Airbus A400M performs a highly unusual maneuver for a transport plane

Airshows offer the general public an opportunity to pull back the curtain of secrecy that often surrounds military aircraft capabilities, allowing the worlds top pilots to wow the crowds with mind-blowing maneuvers and blistering speeds. While people generally think of small, nimble fighter jets streaking through the skies at airshows, there are also often appearances by some of the massive cargo transport planes used around the world to move troops and equipment on the front lines, and these craft often surprise the fans below with some pretty deft maneuvers of their own.

One such plane, seen in this clip practicing for the Farnborough International Airshow, held each year just outside London, is the Airbus A400M. Between the standby AC130 and the monstrous C-17 in size, the A400M is a transport plane used by the military to move cargo and troops to and from strategic locations around the globe. Weighing in at 168,000 pounds, one wouldn’t expect a bulky cargo transport to be very agile, but the Airbus is surprisingly maneuverable for its size, as you can see. The A400M performs a steep takeoff and turns almost on end while climbing with ease, then performs a twisting loop you just have to see to believe! Following the loop, the pilot returns the behemoth to the tarmac, touching down on the runway with the gentlest of landings, another testament to the precision achievable when man and machine are in perfect sync.