airport ( Gadsden, Alabama) – Pilot Harry Claxton and passenger Dr. George Horn were killed when their Aeronca AR-7 dove and crashed while making a turn during a mock battle. It is believed that loose tools and missing cover boots caused the control yoke to jam causing the accident.
*22 May – (Rhein-Main Air Base, Frankfurt, Germany) – A Canadian Forces CF-104 Starfighter, ''104813'', of 439 Sqn., departed controlled flight and exploded on impact on the B43 highway. The resulting fireball engulfed the car of priest Martin Jürges and killed three adults and two children. The sixth passenger in the car, Jürges' niece, died months later from her burns. A Canadian Forces spokesman said that the CF-104, flown by Capt. Alan J. Stephenson, 27, was in a formation of five Starfighters, and that he was to do a solo display. He had done two complete circuits and had leveled off for a low-speed fly-past when the plane malfunctioned. He ejected safely.
*15 May – Barton Airfield (Manchester, England) – Stunt pilot Mike Watkins was killed when he lost control of his Jurca Gnatsum, entered a corkscrew spin, and crashed.

1982

*November 14 – (Hamamatsu, Japan) – Captain Takashima Kiyoshi was killed and 12 spectators were injured when the Mitsubishi T-2B he was flying, as part of the Blue Impulse aerobatic demonstration team, failed to pull out of a vertical dive and crashed into a building.
*September 11 – (Mannheim, Germany) – A United States Army CH-47 Chinook (serial number 74-22292) crashed while carrying British, French, and German parachutists who planned to jump when the helicopter reached an altitude of . All 46 aboard were killed. The crash was later found to be caused by an accumulation of ground walnut shells that had been used to clean the machinery.
*16 May – Shelby County Air Show ( Alabaster, Alabama) Pilot Don Smith was killed when his Piper J-3 Cub failed to pull out of a spin.
*January 18 – ( Indian Springs Air Force Auxiliary Field) – All 4 USAF Thunderbirds pilots were killed in the Diamond crash.

1981

*9 May – ( Hill Air Force Base, Utah) – A U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds Northrop T-38 Talon crashed while performing the Hi-Lo Maneuver, killing pilot Captain David "Nick" Hauck. Capt. Hauk, in Thunderbird 6, crashed while attempting to land his ailing T-38 after an engine malfunctioned and caught fire. With black smoke billowing from the exhaust and the aircraft losing altitude in a high nose-up attitude, the safety officer on the ground radioed Capt Hauck: "You’re on fire, punch out", to which he responded: “Hang on... we have a bunch of people down there”. The aircraft continued to fight to stay airborne for about half a mile before hitting a large oak tree and a barn, then sliding across a field and flipping as it traversed an irrigation canal ultimately erupting into a fireball just a few hundred feet from the runway's end. No one on the ground was injured even though the accident occurred adjacent to a roadway packed with onlookers.

1980

*September 21 – Joliet Park District Airport ( Joliet, Illinois) – Three United States Marine service members were killed and one injured when their Huey H-1 helicopter stalled and crashed when it pulled up from a low high speed pass.
*September 21 – ( Biggin Hill, London, England) – A Douglas A-26 Invader crashed during an air display. The aircraft was attempting to carry out a climbing roll in front of the crowd when the nose dropped sharply, and the aircraft continued rolling until it dropped vertically into a valley. The pilot and seven passengers were killed. The Civil Aviation Authority subsequently introduced rules preventing passengers from being carried during air displays.
*June 15 – (Shannon Airport, Fredericksburg, Virginia) – Sgt. 1st Class Tom Johnson, a parachute jumper with the U.S. Army Golden Knights, fell over 10,000 feet to his death when both of his parachutes (main and reserve) failed to deploy.
*April 17 – American Samoan Flag Day (Pago Pago, American Samoa) – The seven member crew of an American Navy P-3 Orion were killed when their plane struck a cable car wire, lost its right wing and tail, and cartwheeled into a local hotel causing a fire. Five hotel staff and one guest were injured in the accident which destroyed one wing of the hotel.
*July 4 - John Pigford, 7, was killed in Willow Grove after accidentally activating an ejection seat.

