GET ready to paint the town red - the Red Arrows are flying in for a hat-trick of stunning displays.

The spectacular aerobatic display team will, for many visitors, be the highlight of the More Bus Bournemouth Air Festival.

The Red Arrows are always popular visitors to Bournemouth but this year will see them perform a record three displays.

They will showcase their breathtaking stunts on Friday at 3pm, Saturday at noon and on Sunday at 3pm.

They will also team up with the newly renovated Folland Gnat jet for a nostalgic flypast.

The Folland Gnat, known as Gnaty, was once the flagship of the world famous display team but was made redundant when the RAF replaced its Gnats with British Aerospace Hawks.

The 10 Red Arrows, old and new, will fly together just before the Red Arrows' Friday display.

The Red Arrows are firm favourites with crowds all over the world and are proud ambassadors for both the Royal Air Force and the UK.

Since the team was officially formed in 1965, the Red Arrows have completed over 4,000 displays in 53 countries.

Many of the Red Arrows pilots and support staff have recently returned from Afghanistan and Iraq and many will be temporarily detached on operations overseas during their time with the display team.

The display team is supported by around 75 people, who deal with everything from administration and planning to servicing and maintenance.

Festival director Jon Weaver said: "The Red Arrows only do about 85 displays a year so for three of them to be in Bourne-mouth is incredibly special and a great achievement for the town's historic inaugural event.

"Their annual displays have always been immensely popular and year-on-year have wowed the crowds with their death-defying display manoeuvres and breath-taking skills. We can't wait to see them take to the skies of Bournemouth this week."

Eyes to the sky - your indispensible guide

BOURNEMOUTH'S first air festival is set to be the biggest event in the town's history.

You won't want to miss a moment of it - so make sure you pick up a copy of the official air festival programme, which has been produced by the Daily Echo.

Priced at just £5, the brochure tells you everything you need to know about the four-day event taking place between Bournemouth and Boscombe piers.

It includes a map of all the action, a full timetable of all the adrenalin-charged displays, information on all the participating display teams, planes and helicopters and details of all the other entertainment that is set to make the event a big success.

With so many display teams taking part, including a record three appearances by the Red Arrows, planning ahead is the only way to keep abreast of the action.

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 in Westover Road and from Borders bookshop in the Square.