TWO Second World War Spitfire aircraft will fly over a special event to mark Armed Forces Day and the 90th anniversary of the Royal British Legion.

The fighters, part of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight that appears at airshows across the country, will stage the flypast at Beamish Museum, near Stanley, County Durham, at some point on Sunday (june26)afternoon.

The open air museum, which is dedicated to the region's industrial heritage, is the venue for a parade, drumhead service, picnic and sunset ceremony.

It is being held by the RBL, which cares for current and former servicemen and their families and is particularly concerned with helping personnel wounded in modern conflicts such as Afghanistan.

The RBL aims to raise £90m this year for projects like The Royal British Legion Battle Back Centre (RBL BBC) and four new Personnel Recovery Centres to meet the needs of sick and injured personnel and help them return to civilian life.

Andrew Drake, manager of The Royal British Legion in the North-East said: "We wanted to do something very special to mark the Legion's 90th Anniversary and where better to celebrate our 90-year journey than by going back in time at Beamish."

"The RBL BBC will be a national centre of excellence for activity based rehabilitation to help wounded, injured and sick Armed Forces personnel regain their fitness and return to duty, or reskill and make a successful transition to civilian life."

The event starts at 12.15pm - the museum is open from 10.30am - and admission is free to RBL members.

Standard museum charges apply to non-members. Details are on the museum website at www.beamish.org.uk