Piper NE-1 "Little Blue Cloud" UK Tour
Commemorative Air Force
French Wing Announces 2026 United Kingdom Tour of Historic Piper NE-1 "Little Blue Cloud"
LE PLESSIS-BELLEVILLE, FRANCE (April 13, 2026) — The Commemorative Air Force (CAF) French Wing has announced an international summer 2026 tour of its historic Piper NE-1 aircraft, “The Little Blue Cloud,” bringing a rare and deeply personal piece of World War II aviation history to audiences across the United Kingdom.
Piper NE-1 “Little Blue Cloud” — Painted to represent U.S. Navy BuNo 26359.
(Commemorative Air Force French Wing)
Following the momentum of the CAF’s widely attended 2025 United Kingdom tour, this new mission will place one of the smallest and most distinctive aircraft of the war on some of the world’s most historic airshow stages.
“Taking an 80-year-old, 65-horsepower single-engine piston aircraft across the Channel is always an adventure... it is an invitation and an honour the French Wing could not refuse.”
— Stéphane Duchemin, Wing Leader of the French Wing.
The tour will operate from the Imperial War Museum Duxford, which will serve as its primary base of operations.
2026 United Kingdom Tour Schedule
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June 27–28, 2026
Festival of Flight
Shuttleworth Collection
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July 4–5, 2026
Summer Airshow
IWM Duxford
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July 16–20, 2026
International Air Tattoo
RAF Fairford
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July 23, 2026
Families Day
RAF Marham
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July 24, 2026
American Flying Day
Duxford
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July 25–26, 2026
Old Buckenham Airshow
United Kingdom
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About Little Blue Cloud
The Piper NE-1 is the U.S. Navy designation for the Piper J3C-65 Cub. The CAF French Wing’s aircraft represents BuNo 26359, which served with Squadron ZP-32 at Naval Air Station Moffett Field during WWII.
About the CAF French Wing
Based at Le Plessis-Belleville, the French Wing is the official affiliate of the Commemorative Air Force in France.