A RECORD-breaking number of flight fans lined the Tendring coastline for the “best ever” Clacton Airshow.

Thanks to brilliant sunshine, the second day attracted more than 120,000 visitors – bringing the total number for the two-day event to 220,000.

The spectacular air display, based at Clacton’s West Greensward, included the Red Arrows, the Typhoon, Chinook helicopter, Sally B Flying Fortress and the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.

It was the first full airshow to take place after the tragic events at Shoreham, which saw 11 people killed – and a poignant tribute was read by airshow commentator Peter McNamara on the first day of the event.

Mike Carran, air show director, said the show has proved to be the biggest and best to date.

He said: “It was beyond our wildest dreams – it’s such a special event for the town and for people locally. We all feel very protective of it.

“It’s been quite overwhelming the number of people who have said how great it was.

“I’ve only been doing it for ten years but it’s certainly the best one I have been involved with - and a lot of people have said it's the best.

“It’s certainly the biggest in terms of the crowd.

“In light of the terrible incident in Shoreham, we are so pleased that it has gone so well and without incident as well – and that’s not just for our area, but for air shows in general.”

Clacton Airshow, which is run by Tendring Council, has proved a massive success in recent years, bringing in an estimated £5.5million for local businesses a year, despite a number of other shows – including Southend and Lowestoft’s - being cancelled due to a lack of funding.

Mr Carran added: “I think there’s a sense of local pride here and we have worked really well with local businesses, who have often done things cheaper than they normally would or haven’t charged.

“We feel a lot of responsibility to retain that sense of local pride. I have heard a lot of people refer to it as ‘our airshow’ and I absolutely love that.

“We talk about it being worth £5.5million to local businesses and livelihoods, but you can’t beat that sense of community sprit generated by an event like this.”

The show was opened on Friday by the magnificent daredevilry of the Red Arrows and ended with the roaring engines of the RAF Typhoon.

Luke Powell, nine, from Manningtree, said: “It’s the first time I’ve been to the air show and it was amazing.

“I loved the Red Arrows and the way they did so many tricks and stunts.

“I also thought the parachutists were fantastic – it was great to see them land in the sea.”

Ethan Crozier, 12, from Brightlingsea, enjoyed watching the RAF Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.

He said: “I loved the Spitfire – I like the more historic planes, although the parachute team was pretty cool.

“It’s a great end to the summer holidays before going back to school.”

The Tigers parachute display team proved hugely popular and were greeted by council chairman Fred Nicholls on Clacton beach following their jump.

Corporal Frank Millerick, of the Tigers team, said: “This is the first time we have done Clacton – and hopefully we will be back next year.

“Clacton really is a unique airshow – it was great to see all the crowds.”

The line-up also included the Bulldog T1, the RAF Tutor, La Patrouille Reva, the RAF Chinook, the Sally B and the MiG fighter jet.