Balbo

For the Italian Fascist leader, see Italo Balbo; for the village in Azerbaijan, see Balbau.

Balbo was a term in common usage in the late 1930s and early 1940s, used to describe any large formation of aircraft. Balbos are named after the Italian fascist Italo Balbo who in the 1930s led a series of record-breaking flights that used large aircraft formations to promote Italian aviation.

During the Battle of Britain it was the term used for the Duxford-based Big Wing.

These days (21st century), a particularly famous balbo can be seen annually at the ‘Flying Legends’ air display at the former Battle of Britain RAF station, Duxford, in Cambridgeshire, England, where one of the Big Wings was based during the Battle. The flying displays usually end with a balbo of 30 or more warbird aircraft. The show takes place over a weekend at the beginning of July each year.