COMING soon to a seafront near you ... a blockbusting line-up for this year’s Bournemouth Air Festival was last night announced at a spectacular launch event.

A thrilling twilight display just off Bournemouth Pier by the SWIP team twister duo gave an invited audience a taste of the thrills in store at the UK’s biggest free air show.

A million spectators are expected to attend the four day festival, which takes place from Thursday, August 30 to Sunday September 2 – a week later than last year because of the Olympic Games.

With plans to show the action live on the internet, many thousands more could be watching world- wide.

Already confirmed for the 2012 festival are the Red Arrows, two Tornado GR4 jets, the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight, the RAF Hawk training aircraft and the Black Cats helicopter display team.

The return of the Red Arrows will be particularly poignant, as one of its pilots, Flt Lt Jon Egging, was killed in a crash while completing a display at last year’s festival.

But the crack aerobatic display team will be flying just seven planes this season instead of the usual nine because of the unavoidable posting of one of its pilots. It will be returning to its full aerobatic formation next year.

Air Festival director Jon Weaver said the event would be “unmissable" during the day and at night.

Get excited for this year's Air Festival with our special minisite at bournemouthecho.co.uk/air

“It’s our fifth year and once again we’ve secured a high level of participation from the Royal Navy and RAF. The Night Air programme is going from strength to strength.

“The dusk air displays and live music from the seafront stage are being developed to give visitors more reasons to stay in town for longer, adding to the overall festival feel of the event,” he added. The Royal Navy will be bringing the 5,200 tonne air defence destroyer HMS York to the bay as the flagship for the festival, as well as the 16,000 tonne Mounts Bay.

Jon’s widow, Dr Emma Egging, addressed a packed audience of local business people, members of the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force, and town dignitaries at the launch.

She announced that the inaugural Red Ball would be taking place at the BIC during the festival to raise money for the Jon Egging Trust, a charity to help young people who are under-achieving in formal education achieve their potential.

“We are looking forward to establishing the pro gramme in Bournemouth, an area that will always have a special connection to the trust,” she revealed.

The trust is one of four charities that will be benefiting from the festival’s patrons scheme and sales of souvenir brochures and charity wristbands.