Southport Air Show is an annual event held in

Southport Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England. Southport lies on the Irish ...

Merseyside Merseyside ( ) is a metropolitan county, metropolitan and ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England, with a population of List of ceremonial counties of England, 1.38 million. It encompasses both banks of the Merse ...

, England, since 1991. The first show was the brainchild of Tourism & Attractions employee, Mark Brammar. The show takes place over two days, at the end of Summer, and attracts tens of thousands of spectators to see the many aircraft take to the skies above Southport and the displays that are held on Southport beach, making it the North West's largest Air Show. The flying programme includes military and civilian aircraft, classic jets, helicopters, aerobatics by the world famous

Red Arrows The Red Arrows, officially known as the Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, is the aerobatics display team of the Royal Air Force based at RAF Waddington. The team was formed in late 1964 as an all-RAF team, replacing a number of unofficial teams ...

, warbirds and parachute displays. The Southport Model Aero Club usually put on a model aircraft display before the start of the main air display. The show includes trade stands, interactive and educational displays, simulators and children's activities, as well as a military display with the highlight of a dramatic simulated battle on the beach involving army reserve forces complete with explosions and military vehicles. However, in 2007, the army units were unable to attend the event, due to operational commitments in

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

. In 2009, a

Eurofighter The Eurofighter Typhoon is a European multinational twin-engine, canard delta wing, multirole fighter. The Typhoon was designed originally as an air-superiority fighter and is manufactured by a consortium of Airbus, BAE Systems and Leo ...

Typhoon made an appearance at the show. The 2010 Southport Airshow went ahead on Saturday 18 September with a display from the Red Arrows. The Sunday performances were cancelled due to poor weather, and heavy rain which caused flooding on the site. In 2011, the show included the

Battle of Britain Memorial Flight The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight (BBMF) is a Royal Air Force flight which provides an aerial display group usually comprising an Avro Lancaster, a Supermarine Spitfire and a Hawker Hurricane. The aircraft are regularly seen at events comme ...

. In 2015, the show on the Saturday saw the final ever appearance of

Vulcan XH558 Avro Vulcan XH558 ( military serial ''XH558'', civil aircraft registration ''G-VLCN'') ''Spirit of Great Britain'' was the last remaining airworthy example of the 134 Avro Vulcan jet-powered delta winged strategic nuclear bomber aircraft operat ...

at the airshow. The appearance of Vulcan XH558 also included a very late addition to the display line-up, with another last-ever formation of the Vulcan escorted by the Red Arrows Display Team. Image:Southport Airshow Heart 2008.jpg, Southport Airshow Heart 2008 Image:Red Arrows, Southport Airshow 2009 (09).jpg, Red Arrows at Southport Airshow 2009 Image:The Blades, Southport Airshow 2009.jpg, The Blades at Southport Airshow 2009 File:Aa merlin heli southport 2010 00.jpg,

Merlin helicopter The AgustaWestland AW101 is a medium-lift helicopter in military and civil use. First flown in 1987, it was developed by a joint venture between Westland Helicopters in the United Kingdom and Agusta in Italy in response to national requirement ...

, Southport Airshow, 18 September 2010 File:Red Arrows Farewell to Vulcan MOD 45159089.jpg, Red Arrows flying with

for the last time in 2015

References

Airshows in the United Kingdom Southport Tourist attractions in Southport 1991 establishments in England Annual events in England Events in Merseyside Recurring events established in 1991 {{UK-festival-stub