THE countdown has started to the biggest event in Bournemouth's history - the More Bus Bournemouth Air Festival.

Up to one million people are expected to visit the town during the free four-day event, which will feature breathtaking aerial displays.

With less than two weeks until take-off, organisers are busy with finishing touches to ensure the inaugural event lives up to expectations.

The action will be centred on the promenade between Bournemouth and Boscombe piers and there are dramatic air displays planned for every day of the festival.

One of the biggest draws will be the Red Arrows, who will take to the skies a record three times - on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

The Eurofighter Typhoon will astound the crowds with combat displays on Thursday, Friday and Sunday and the RAF Falcons will drop in each afternoon with a unique aerial display, including the no-contact canopy stack.

The Battle of Britain Memorial flight will evoke the spirit of the 1940s with a crowd-stirring display from the Spitfire, Hurricane and Avro Lancaster on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. And on Sunday, the Lancaster will be flying solo.

The Royal Air Force will showcase its current line-up of training aircraft - the Tutor, Tucano and Hawk - on all four days and the Royal Navy will bring its Black Cats Helicopter Display Team to town on Thursday and Friday.

The return of the Vulcan after a 17-year-absence will be another highlight. The vintage bomber, with its distinctive roar, will wow the crowds on Saturday - a performance made possible by a fundraising campaign for restoration which began in Dorset.

Other planes include the Sea Vixen, the King Air, a Falcon 20 and Gnaty, the newly-restored Folland Gnat, which will take to the skies with the Red Arrows.

On the ground, there will be plenty going on for people looking for something a bit different, from hot air balloon glows every evening to live music, street entertainers and acrobats.

There will also be a Big Bang firework display on Saturday night, sponsored by the Royal Air Force.

Mark Smith, head of Bournemouth Tourism, said: "The air festival is going to be an extraordinary event, the biggest Bournemouth has seen. But the evening entertainment has made the event even bigger and will definitely give the town a festival atmosphere."

  • Programmes are currently being sold at the Daily Echo offices at Richmond Hill, Bournemouth and at the Dolphin Centre, Poole. They are also available from Bournemouth's Visitor Information Centre at Westover Road and from Borders book shop in Bournemouth.
  • THE Daily Echo will offer unrivalled coverage of the air festival, with four pages of reports and photographs in the newspaper every day, plus a video on our website. Our talented team of photographers will be on hand to capture all the action, with all our photos available to view and buy online or in our Richmond Hill office. We also want to see your photos and we will be running a competition to find the best photograph taken by a reader during the four-day event. Daily Echo sellers will be stationed in Bournemouth Square and on the seafront throughout the air festival, offering readers the chance to buy a special souvenir poster with their paper.