1979

* 27 May – Capt. Pier Gianni Petri of the Frecce Tricolori crashed and died at the RAF Mildenhall Airshow. Capt. Petri was flying a Fiat G91 which failed to recover from its dive during a "Bomb Burst" maneuver and crashed near the village of Beck Row. No one on the ground was injured during the accident.
* July 6 – Chicksands Royal Air Force Base (Chicksands, England) – An unidentified United States Air Force pilot was killed when his A-10A crashed while doing low-level aerobatics. It was reported that he stayed with his plane and steered it away from the crowds.
* August 3 - RNAS Yeovilton - A Marineflieger Lockheed F-104G Starfighter had just performed a flying display at the Fleet Air Arm Open Day at Yeovilton, and was turning from base leg to final approach when it stalled and crashed; KptLt Manfred Stürmer ejected too late and was killed.
* September 3 – ( Dillon, Montana) – Captain Joel Rude, 32 years old, of Great Falls, Montana, was a flight training instructor for the Montana Air National Guard was killed when his U.S. Air Force F-106 Delta Dart from the 186th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron was making a low flight over a Labor Day parade on Dillon's main street, crashed into a grain elevator and exploded, killing the pilot and setting a bulk oil storage plant on fire. Much of the city's electrical power was knocked out, the police reported. At least eight other persons on the ground were injured, four of them severely enough to be admitted to hospitals.

1978

*November 8 – One of the solo Skyhawks of the Blue Angels struck the ground after low roll during arrival maneuvers at NAS Miramar. Navy Lieutenant Michael Curtin was killed. The accident was caught on film.
*August 12 – (Glenview, Illinois) – Avro Vulcan B2 '' XL390'' of 617 Squadron Royal Air Force crashed during an air display at Naval Air Station Glenview, just north of Chicago. All four Royal Air Force crew members were killed. Their delta-winged bomber apparently stalled during a wing-over and then crashed into a landfill just north of Willow Road.
* 3 May – (Grande Prairie, Alberta) – Captain Gordon de Jong of the Canadian Forces Snowbirds died when the horizontal stabilizer failed, rendering the aircraft uncontrollable. Although ejection was initiated, it was not successful.
*February 25 – Dubbo Airshow (New South Wales, Australia) – Pilot Bryan Hindle was killed when his motorized hang glider crashed during an air show.

1977

* October 9 – Lanseria Airport, near Johannesburg, South Africa – Demonstration Pilot Peter Philips flying a Britten-Norman Trislander in flying display performed a second wing-over and had insufficient altitude to recover. Impacted the runway and bounced into the air and came to rest some 500m further off to the side of the runway. The flying controls were disabled and main gear detached. One wing engine detached. Philips was accompanied by Mike Wrigly – both survived with minor injuries although had to spend a few days in hospital. Aircraft written off.
*September 23 – Suffolk Air Fair press preview ( Westhampton Beach, New York) – Stunt pilot Edward H. Mahler was killed at Suffolk County Airport when the tail section of his biplane separated at an altitude of 300 feet. An hour before the accident he had repaired a loose strut on the tail section of his plane.
*September 4 - Richmond, Indiana - Incident at 14:25 hours. The damage was substantial. Parachutist, John Steinemann, was pulled out of N4111A, a C-45 H Expeditor aircraft, and hit the tail and was killed.
*September 2 – Canadian International Air Show (Toronto, Ontario, Canada) – Pilot Alan Ness was killed when his Fairey Firefly lost altitude and crashed in Lake Ontario while taking part in a formation flight.
* August 21 - Evergreen Airpark - Vancouver Washington. Stunt pilot Harry Eyerly was killed when his Pitts Special failed to recover from a spin.
*June 3 – Paris Air Show (Paris, France) – Test pilot Howard W. "Sam" Nelson was killed when his A-10 Thunderbolt II crashed after coming out of a loop at low altitude.
*15 May – Biggin Hill Air Show ( Biggin Hill, London, England) – Five persons were killed and one injured when a sightseeing helicopter struck the underside of a de Havilland Tiger Moth biplane at an altitude of 200 feet. The biplane, with "its undercarriage sheared off", was able to land safely with no injuries to the pilot or passenger.

