Bastille Day air show in Paris: when will the National Day rehearsals take place?

Ahead of Bastille Day’s grand parade, the pilots of the Air and Space Force are carrying out several training sessions. So when can the public get an early look at the passage of the military aircraft?

Each year, the July 14 air parade is preceded by several weeks of preparation. While most training stays out of sight, a full dress rehearsal is organized a few days before the national celebration over Paris. As the national holiday approaches, the roar of military aircraft can sometimes surprise Parisians, both first-timers and longtime residents, as they fly over the capital.

The Bastille Day air parade is a true exercise in precision. Planes and helicopters must pass over the Champs-Élysées to the exact second in order to slot seamlessly into the official ceremony. To achieve this, crews rehearse one last time in real conditions a few days before July 14. This rehearsal also allows air traffic controllers, organizers and the various units taking part to coordinate their actions ahead of the big day.

Bastille Day Military Parade 2026: the schedule for the event on the Champs-Élysées in Paris
France’s traditional National Day military parade is held this Tuesday, July 14, 2026, along the Champs-Élysées in Paris. Find out what’s in store for the event. [Read more]

In 2026, the final rehearsal for the air parade is scheduled on Thursday, July 9, with aircraft passing overhead around 3 p.m. over the Champs-Élysées. This rehearsal lets crews reproduce the conditions of the official parade to validate the trajectories, altitudes and timing of each formation. The official parade will take place on Tuesday, July 14. The aircraft passage is planned from 10:21 a.m., opening as tradition the military ceremony on the Champs-Élysées.

This year, nearly a hundred airplanes and about thirty helicopters will take part in the parade. The renowned Patrouille de France will open the aerial display with its signature blue, white and red plumes, before the formations from the French Air and Space Force, Naval Aviation, the Army's light aviation, and several European partners.

So when are the rehearsals for this year’s Military Parade scheduled? The French Air and Space Force has announced a flyover of the capital and the Champs-Élysées planned for this Thursday, July 9, 2026, around 3 p.m.