The pilot who led the Red Arrows for three years has paid tribute to family, friends, followers and colleagues after his final team flight.
Squadron leader Martin Pert, who grew up in Abbots Langley and attended Parmiter’s School, flew for the last occasion as Red 1 with the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team last month – a role he describes as a “trip of a lifetime”.
His tour as team leader, which began with the 2018 season, has spanned a very high-profile, busy period involving the RAF’s centenary, the largest tour by the Red Arrows of North America in a generation and several flypasts to commemorate significant national events.
Local residents will remember their iconic fly-over June 16 last year, when Martin took the squad over his dad’s house in town for Father’s Day.
Martin said: “I want to thank my friends and, more importantly, family including my wife and children, who sacrificed seeing their daddy for nearly 36 months as he engaged in his boyhood dream career.
“And finally, I am hugely appreciative of all the support from you, the public, during this trip of a lifetime.”
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