1976

*September 26 – Weyers Cave Air Show ( Weyers Cave, Virginia) – Flight instructor Gerry Presson was killed when his plane stalled as he pulled out of a climb and crashed.
*August 28 – Gathering of Warbirds (Fresno, California) – Pilot Cliff Anderson was killed when his home built Stolp Starduster I SA100 aerobatic biplane crashed and burned after he was unable to recover from an inverted spin.

1975

*September 13 – Reno Air Races – M.D. Washburn, 40, of Houston, Texas, died when the wing of his North American T-6 Texan clipped a pylon and crashed while in a tight formation at the start of the race.
*September 13 – Reno Air Races – While wing walking, Gordon McCollom of Costa Mesa, Calif. was hanging under a plane piloted by Joe Hughes. It suddenly dropped too close to the runway in what one official called a "freakish downdraft" and McCollom scraped his upper head on the runway, dying instantly. Hughes was able to regain control of the plane and land. The accident occurred directly in front of the grandstand just 15 minutes after Washburn's fatal accident. The accident was caught on film.
*September 6 - RNAS Yeovilton - Flight Lieutenant Stephen Beckly RAF, died when getting out of his Harrier GR3 following a display at Fleet Air Arm Open Day, the ejector seat accidentally fired. He was thrown 30 ft in the air and died shortly after arriving at Yeovil Hospital.Wings over Somerset by Peter Forrester

1974

*September 8 – South Weymouth Naval Air Station (Massachusetts) – A Bellanca 8KCAB ''N86589'' crashed nearly vertically into the ground while performing a controlled, acrobatic, half-twist maneuver. Fire after impact. Misjudged altitude and clearance, killing its pilot.
*September 1 – Farnborough Airshow (Hampshire, United Kingdom) – Co-pilot Stewart Craig was killed instantly and pilot Kurt Cannon died nine days after their Sikorsky S-67 Blackhawk helicopter crashed during low level maneuvers.
*July 28 – General Mitchell International Airport (Milwaukee, Wisconsin) – United States Marine Captain Stephen Torrent suffered minor injuries after ejecting from his Hawker Harrier that dove and crashed while demonstrating vertical takeoffs.

1973

*June 3 – Paris Air Show (Paris, France) – The first production Tupolev Tu-144 supersonic airliner crashed after it disintegrated in mid-air during a flight demonstration, killing all six on board and eight on the ground. The cause of the crash is controversial; factors cited include pilot error, mechanical failure and possible interference by a French aircraft sent up to photograph the Soviet airplane. A full investigative report was not released.
*July 8 – Lake Charles, LA – Lt. Steve Lambert, flying a Blue Angels F-4J Phantom II s/n 153876, had a mechanical problem and had to eject from his aircraft during that Sunday's performance. Lt. Lambert survived with only minor scratches, his aircraft was destroyed.

