Hundreds watch Jersey's annual air display

Hundreds of people watched Jersey's annual air display on Thursday afternoon.

The four-hour air show took place over St Aubin's Bay and included displays by the RAF Falcons parachute display team and a PBY Catalina flying boat.

However, some spectators raised concerns over the future of the event which was was saved from cancellation thanks to donations from islanders and local companies.

Two aircraft, a Yak 3 and a Breguet Alize, were forced to pull out on Wednesday because of "weather conditions", meaning that the show's schedule was not as full as previous years.

Mike Higgins
Event organiser Mike Higgins said this year's event had been "a particularly difficult one" [BBC]

Event organiser Mike Higgins said that despite the challenges, a successful show was still able to take place.

"This year has been a particularly difficult one but air displays are about problem-solving."

He said he was "eternally grateful" for more than £30,000 of donations, as well as corporate sponsorship, which meant the event could go ahead as planned.

'It's not the same'

One spectator said this year's event was "not the same" as previous years when there had been a display from The Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, the Red Arrows.

Peter Clarke, vice-chair of the Royal Air Force Association, called for better inter-island cooperation, to ensure better displays.

He said: "If it had been arranged so that we had the display at the same time as Guernsey then we would've been able to have the Red Arrows.

"Consequently that would've meant we'd have a much better air show."

Follow BBC Jersey on X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook. Send your story ideas to channel.islands@bbc.co.uk.

More on this story

Related internet links