We’ve seen “airplane-inspired” special editions before. Usually they have a new paint job to look like an old-timey World War II plane, it’s photographed in front of another plane, and that’s it. Everyone calls it a day. Not Aston Martin. With the Aston Martin Vanquish S Red Arrows edition, Aston Martin went nuts. Especially on the inside.
The Red Arrows, for those who don’t know, are the British military aviation demonstration team, much like the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds or U.S. Navy Blue Angels. Unlike the Americans, however, with their actual fighter jets, the Red Arrows fly with BAE Hawk trainer jet, because the British empire is dead.
They still look awesome as hell though:
Despite the death of the Empire, Aston Martin is still going stronger than ever. So to celebrate both itself and the Red Arrows, the Vanquish S Red Arrows edition truly went over the top with the details. Let’s just start with the roof, which you can see up top, that has an inlay in the bare carbon fiber that mimics the explosive charge pattern used to shatter the glass canopy in case the pilot has to eject.
(No word from Aston Martin on whether or not that’s also an explosive charge in the car’s carbon fiber canopy, in case you need to eject.)
There’s white and blue tinted carbon fiber accents, along with a white side strake in the Eclat Red paint intended to evoke a white smoke trail. Plus there’s a titanium exhaust, simply there to ensure you’re just as loud as a passing jet.
But the interior is where the artists of Aston’s Q customization division went truly nuts. There are pinewood green inserts everywhere and green webbing seat belts, which evoke not only flight suits, but the very fabric used in the Martin-Baker ejection seats in the actual jets. The Red Arrows emblem is embroidered into the seats as well, because of course they are.
Even the steering wheel, derived from the Aston Martin One-77, now comes with a custom center rotary toggle switch “inspired by aviation instrumentation and switchgear.”
But the absurdly thoughtful and gorgeous details don’t stop there. There’s a black/yellow hatched design on the door pulls and seat folds, and the Red Arrows’ trademark “Vixen Break” high-G maneuver is embroidered onto the interior of the door.
Oh, and did I mention it comes with race helmets and bomber jackets done up like the Red Arrows too? Because it comes with race helmets and bomber jackets done up like the Red Arrows too.
Aston Martin is only making 10 of these things, each signed by a Red Arrow pilot. Nine for customers, and one to be auctioned off for the RAF Benevolent Fund, naturally.
Listen, your eyesight was always too crap and you were always too fat to be a fighter pilot anyways. Might as well get one of these.
UPDATE: Jardine Motors, Aston’s Cambridge dealership, would like everyone to know that this was not in fact a commission from Aston itself, but from Jardine. They’ll be selling nine of the cars exclusively, and the tenth will go to the aforementioned charity. Want a chance to win it? Enter the raffle here.