A well-liked airshow on the Gold Coast has been called off, with organizers attributing the cancellation to beach erosion triggered by Ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred.
The Pacific Airshow, drawing 270,000 attendees in the previous year, was scheduled for a three-day event starting August 15 along Surfers Paradise beach.
The well-known strip of coastline stays shut following massive waves hitting the shore during the ex-tropical cyclone named Alfred at the beginning of March.
The Gold Coast City Council aimed to rejuvenate the beaches by Easter using a sand-dredging vessel to add over 4 million cubic meters of sand; however, substantial waves and spring tides have caused delays in this initiative.
Up until early this month, the organizers of the Pacific Airshow were still assuring the public that they had confidence the city’s worn-out beaches would be prepared in time for this year’s event.
Nevertheless, event director Kevin Elliott stated that following an examination of comprehensive modeling, it was recently evident the location would not be secure for attendees.
He stated that we are all deeply let down.
The persistent rainfall along with the elevated tide levels and the wave action mean the barge isn’t able to function as intended.
It’s kind of, forgive me for saying this, a perfectly formed storm of conditions.
He mentioned that the organizers had contemplated shifting the event’s date and relocating to a different spot on the Gold Coast, yet they couldn’t identify any alternative that would maintain both the quality of the exhibition and the security of the attendees.
Mr Elliott said tickets holders would be given the choice of either receiving a refund or holding the tickets to use for the 2026 event.
He similarly urged accommodations to permit guests to shift their reservations.
I strongly recommend that all nearby hotels and establishments assist their guests in re-booking for 2026 whenever possible.
No viable options
John Warn, who leads Experience Gold Coast as CEO, stated that all potential alternatives were thoroughly explored prior to reaching the decision to call off the event.
Mr Warn mentioned they examined eight distinct locations across various areas of the Gold Coast—north, south, east, and west.
Sadly, none of them worked out.
He mentioned that rescheduling the air show to a later date would result in several military and stunt planes slated for the August performance being unavailable.
Their bookings extend so far ahead due to their exceptional status globally; thus, accommodating them sooner wouldn’t have been feasible, leading to an inferior encounter for us.
Glenn Tozer, who chairs the Gold Coast City Council’s lifestyle and environment committee, described the cancellation as an awful situation.
“The beaches have posed a significant challenge; however, we’ve struggled to bring them up to a standard where they can accommodate larger crowds,” stated Councillor Tozer.
I’ve felt quite down hearing about that announcement.
The Queensland government projected that the event brought in over $33 million from overnight visitors spending money in Gold Coast, attracting more than 22,000 individuals who specially flew into Queensland for this occasion.
