NEXT year’s Royal International Air Tattoo will be more than a sky-high family day out as the Red Arrows celebrate a birthday milestone by expanding the event to three days.

As part of the Red Arrow’s 50th display season in aid of the RAF Charitable Trust, 10,000 spectators will be able to apply for a special Pit Day ticket, where they will be able to enjoy exclusive access to the world-famous aerobatic display team and their aircraft on the Friday before the usual event takes off.

RAF Charitable Trust Enterprises spokesman, Richard Arquati, said: “We’re very excited at the prospect of having an extra day on next year’s Air Tattoo. This year Saturday and Sunday were a sell out.

“We think the Pit Day will be very popular with the public and we have lots of exciting things happening. We hope it will capture the public’s imagination and we are looking forward to it.

“If you love the Red Arrows then RIAT is the place to be next summer as we host the biggest birthday celebration for the team in the UK.”

For £24, Pit Day ticket-holders can enjoy watching aircraft arrivals and rehearsals on the morning of July 11, the day before thousands of other spectators get to enjoy the main displays on July 12 and July 13.

They will also be able to enjoy a four-hour flying display in the afternoon, and witness the exclusive premier of a special Red Arrows formation fly-past.

On the Pit Day, visitors will also be able to make the most of exclusive access to the Showground East Red Zone between 10am and 6pm, check out the Red Arrows Village and Vintage Village, explore the BAE Systems’ Hawk and the F-16 Anniversary Park.

They will also have close access to other international aerobatic teams and their aircraft.

As well as celebrating the Red Arrows’ 50th display season, the Air Tattoo will also be marking the 40th anniversary of the Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcon and the BAE Systems Hawk, the aircraft currently flown by the Red Arrows.

The Red Arrows began life at RAF Fairford in 1964, performing their first display at Little Rissington in the Cotswolds a year later.

Since then, they have performed more than 4,500 displays in 54 different countries.

Tickets for next summer’s Air Tattoo and the special Pit Day are on sale now in a range of packages, including earlybird tickets and enclosure packages.

Discounts of up to £10 per ticket are available until January 31, 2014. For more details, visit www.airtattoo.com.