Gold Coast’s Surfers Paradise Beach to host giant US Pacific Airshow from 2023
Plans to bring America’s largest airshow to the Gold Coast have been welcomed by locals but some Surfers Paradise residents fear the “non-stop noise pollution”.
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Plans to bring America’s largest airshow to the Gold Coast have been welcomed by locals but some Surfers Paradise residents fear the “non-stop noise pollution”.
Military jets supplied by air forces across the world, along with a range of civilian and stunt craft will soar over the waters off Surfers Paradise beach for the Pacific Airshow, which will be held in August 2023.
City leaders have secured an Australian instalment of the California-based event, which annually brings more than $100m into Orange County’s Huntington Beach, for at least five years.
Bulletin readers have largely welcomed the event but others are less sure.
Peter wrote: What about the noise? How many suburbs are going to be affected by the noise pollution resulting from this event?”
“Four hours of non-stop noise per day over 3 days (every year). Too bad for those residents who just want a bit of quiet time in their homes over that weekend,” he wrote.
“Many will not be happy that this event is going ahead particularly as it seems there was no prior community consultation.”
Susan wrote: “Surely the Gold Coast can come up with some more environmentally friendly entertainment.Plane shows, yawwnnnn.”
Others were far more delighted, with Ian writing “Can’t wait. Bring it on.”
Kim wrote: “Wonderful!! Congratulations, after Covid the Coast needs all the help it can get with Tourism.”
150,000+ crowds: Gold Coast lands historic US event
America’s largest airshow is coming to the Gold Coast, making it the biggest annual event staged in the city for 15 years.
Military jets supplied by air forces across the world, along with a range of civilian and stunt craft will soar over the waters off Surfers Paradise beach for the Pacific Airshow, which will be held in August 2023.
City leaders have secured an Australian instalment of the California-based event, which annually brings more than $100m into Orange County’s Huntington Beach, for at least five years.
Described as “Indy in the air”, organisers say it will inject at least $25m into the Gold Coast’s economy and lure at least 100,000 to 150,000 tourists.
In 2008, the last year the famed Indycar open wheelers raced around the Gold Coast city streets, more than 200,000 patrons passed through the gates.
Event boss Kevin Elliott said the sight of world-famous planes performing death-defying feats against the backdrop of Surfers Paradise would be a tremendous drawcard.
“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,” he said.
“It takes the traditional model of an air show and redefines the experience with all of it backdropped by the iconic skyline of the Gold Coast and the beach.
“Because it will be at the beach and it is such a great destination, I think it will appeal to a very broad and diverse audience.”
Mr Elliott, whose company Code Four runs the event, said he expected the airshow weekend would also see a spike in visitation to Gold Coast theme parks.
Pacific Airshow was first held in California in 2016 and has featured performances by the US Air Force Thunderbirds, US Navy Blue Angels, Royal Air Force Red Arrows and Canadian Forces Snowbirds.
More than 3 million people attended the 2021 event in Huntington Beach.
The Gold Coast event is expected to reach a global audience of more than 5 million people, with the event to be broadcast live on streaming services.
The US event was last year shown live on Disney owned service Hulu.
Mr Elliott said he had already lined up a “robust pipeline” of international acts involving the participation of defence air forces around the world, including the US and Australia.
The event will be held over a three-day Friday-to-Sunday carnival in mid-August each year, with four hours of aerial acrobatics each day.
More than 40 performers from 20 different aerial acts take part in the activities with planes launching from both Amberley air base in Brisbane and Gold Coast Airport at Coolangatta.
While there will be some ticketed elements, attendance will be free, with the public invited to Surfers Paradise Beach for the festivities.
Major Events Gold Coast CEO Jan McCormick said the airshow was a “game changer” for the city.
“This exciting five-year partnership well and truly cements our city’s reputation as a world-class events destination that has the capacity to host the biggest shows on the planet,” she said.
“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 Southeast Queensland region.”
Mayor Tom Tate said the event would give the tourism industry a shot in the arm and deliver long-term dividends for the city.
“There has never been an air event of this scale staged anywhere in Australia. That’s why the Gold Coast is famous for fun – in the air and on the ground,’’ he said.
“This event underscores our commitment to attracting the very best in global entertainment for our residents, visitors and businesses.”
HOW THE DEAL WAS DONE
THE man behind the shock plan to bring the largest US airshow to Australia fell in love with the Gold Coast the moment he arrived.
The Pacific Airshow will be held annually on the Gold Coast and will be the biggest annual event since the last Indy Carnival was held in 2008.
More than 100,000 people are expected to flock to the Glitter Strip for the first event, which will be held in August 2023.
US-based Code Four CEO Kevin Elliott said the original event, held in the skies above California’s Orange County, had proved a major success and sparked talks about finding a second location.
“We really set out to find a location which was similar in nature to Huntington Beach in Orange County, so our director of air operations spent a lot of time googling places where these kinds of events could realistically be held,” he said.
“The Gold Coast has long, straight stretches of beach in a location which has mega event infrastructure and the profile of residents in terms of an economy which could support an event like this.
“There are uncanny similarities between the Gold Coast and Orange County which are striking, such as surfing and high-rises.”
Talks with Gold Coast City Council and Tourism and Events Queensland began more than three years ago in 2019.
While global travel was put on for nearly two years because of the pandemic, the discussions continued, with the newly formed Major Events Gold Coast and the Australian Defence Force brought in.
Mr Elliott finally travelled to the Gold Coast earlier this year for an 11-day fact-finding mission and said it was exactly what he had been looking for, vowing to stick it out for the long-term
“I went to Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach to the restaurants there, as well as Tamborine Mountain for the experience of the green behind the gold,” he said.
“This will become one of the largest events on the Gold Coast. We are going to be here for a minimum of five years though hopefully we can continue doing this indefinitely.”
Mr Elliott said the Pacific Airshow would be family friendly and avoid the alcohol-fuelled violence associated with previous events.
“It will be an incredibly safe event for patrols and we have not had a single arrest associated with the Huntington Beach event at all.
“You will see hundreds of thousands of people come away with a positive experience and the impact will be immense.”
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Originally published as Gold Coast’s Surfers Paradise Beach to host giant US Pacific Airshow from 2023
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