THOUSANDS of visitors raised their eyes to the skies this weekend as iconic planes passed Swansea Bay for the annual air show.
The Wales National Air Show drew a record-breaking crowd of 180,000 people to the city, with many more watching from across the bay and county.
The Red Arrows made two appearances, once on Saturday and again on Sunday, to open the show.
There were two Battle of Britain memorial flights, where a Lancaster bomber was flanked by a Hurricane and a Spitfire.
There were also performances from the Red Star Rebels, Gerald Cooper Aerobatic Display, the Breitling Wingwalkers as well as the Red Bull Matadors and Tigers Parachute Team.
There were also breathtaking demonstrations from the RAF Typhoon display team and the Tucano team.
Thousands of people packed the beaches and made a day of the spectacular event, taking picnics and games to the beach. Some took the chance to cool off in the sea.
The Tucano Display manager, Flight Lieutenant Dave Kirby, said although the soaring temperatures were ideal for visitors on the ground, for the pilot, Flight Lieutenant Andrew Fyvie-Rae, they were not as perfect.
"It's actually a bit warm for us," he said.
"There's no cloud which is good but it's so warm it means the engine starts to underperform and we have to turn the air conditioning inside off and given the glass canopy, it makes it like a greenhouse inside," he said.
The plane had been flown in from Cardiff, as had the Red Arrows.
For the Tucano team, which is based in Yorkshire, it was one of 60 shows this summer, but he said the crowds in Swansea had impressed the team.
On the ground, charities and groups handed out information and put on assault courses and games for visitors.
Nick Bradley, cabinet member for regeneration, said: "It was definitely the best-ever Wales National Air Show, a fantastic occasion.
"The Red Arrows were quite simply amazing and the first-time visit by the whole of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight was both breathtaking and moving.
He added: "The air show is a huge event for Swansea and it's designed to showcase our city and encourage people to spend time here. I'm confident that such a successful weekend just before the start of the school holidays will encourage many return visits over the summer."
