The long-awaited Red Arrows display went ahead on Sunday

An estimated 500,000 spectators lined the sea front from Whitburn to Roker - more than any other single day in the show's 17-year history.

Heavy rain on Saturday put a dampener on air displays.

But the Red Arrows, the Eurofighter Typhoon and Royal Navy displays impressed the crowds on Sunday.

Airshow director Peter Chapman said: "It's been a weekend of contrasts.

"Those people who didn't come along on Saturday came along in their thousands on Sunday and we're delighted to have had such a bumper crowd who saw a fantastic show.

Crowds praised

"All of our car parks were full to capacity by lunchtime and our contingency plans worked extremely well and our advice to anyone coming next year is to get to Europe's biggest free airshow early."

The two-day airshow is billed as the biggest such free event in Europe and attracts thousands of visitors.

Research suggests the event generates up to �12m for the city.

Police have also praised the crowds for their conduct during the event.

Supt Michael Hartnack said: "Sunday has seen the biggest crowd on any one single day in the airshow's history.

"Given the size of the crowd, we have had very few incidents to deal with and with this in mind I would like to take the opportunity to thank the public."