A HIGH-flying aviation spectacular has been labelled a “fiasco” by angry fans who spent hours stuck in traffic jams on the way there.

Many of the thousands hoping to enjoy a day at the Throckmorton Airshow on Saturday say they ended up giving up and driving away after getting stuck in gridlock on their way to the show.

The scenes prompted a backlash on social media, with the airshow – one of the most popular annual events in Worcestershire’s calendar – labelled “farcical” and “a disgrace”.

Show organisers posted on Facebook on Saturday, telling fans that they “share your frustration” and that they could “totally understand” why some visitors were upset.

Some visitors from Worcester reported it took them more than three hours to travel the 12 miles to the event at Throckmorton Airfield near Pershore.

Siobhan Gordon left her home in Warndon Villages at 10.10am, expecting it to take around 20 minutes, but did not arrive until 1.47pm.

Mrs Gordon travelled to the show with her husband Alan, 13-year-old son Danny and his friend Ryan.

She described people abandoning their cars everywhere - “in laybys, and by the side of the road” and saw an elderly man forced to “lift the bonnet of his car and urinate in the engine as there was nowhere private for him to go”.

Mrs Gordon said: “By the time I got there I could’ve been to London and back.”

Motorists described chaotic scenes on the A44 heading towards the show, with some people claiming they moved just half a mile in 90 minutes.

While some eyewitnesses, and the airshow’s official Twitter, reported that a crash on the road had caused the gridlock, West Mercia Police said they had not been informed of any incidents.

Inspector Leslie Williams said the traffic jams were probably just down to “the build up of traffic and parking” and the police had “no [crashes] recorded”.

As the day progressed it became clear frustration was growing among people looking forward to the show.

Scores of potential visitors were put off by the length of the jams and decided to turn around.

There have been repeated calls by people online for a refund – although the cash raised through ticket sales is earmarked for charity.

Debbie Burgess Hayes wrote on Facebook: “Fiasco. Given up and gone home. Still five miles away from venue. Incredibly poor organisation of the whole event. Absolute disgrace.”

Bryan Connolly @magic_bryan tweeted: “Traffic farcical round Throckmorton air show. Been going to airshows 20 years and have never seen such a lack of marshals and signs.”

Rachel Checkersfield @coastergirl tweeted: “Still no movement whatsoever. 2.5 hrs now. About ready to cry. Hardly even want to go to @TAirshow now.”

For those lucky visitors who did manage to get to the show, the star turn was the appearance of the Vulcan XH558, the 55-year-old bomber known for its role in Britain’s iconic V-Force.

The event raised money for five charities – Combat Stress, Cancer Research UK, the Royal Air Forces Association, Fly2Help and the Midlands Air Ambulance – and was organised by a team of volunteers.

Your Worcester News asked Throckmorton Airshow’s organisers to comment, but no response had been received at the time of going to press.