Platinum Jubilee flypast route: Where will the aircraft pass and how can I watch it?

1 June 2022, 10:33

By Alice Dear

What is the Queen's Platinum Jubilee flypast route, when does it pass over my local area, when will it reach London and what time is Trooping the Colour?

The Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations are being marked with a very special Trooping the Colour this year.

On Thursday, June 2, a military flypast featuring over 70 aircraft will follow a route across parts of England before flying over Buckingham Palace, where the Queen will be situated alongside other members of the Royal Family.

The flypast includes more than three times the number of aircraft as it did the last time Trooping the Colour took place in 2019.

• How the Platinum Pudding trifle hides a subtle nod to the Queen and Prince Philip
• Etiquette expert William Hanson teaches Amanda Holden and Ashley Roberts how to be a royal
• First look at the Queen's stunning Platinum Jubilee merchandise from chinaware to tea towels

The Platinum Jubilee flypast route has now been confirmed, and we've got all the details from timings to locations and how to watch it live.

What is the Queen's Platinum Jubilee flypast?

A military flypast happens every year at The Queen’s Birthday Parade, better known as Trooping the Colour.

During a flypast, military aircraft make their way over areas of England before heading to Buckingham Palace, which they fly directly over.

During the flypast, members of the Royal Family stand on the balcony of Buckingham Palace and watch as the aircraft pass the landmark.

This year's flypast is especially important as it will be part of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations.

What time is the Platinum Jubilee flypast and what is the route?

On the day of Trooping the Colour, the flypast will take a different route than it did on the day of rehearsals.

The flypast will last a total of six minutes, and is expected to fly over Buckingham Palace around 1:00pm.

These are the areas the flypast will fly over from start to finish on June 2:

• The Wash
• Over the North Sea
• Southwold
• Suffolk
• Southend
• Swaffham
• Thetford
• Colchester
• Buckingham Palace
• Kent
• Surrey
• Berkshire
• Buckinghamshire
• Oxfordshire
• Gloucestershire
• Wiltshire

You can find the route for June 2 here [via Military Airshows]:

What is Trooping the Colour?

Trooping the Colour marks the official birthday of the Monarch, and has done for the past 260 years.

Every year, more than 1400 parading soldiers, 200 horses and 400 musicians come together on the first weekend of June to celebrate the occasion.

The Royal Family's official website explains that this year "the colour will be trooped by the 1st Battalion, Irish Guards, and more than 1200 officers and soldiers from the Household Division will put on a display of military pageantry on Horse Guards Parade, together with hundreds of Army musicians and around 240 horses".

This year, Trooping the Colour will commence on Horse Guards Parade at 10:00am.

How to watch the Platinum Jubilee flypast live

If you're not able to see the flypast in person, the moment the military aircrafts pass over Buckingham Palace will be broadcast live on TV.

Read more Platinum Jubilee news:

• The Queen's Platinum Jubilee dates: Full diary of events including concert and Bank Holiday
• Kevin the Carrot toys return to shops with special Platinum Jubilee makeover
• Who won the Platinum Pudding Competition, what is the lemon trifle recipe and how do I make it?