RED ARROWS will not be attending Cowes Week in 2019 due to commitments abroad.

The Royal Air Force's Aerobatic Team's tour of north America was announced by Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson in late October, meaning the squadron would not be available for Cowes Week from August 10 to August 17, 2019.

Mr Williams said the display would reach 'millions of people' while showcasing the 'very best of British aviation'.

The start of the tour next year will see the first display the team has put on in the US in a decade, following a short visit by the Red Arrows to the east coast of the US in 2008.

The tour is expected to generate £2.5bn in direct foreign investment for the UK.

Air Vice-Marshal Warren James, the senior RAF officer responsible for the Red Arrows, said: “The deployment of the Red Arrows will demonstrate the global reach and capability of the RAF and our continuing support of the United Kingdom’s defence and commerce industries.

"We are very much looking forward to our visit in August and September of 2019.”

A spokeswoman for Cowes Week confirmed that the Red Arrows would not be present at the event.