RAAF Roulettes end four-year break by swooping back into town for Gold Coast 600

THE high-octane action will be overhead and on the ground for the GC600 as the RAAF Roulettes swoop back into the city to end a four-year hiatus.

GCB INDY INDY 0730 991017-48 *31 MR AIRFORCE ROULETTES

EXCLUSIVE: THE high-octane action will again be overhead and on the ground for the Gold Coast 600 as the RAAF Roulettes swoop back into the city this month ending a four-year hiatus.

The military airshow was one of the event’s main attractions for almost two decades, but Defence Department budget cuts saw it dropped in 2010.

Yesterday Gold Coast 600 general manager Shane Howard announced the Roulettes and Royal Navy helicopters were returning, saying he hoped the aerobatic display was just the beginning.

“It will be a fantastic spectacle,” he said.

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The Roulettes will take to the sky again for the Gold Coast 600 carnival after a four-year hiatus from the Gold Coast.

“People will be able to see the show with the backdrop of the Surfers Paradise skyline.”

Gold Coast 600 organisers are liaising with the Defence Department behind the scenes to get fighter jets added next.

“We would love to have an airshow of the scale of what we had in the past,” Mr Howard said.

“We want the event to be bigger and better.”

Race organisers were up in arms when the Gold Coast show was cut by the Defence Department, with Government officials saying the event was “not significant enough”.

Former V8 boss Tony Cochrane described it as a “massive slap in the face for the Gold Coast community and Gold Coast tourism” at the time.

Yesterday Fadden MP Stuart Robert, the assistant Defence Minister, said he would support the expansion of the Gold Coast 600 airshow as long as the event itself continued to grow.

“I will roll in with more assets as the event gets bigger and bolder,” he said.

Mr Robert said the allocation of the military assets for special events was decided based on the exposure that could be guaranteed from the shows.

“It is all about getting the best bang for our buck,” he said.

“These things cost a lot of money.

“So we look at aspects like television audiences before making a decision.

“Indy had a bigger allocation because it was a bigger event.”

Roulette Seven Flight Lieutenant Clay Esler yesterday promised to get race fans’ adrenalin pumping with the airshow.

“It should be a great show,” he said.

“We are really pleased about being back on the Gold Coast again.

High rise fans are set to get a bird’s eye view of the airshow when the RAAF Roulettes return for the GC600.

“All the pilots are petrolheads deep down, so we love supporting the V8s.”

The Roulettes are well known for their breathtaking displays, which include only using hand-eye co-ordination to fly at speeds of up to 590km/h in their PC-9/A aircraft.

The Roulettes take to the air next Friday about 5.05pm, Saturday at 2.07pm and Sunday at 1.22pm.