The PC-21s of the Formación Mirlo will make their debut at an Armed Forces Day in Vigo

Next week, from May 26 to 31, the city of Vigo will host the main events of the Spanish Armed Forces Day.

The program for Spain's Armed Forces Day 2026, which will be held in Vigo
The five Spanish Pilatus PC-21 aircraft of the Formación Mirlo seen up close

These events will include a land and air parade on May 30th at Samil Beach, the main beach in this Galician city. This event will feature 130 vehicles, 46 aircraft, and 25 helicopters. One of the highlights of this parade will be, as in previous years, the flyover by Air Force planes painting the colors of the Spanish flag.

Following the dissolution of the Patrulla Águila, that task now falls to the Formación Mirlo, equipped with five Pilatus PC-21 training aircraft, designated E.27 by the Air Force and operated by the General Air Academy (AGA) of San Javier (Murcia). The Ministry of Defense announced today that this will be the debut of this formation on Armed Forces Day, and noted that these aircraft will fly over Samil during the tribute to those who gave their lives for Spain and during the air parade:

✈️ La 'Formación Mirlo' participa, por primera vez, en el Día de las Fuerzas Armadas.

Una jornada histórica para sus integrantes, que sobrevolarán el cielo de #Vigo con los Pilatus PC-21 del @EjercitoAire, en dos momentos muy especiales.

¿Sabes cuáles son?

📹 ¡Te lo contamos! pic.twitter.com/e82cwiu5ZX

— Ministerio Defensa (@Defensagob) May 19, 2026

The debut of this formation in a parade took place on October 12, 2025, during the National Day celebrations, held annually in Madrid. Unfortunately, bad weather marred the air show, in which only 19 aircraft and no helicopters were able to fly.

On that occasion, the gray sky also meant that the colors of the Spanish flag generated by the PC-21s were not seen in all their splendor, which caused some displeasure among the public.

This time, the weather forecast for next week in Vigo predicts completely clear skies from Tuesday onwards, and even typically summery temperatures, with highs between 27 and 31 degrees Celsius. If you're coming to the air show (remember that this blog is published from Vigo), bring sunscreen. In the parade press kit (PDF) you can see the formations participating in the air show. The Formación Mirlo will be the 18th formation in the parade.

Unlike the C-101 Aviojet jets of the Patrulla Águila, the PC-21s of the Formación Mirlo cannot generate smoke with their engine exhausts, as turboprops do not leave contrails. Therefore, each aircraft in the Formación Mirlo is equipped with two Sanders Smoke Technologies SCSG-5 smoke generators, a model manufactured in the United States.

Each SCSG-5 generator is an aluminum nacelle 2 meters long by 254 mm wide, housing the smoke generator and a 7.57-liter tank of 100-octane aviation gasoline and a 37.85-liter tank of smoke oil, providing approximately 10 minutes of operation. The SCSG-5 is compatible with Milliken aviation colorants, allowing the PC-21 to create colored smoke trails like those flown by the C-101 Aviojet aircraft of the Patrulla Águila.

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Photos: Ministerio de Defensa / Ejército del Aire / Casa Real.