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Weather cancels first day of Blackpool Air Show

VisitBlackpool Blackpool AirshowVisitBlackpool
Thousands were expected to attend the start of the event on Saturday afternoon

The first day of the Blackpool Air Show has been cancelled due to a forecast of "extreme weather".

Thousands were expected to attend the start of the event on Saturday afternoon on the Tower Festival Headland.

Organisers said there was no option but to cancel as wind speeds are forecast at more than 45mph (70 km/h).

A Visit Blackpool spokesman said: "The safety of the pilots and the watching public is paramount."

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The Met Office has issued a yellow warning for the area, stating that "some disruption" is expected.

The second day of the air show is planned to go ahead "with as full a programme as possible", starting at 13:00 BST.

"We hope that as many people as possible will come out on Sunday to watch what should be a spectacular afternoon of free entertainment," the spokesman added.

The St Annes Kite Festival has also been cancelled and will take place over the weekend of 6 September instead.

Blackpool hosted its first air show in 1909, the same year Frenchman Louis Bleriot became the first person to fly across the English Channel.