Initially the formation team consisted of two Pitts Special bi-planes and was sponsored by Marlboro.  This association lasted 11 years during which time the team expanded to three aircraft and flew over 1,200 public displays, mostly in the United Kingdom but also undertook short tours to Europe, Morocco, Hong Kong, Malaysia and the Philippines as well as individual pilots competing at the highest level in national and international aerobatic competitions.

1989 was the first of five years with Toyota as the sole sponsor.  The team format was changed to include an Extra 230 monoplane as the lead aircraft and this was later replaced by an Extra 300 two seat state-of-the-art machine.  During five years of Team Toyota operations, the team flew almost 500 public displays in north-west Europe and team leader, Nigel Lamb, continued to maintain a high profile in top level aerobatic competitions.