WHEN the Red Arrows swept back into Jersey’s skies, the cheers said it all.
Absent from last year’s Air Display, the RAF’s world-famous aerobatic team returned in tight formation with red, white and blue smoke trailing behind – and the reaction showed how much they had been missed.
But they were only the finale to an afternoon that Islanders had waited hours to see.
High winds delayed the start until mid-afternoon and grounded several aircraft, yet the shoreline from West Park to Bel Royal still filled early.
Families spread blankets on the grass by La Frégate and claimed space along the seawall, while office workers leaned from balconies and windows above.
Children were lifted onto shoulders, queues formed at the kiosks for chips and ice creams, and pensioners settled into deckchairs facing the bay.
For the first time in five years, a static display also returned to the Airport, while the Lower Park hosted food stalls, military vehicles, hospitality areas and family activities.
When the first engines finally broke the silence, conversations stopped and eyes lifted skyward.
The OV-10 Bronco – a small American plane – opened the event. It was followed by the Turbo Firecat, a chunky firefighting aircraft, and the T6 Harvard, a Second World War trainer whose engine growled across the bay.
The tempo quickened with the Pitts Special, a tiny stunt plane that spun, rolled and cartwheeled through the clouds, before the huge Catalina flying boat slowed things down with wide, graceful circuits.
The P-51 Mustang, one of the best-known Allied fighters of the war, drew loud applause with its high-speed pass along the front. The historic sequence continued with the Avro Anson, a steady twin-engined trainer; the Boomerang, a squat Australian-built fighter; the sleek Yak-3, a Soviet favourite; and the corrugated Junkers Ju-52, a lumbering transport plane from the 1930s.
Modern air power then took over with the RAF Typhoon, a fast jet fighter, before the Red Arrows closed the show with their trademark loops and rolls.
Behind the spectacle, organisers acknowledged the financial pressures of staging the event, having been pushing for corporate sponsorship and donations until the day before.
Head of fundraising John Le Fondré said it had been a “reasonable year” and added that it “all came good in the end”.
He described it as a “great display”, adding: “It’s nice to see the Red Arrows back, we’ve had some fantastic aircraft in the sky.”
Last year’s show had faced even greater uncertainty. Without the Red Arrows and with significant funding concerns, Islanders were asked to help cover a shortfall.
More than £30,000 was raised by public donations, on top of a government grant of at least £40,000.
Organiser Mike Higgins said he was “extremely relieved and very thankful” to his team in Jersey and the UK.
“They put on an absolutely brilliant display,” he said.
Acknowledging some apprehension regarding the weather, Mr Higgins noted that “the day turned out better and better.”