1972

*September 24 – Golden West Sport Aviation Show (Sacramento, California) – A privately owned F-86 Sabre jet piloted by Richard Bingham failed to take off while leaving the show. The jet went through a chain link fence at the end of the runway, across Freeport Boulevard, crushed a parked car and then crashed into a local Farrell's Ice Cream Parlour. Twenty-two people were killed, including twelve children and two people in the parked car.
* June 10 – Trenton Air Show at CFB Trenton, Ontario – Canadian air force Snowbirds solo Captain Lloyd Waterer died after a wingtip collision with the other solo aircraft while performing an opposing solo manoeuvre.
*June 4 – Transpo 72 Airshow (Dulles International Airport) – U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds pilot Major Joe Howard, flying Thunderbird 3, F-4 Phantom II, ''66-0321'', lost power during a vertical maneuver, breaking out of formation just after completing a wedge roll at around AGL. The aircraft staggered and descended in a flat attitude with little forward speed. Howard ejected and descended under a good canopy, but winds blew him into the ascending fireball from the crashed aircraft, melting his parachute; Howard plummeted and sustained fatal injuries.
* June 3 – Transpo 72 Airshow (Dulles International Airport) – In a sport plane pylon race when, during a turn around a pylon, a trailing aircraft's wing and propeller hit the tip of the right wing of a leading aircraft, shearing the leading aircraft's wing off the fuselage. The damaged aircraft crashed almost instantly, killing the pilot, professional Air Racer Hugh C. Alexander of Louisville, GA
* May 29 – Transpo 72 Airshow (Dulles International Airport) – The first accident of the air show involved a 'Kite Rider', i.e., a variety of hang glider that was being towed by a vehicle. The aircraft suffered a structural failure and collapsed, killing the pilot.

1971

*August 22 – Seething, Norfolk – Pilot Neville Browning was killed while inverted during a "Flying Farmer" performance.
*June 6 – Robertson Airfield (Plainville, Connecticut) – Pilot Gilbert Gillete was killed when his biplane entered a spin at low altitude.
*June 5 – Quonset Point Air Show ( Quonset Point, Rhode Island) – J.W. "Bill" Fornof flying an F8F Bearcat died after losing a wing to metal fatigue.

1970

*September 26 – St. Paul, Minnesota – Mechanic Sgt. Foster G. Crump was killed and pilot Col. Robert Leighton was injured when their replica 1919 biplane crashed shortly after takeoff.
*September 11 – Farnborough Air Show (Hampshire, UK) – A Wallis WA-117 Gyrocopter was being demonstrated at the Society of British Aerospace Companies (SBAC). After a high-speed downwind run parallel to the runway, the aircraft first pitched rapidly nose-up, then nose-down, and went out of control, the rotor blades striking the propeller, fin and rudder as it fell to the ground. The pilot was killed instantly.
*August 30 – ( Cedar Rapids, Iowa) – One of the members of the US Navy Blue Angels belly-landed at Eastern Iowa Airport with one engine stuck in afterburner. The pilot ejected safely, the aircraft ran off the runway.
*June 27 – Woodford Airshow, Cheshire, UK - Hornet Gyrocopter crashed killing its pilot; rotor broke, smashing the rudder, so causing the gyrocopter to lose control.
*February 15 – Wellsford Airstrip ( Bendigo, Australia) – Pilot Donald Busch was killed when his P-51 Mustang crashed after it gained altitude and rolled over following a fly past of the show grounds.

1969

*August 8 – Abbotsford Air Show ( Abbotsford, British Columbia) – At noon a Boeing 747 airliner made its Canadian debut with a low flypast to open the first day of the three-day airshow. This was followed a few minutes later by an inverted pass of a much smaller aircraft along the same flight line. Nearing midfield the Mini Mustang N9N suddenly dove vertically into the ground killing the pilot, 20-year-old flight instructor Scott Nelskog from Washington State.
*June 4 – Reading Air Show ( Reading, Pennsylvania) – Captain Dick Schram, a Naval Reserve Aviator "billed as the Flying Professor", was killed when his Piper Cub failed to pull out of a dive during a comedy flying routine. His son, a public affairs officer with the United States Navy Blue Angels, was announcing the routine at the time of the crash.

1968

*September 20 – Farnborough Air Show (Hampshire, England) – Six members of the French Air Force were killed when their Breguet 1150 Atlantic crashed while performing a single engine demonstration.
*17 May – Armed Forces Day Air Show (Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico) – A United States Air Force F-111 experienced a tailstrike and skidded to a stop 100 yards from 2,000 spectators while landing.

1967

*October 21 – Thunderbirds F-100D piloted by Tony McPeak (14th Chief of Staff of the Air Force from 1990-1994) crashed at Laughlin AFB, Texas, United States. The accident occurred during the "Bomb Burst" maneuver when the solo aircraft piloted by McPeak shed its wings during a vertical rolling climb. The accident was attributed to failure of the wing structure due to fatigue. McPeak successfully ejected from the aircraft.
*June 4 – A member of the Patrouille de France Display Team, died when his Fouga Magister went out of control during the display at the 1967 Paris Air Show at Le Bourget, France.

