Organisers of Armed Forces Day in Morecambe are hoping for crowds of up to 50,000 people after receiving an £11,000 boost towards a major air display over the Prom.
Morecambe Town Council has awarded a grant of £11,000 in support of Morecambe and Lancaster Armed Forces Day 2024.
The free, all-day event - which sees the community gather to show their support for serving personnel, reservists, service families, veterans and cadets - will take place in the town on Saturday June 22, with exhibits, displays, parades and more on, around, and above Morecambe Promenade.
As in 2023, the day will also celebrate the vital work of the ‘blue light’ emergency services.
As the event’s headline sponsor, a significant portion of the funding awarded by the town council is earmarked to secure the displays from the iconic Lancaster Bomber of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight and the RAF Falcons - the nation’s premier parachute display team.
A full display from the Lancaster, which is normally reserved for major UK airshows, represents a particularly significant coup for the event organisers and is expected to draw in huge crowds.
A post on the Armed Forces Day Facebook page said: "We hope to have 35-50,000 people attend our event on 22nd June which will generate, on average, over £1m for the region."
Commander Tim Roberts Royal Navy (Rtd), a member of the Morecambe and Lancaster Armed Forces Day 2024 committee, said it was a "most generous grant" and thanked the town council for their "sponsorship and co-operation".
Councillor Margaret Pattison, chair of Morecambe Town Council’s festivals, sponsorships and events committee, said: "Some of the key things we consider when making grant awards to major festivals and events are their ability to attract crowds, boost the local economy, and show the town off in its very best light.
"With that in mind, the council couldn’t possibly pass up the opportunity to help the Armed Forces Day team bring the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight and RAF Falcons to Morecambe.
‘It will be truly memorable to see this legendary aircraft flying over its namesake city and you couldn’t ask for a better backdrop for both displays than the natural amphitheatre of Morecambe Bay.
"We are proud to enable the Armed Forces Day team to deliver this fantastic experience and can’t think of a more fitting way for the town to show its appreciation for our past, present, and future service personnel and their families."
The full schedule of events for Morecambe and Lancaster Armed Forces Day 2024 is to be announced.
In March, it was confirmed that the RAF Falcons - the UK's top military parachute display team - would be part of Armed Forces Day celebrations in the town this year.
The Falcons are the UK’s premier military parachute display team, based at RAF Brize Norton, Oxfordshire.
They display at venues all over Britain and Europe throughout the year.
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