Gold Coast secures major airshow for five years

The Gold Coast is preparing to host a major air show with the inaugural three-day event set to be held in August 2023. The event, has been secured to run for five years on the Gold Coast.

Every year, more than three million people flock to California’s famous Huntington Beach for the event that has redefined the airshow experience.

And now leading US event organisers, Code Four, are expanding their signature event into Australia with Code Four Chief Executive Kevin Elliott advising that the Pacific Airshow Gold Coast would be a spectacle like no other - an international Airshow combined with a family-friendly lifestyle festival transforming the sky over Surfers Paradise beach into Australia’s biggest stage.

Elliott noted “this will be an annual event that will feature the finest aerobatic teams and performers from around the globe as well as inspiring educational STEM activities, music, entertainment and much more.

“The economic impact of this event will be tremendous and well-timed given Gold Coast’s recovery from COVID and should reinforce that the destination is open for business.”

Major Events Gold Coast Chief Executive Jan McCormick welcomed the event, which has been secured to run for five years and highlighted "the economic impact of hosting an event of this size is also substantial and will deliver a significant boost not just for businesses in Surfers Paradise but for hotels, restaurants, retail, and the event industry supply chain right across the city and the greater South-East Queensland region."

The event has been in the planning stages for three years with Wings Public Relations director Deanna Nott becoming involved last year.

"It's been an amazing collaboration between the City of Gold Coast, Major Events Gold Coast, Tourism and Events Queensland, and obviously the Australian Defence Force," she said.

Nott has been a Royal Australian Air Force reservist for 28 years and advised "having grown up on the Gold Coast myself, I see it very much like IndyCar. If you compare the Pacific Airshow to the IndyCar races, it's so similar, except one performer from the air show has more horsepower than the entire starting line-up from an IndyCar race."

While final details are still being worked out, the Australian Defence Force will provide aircraft, potentially including F/A-18F Super Hornets and an F-35A Joint Strike Fighter.

Australia’s most recognisable aviator, Matt Hall, Air Race world champion and former Royal Australian Air Force top gun fighter pilot, has signed on as the event’s first ambassador.

Pacific Airshow, now the biggest Airshow in the United States, features an outstanding aviation line-up year after year, including performances by the US. Air Force Thunderbirds, US Navy Blue Angels, UK Royal Air Force Red Arrows, Canadian Forces Snowbirds, as well as many of the world’s finest civilian performers.

Image top: Canadian Forces Snowbirds performing in their Vulcan formation; Image above: Crowd gathering for Pacific Airshow in Huntington Beach