1966

*September 2 – Canadian International Air Show (Toronto, Ontario) – US Navy Blue Angels pilot Lt. Cmdr. Dick Oliver was killed when he crashed his F-11 Tiger into a breakwater at Toronto Island Airport.
*August 13 – Aviation Day ( Amarillo Air Force Base, Texas) – Shelby M. Kritser, chairman of the Texas Aeronautics Commission, was killed when his F8F-2 Bearcat, N7826C, b/n 121699, crashed during an attempted hammerhead stall.
*July 23 – Porter County Municipal Airport (Valparaiso, Indiana) – Stunt pilot Bill Adams was killed when the wing separated from his biplane during an outside snap roll.

1965

*June 15 – Paris Air Show (Paris, France) – United States Air Force Lt Colonel Charles D. Tubbs was killed and two other crewmen injured when their B-58 Hustler bomber crashed. The plane landed short of the runway, struck the "instrument approach beacons" and burst into flames.

1964

*September 13 – Farnborough Air Display, Farnborough, Hampshire, UK) – Bristol Bulldog Mk.IIA G-ABBB / `K2227' (registered new in 1930) crashed at the SBAC Farnborough show. After several slow loops at low altitude the engine cut out at the top of a loop, possibly due to magneto failure. The pilot had little chance of recovery and the aircraft crashed through the crowd barrier from the outside, the pilot, Ian Williamson, escaping with cuts and bruises.http://www.rafmuseum.org.uk/documents/collections/1994-1386-A-Bristol-Bulldog.pdf
*9 May – (Hamilton AFB, California) – United States Air Force Capt. Eugene J. Devlin was killed when a Republic F-105B Thunderchief, ''57-5801'', Thunderbird 2, delivered to the US Air Force Thunderbirds demonstration team in April 1964, suffered structural failure and disintegrated during 6G tactical pitch-up for landing after an air display. The failure of the fuselage's upper spine caused the USAF to ground all F-105s and retrofit the fleet with a structural brace, but the air demonstration team reverted to the F-100 Super Sabre and never flew another show in F-105s.
* 3 May – Armed Forces Day exhibition (Bremerhaven, Germany) – Major Thomas Eugene Perfili, an American flight instructor attached to the West German Air Force, was killed in the crash of his Starfighter after losing power while demonstrating rolls. He guided his plane away from spectators but was unable to eject.

1963

* September 9 – Kent Air Display ( Rochester, England) – Pilot Neville Browning suffered minor injuries following the crash of his Tiger Moth aircraft.
* July 21 – Caselle Airport (Turin, Italy) – While skimming the ground during an airshow Italian Air Force pilot Mario Pisano struck a parked automobile, veered into a crowd of people killing one from the propeller and injuring three and finally struck an empty bus. He was not injured in the crash.
* July 14 – Naval Air Display (Lossiemouth, Scotland) The pilot of a Gannet aircraft was unhurt following a crash landing caused by an engine failure.
*July 4 – Moline, Illinois – Skydiver John Talbott was killed and three others injured when their plane crashed during takeoff, in rainy conditions, while heading to perform during Fourth of July festivities.

1962

*October 2 – Public Air Display, Sydney Harbor, Australia – Two De Havilland Sea Venoms of the Royal Australian Navy collided during an air display over the Harbor. Lieutenant Albert 'Albie' Riley ejected from his aircraft at only 500 feet and survived with minor injuries. His aircraft crashed into the water close to what would be the site of the Sydney Opera House. The second Venom piloted by Lieutenant B. Roberts, although badly damaged, managed to make it back to its base at Nowra.
*September 3 – National Air Show (Chino, California) – Stunt pilot Cliff Winters was killed when his engine failed during a roll.
*April 21 – Seattle World's Fair

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