ORGANISERS have hailed the appearance of an iconic plane at the first Teesside airshow in 25 years as “a dream come true”.

The legendary XH558 Vulcan bomber, which will be retired at the end of the 2015 season, will take to the skies at the 2015 Skylive Airshow at Durham Tees Valley Airport.

Co-founder of Skylive Chris Petty expressed delight at the appearance of the Vulcan.

He said: “This is fantastic. We were hopeful that our heritage, and the support the airshow has, could attract top name aircraft.

"We never stopped hoping that we could get the Vulcan, so this has been a dream come true. We are proud and delighted."

The XH558 Vulcan Bomber, affectionately known as the ‘people’s plane’, was restored by Marshalls Aerospace and Vulcan to the Sky in 2007, 14 years after its last flight.

Mr Petty said: “It is the only fully operational Vulcan flying in the world today and will be retired out of service at the end of the 2015 season, which makes the appearance at the Skylive Airshow really special.

“Skylive has been working hard to create a packed aircraft programme for our customers. Getting it to appear at your first year of running a show and in its final year of operation is just incredible. The Vulcan is the icing on the cake”.

The Skylive Airshow will take place on August 29, with an enticing line-up of air displays. Joining the Vulcan in the line-up will be an array of popular aircraft, such as The Blades, Spitfire and RAF Bulldog.

The airshow is not only aimed at aviation enthusiasts, Mr Petty said the day will be “a day out for the whole family” and “a real festival for Teesside”, with attractions like a fun fair, classic cars, live music, food stalls and food competitions on offer.

Visit skyliveevents.co.uk to buy tickets, and for further information follow the Facebook page skylive or on Twitter @skyliveevents.