Roulettes The Roulettes are the Royal Australian Air Force ' s formation aerobatic display team . They provide about 150 flying displays a year , in Australia and in friendly countries around the South - east Asia n region . The Roulettes form part of the RAAF Central Flying School ( CFS ) at RAAF Base East Sale , Victoria . History and organisation . The Central Flying School formed its first official aerobatic team in 1962 , the " Red Sales " , using De Havilland Vampire jet fighters , but lapsed before reforming for a short time as the " Telstars " in 1962 , then as the Telstars again for just two months in 1968 , this time flying the Macchi MB - 326 jet trainer . In 1970 , the Roulettes were formed to celebrate the RAAF ' s 50th anniversary , and have been a permanent team ever since . Initially , they were equipped with four Macchis , growing to five aircraft in 1974 and seven in 1981 before cost - cutting saw the team reduced to five again in 1982 . Towards the end of the 1980s , the Roulettes flying hours had to be reduced as the MB - 326 fleet developed premature metal fatigue problems and a replacement aircraft type was investigated . In 1989 , with the new Pilatus PC - 9 trainers starting to arrive and MB - 326 airframe hours severely limited , the Roulettes flew just a single pair of Macchis . The Roulettes switched over to the new PC - 9s in late 1989 , and arrived at the composition they have used ever since : six PC - 9s plus a spare . The aircraft are painted in the bold red , white and blue scheme , with a large " R " symbol on the tail . The RAAF has since adopted this scheme ( minus the " R " ) for all its PC - 9 trainers , except for the PC - 9s at ARDU and FAC , which allows an aircraft to be swapped into or out of the team to equalise fleet airframe hours by just repainting the tail . Pilots . There are seven Roulettes pilots at any given time , and gaining appointment to the team is a rare distinction . All are flying instructors , except number seven , who serves as the commentator and ferry pilot for the spare aircraft . From time to time , the CO of an RAAF operational squadron recommends a pilot for instructor duties with either the Basic Flying Training School at Tamworth , NSW or at 2 Flying Training School at Pearce , WA . Upon progression through several levels of instructor categorisation , some of these pilots are then selected for duty at the Central Flying School , where they train flying instructors . From the 21 CFS senior instructors , the CFS commanding officer and the Roulette leader then offer selected individuals a chance to try out for the Roulettes . The team is organised in ' seasons ' lasting six months ; most members serve on the team for three seasons before moving on to other duties . A pilot begins with three months of intensive formation aerobatic training , starting with relatively simple manoeuvres ( such as loops and rolls in echelon or line astern ) performed at altitude , and progressing through more complex and demanding ones ( such as corkscrews , ripple rolls and rollbacks ) , close formation line abreast aerobatics ( which requires constant fine attention to power and trim settings ) , and eventually working up to the full six - aircraft display routines . Only when a routine is well - practised at altitude is it brought down in gradual steps to the minimum safe level of . First season pilots fly as Roulettes 2 , 3 or 4 , while the more experienced pilots fly as Roulettes 5 and 6 . Roulette 1 is the team leader , and Roulette 7 flies the spare aircraft , is responsible for public relations , and often provides commentary at flying displays . Accidents . The Roulettes have had four accidents over the years : The Roulettes always fly in formation , except on long transits to interstate airshows where they fly a very loose formation . In poor visibility , they close up to maintain visual contact , only executing a separation drill when visibility drops below two metres . Incidents . In February 2011 , a RAAF PC - 9 suffered an engine fire at RAAF Base Pearce , just north of Perth . The Roulettes were then grounded until an investigation was carried out and they could confirm that the planes were safe to fly . As of 4 March 2011 , there were six planes flying at the Avalon Airshow . Aircraft used . The PC - 9 is regarded as an easy aircraft to fly – it has ample power and excellent manoeuvrability – but a difficult one for precise formation flying , because it needs large trim adjustments to compensate for power and airspeed changes , and its low wing loading makes it highly responsive to turbulence . In the words of one Roulette , " it ' s not really a finesse machine " . Despite the entry of a third training aircraft type to supplement the PAC CT / 4 and the PC - 9 , the BAE Hawk lead - in fighter , there are no current plans to switch the Roulettes ' equipment .