BOURNEMOUTH will always have a “significant importance” to the youth charity set up as a legacy to Red Arrows pilot Jon Egging.

Dr Emma Egging founded the Jon Egging Trust (JET) following her husband’s death in a crash shortly after a Red Arrows display at the 2011 Bournemouth Air Festival.

For more than 10 years JET has worked to support vulnerable young people to realise their potential.

Representatives from the charity will be at the four-day air festival as it celebrates 10 years of working with University Air Squadron (UAS).

Emma told the Daily Echo: “We have got our fantastic staff at the stall next to the Red Arrows tent. We have got SUAS students helping us there as always.

“Bournemouth will always have a significant importance for JET. The support we get here is just fantastic. People really do care and really want to give their support year after year.

“We get the same people coming back but it is amazing that the support continues and we simply couldn’t run our programmes without that fundraising support we get from areas such as Bournemouth, so thank you to everyone in Bournemouth and come and say hello.”

Students from UAS volunteer time to support JET. This includes Southampton University Air Squadron (SUAS), which holds a special place in Emma’s heart.

“This marks 10 years of our fantastic partnership with University Air Squadron across the UK but fantastically Southampton University Air Squadron has been working aside us, support us from the first year that we ran our programmes,” Emma said.

“There is a really lovely connection with SUAS as well in that that is where I met Jon.

“I went to university at Southampton, knew nothing about the air force, nothing about aviation, had an opportunity to apply to be part of the Southampton University Air Squadron, got in and it opened up this world for me of being around dedicated people with high aspirations, learning about teamwork and leadership, getting a chance to fly a Bulldog.

“Then seeing Jon progress through his air force career, it has really struck me that what the university air squadrons do is really important beyond the Royal Air Force and the community.

“I didn’t join but I took that experience with me. The fact that we have university air squadron support, the fact that we have SUAS who have literally rolled up their sleeves, got involved with programmes, done runs, plane pulls, all sorts of things to raise money.

“It is just about thanking them this year but also saying there is so much me want to do with air squadrons across the country but also to help our young people see in themselves – those teamwork and leadership skills that air squadrons demonstrate and aspire to great things.

“The students in SUAS are only a couple of years older than our students so they really can see in those individuals who are giving their time, what they could themselves do. It is invaluable the support we get.”

The volunteers from SUAS are involved in fundraising for JET and assisting at the charity’s flagship youth engagement Blue Skies programme.

Tom Blackwell, who heads up SUAS, said: “The fantastic thing that I see as the boss of the squadron is that I mentor university students, high calibre students who are going to be leaders either in the air force or in industry in the future and what I get to see of them is put that into practice with the young people and individuals on the Blue Skies and the JET programme. I get to see my team show success through the success of Blue Skies.”

Student, James Hyde JET liaison for SUAS, said: “Being able to see not only myself but everyone in the squadron take part in some of the Blue Skies programmes, everyone has always come back and said they have really enjoyed it and they have really had a good time supporting the amazing JET staff run those session.

“Whenever I go and do a session, I always love to see the huge difference it makes to the young people JET works with.”