Missing man formation

Uncommon card · No. 130954

The missing man formation is an aerial salute performed as part of a flypast of aircraft at a funeral or memorial event, typically in memory of a fallen pilot, a well-known military service member or veteran, or a well-known political figure. The planes fly in a formation that leaves a space where one plane should be, symbolizing the person's absence. Though similar formations have occurred as early as World War I, the first flypast in the modern formation of four planes is believed to have occurred in 1931 at the funeral for Charles W. "Speed" Holman. Missing man formations are also used in motorsport in memory of a recently deceased driver and in American football and ice hockey in memory of a recently deceased player.

Read on Wikipedia · Image Photographer's Mate Airman Apprentice Jay C. Pugh, Public domain