Tag: airshow

The Gold Coast soars into spring

Posted on by Kesha West

Whether it’s aircraft, live music, art, or even lawn bowls that you’re into, there’s no better time to escape the final weeks of winter and book a weekend on the Gold Coast.

With spring in the air and blue skies on the horizon, expect an aerial spectacular like no other when the Pacific Airshow Gold Coast takes to the sky over Surfers Paradise.

The three-day event from 18 August features heart-pumping aerobatics and formation flying from the world’s best military aviators and civilian performers.

Two weekends later, the Surfers Paradise beachfront will be transformed into a free music festival as SPRINGTIME blooms for a second year. With more than 30 live music acts across two stages, the VANS Skate Plaza, mural artists and a huge interactive performance installation on the beach, expect guaranteed good times from 1 September all weekend.

In a change of tempo but with no less action, the world’s best bowlers and para-bowlers will descend on the Gold Coast from 29 August for the 2023 World Bowls Championships, with competitors from 44 nations.

“There is no better time to visit the Gold Coast,” said Major Events Gold Coast CEO Jan McCormick. “The sheer variety of events this city is hosting over the next month is extraordinary and it’s the reason why our reputation as the ultimate events destination continues to grow. After years of planning, we are thrilled to see the Pacific Airshow Gold Coast lift off.”

“What sets our event apart from your ‘typical airshow’ is its unique setting, high tempo and diverse hospitality offerings,” said Pacific Airshow Gold Coast founder Kevin Elliott. “We offer something for everyone, including those who have never considered attending an airshow before. There’s always something to see, always something in your face, always something new happening. It’s something you have to experience to understand.”

From 29 August to 10 September the city hosts the World Bowls Championships for the first time. The sport’s pinnacle international competition will be held across five Gold Coast bowls locations, with finals held at Club Helensvale on 2-3 September and Broadbeach Bowls Club on 9-10 September.

“We are thrilled to have secured this prestigious tournament for the Gold Coast, and the World Bowls Champion of Champions directly after it from 11- 16 September,” said Ms McCormick. “With over 540 competitors and coaches from 44 nations descending on the Gold Coast, this year’s event will be the biggest tournament in the event’s history, and we are expecting some close matches and world-class competition.”

“The Gold Coast is a heartland for the sport of bowls, and its clubs and greens are renowned the world over, so anticipation and expectation from the bowls community and competing nations for the 2023 World Bowls Championships is absolutely sky high – akin to what will be on display at the inaugural Pacific Airshow,” said Bowls Australia General Manager – Promotion and Partnerships Aidan Davis.

“This is the first occasion that para-sport players will compete alongside able-bodied bowlers, showcasing the truly inclusive nature of the sport, and with 11 gold medals up for grabs across two blockbuster finals weekends, home crowds will be hoping the Gold Coast greens are a happy hunting ground for the world’s number one bowls team, the Right at Home Australian Jackaroos.”

The Gold Coast will officially bring in spring on 1 September with the return of Major Events Gold Coast’s newest free music festival, SPRINGTIME. The three-day festival on Surfers Paradise beach will continue to shine a spotlight on Australian artists, and highlight local music, arts and the skate scene while celebrating the best parts of the country’s most popular beachside destination.

The 2023 lineup features homegrown favourites like Matt Corby, Bag Raiders and Boo Seeka with acclaimed international artist BENEE.

“We want this festival to present some of the best Australian contemporary artists as well as to celebrate and support the musical talent right here on the iconic Surfers Paradise beach,” said Major Events Gold Coast Director of Festivals and Events Mark Duckworth.

“In 2023 we’re stoked to welcome the incredible BENEE from New Zealand, Matt Corby and many more to the three-day lineup, plus we’ll have live mural artists, a pop-up skate plaza, DJ workshops and a massive interactive art installation inspired by retro arcade games. It’s going to be a lot of fun!”

The festival kicks off on 1 September the day after the Gold Coast Music Awards which are proudly supported again this year by SPRINGTIME.

Excitement builds for Pacific Airshow Gold Coast as sister event wows crowds in the USA

Posted on by Kesha West

Earlier this year the Gold Coast announced that one of the world’s largest and most spectacular air shows would be hosted in the city from August 2023, recently its sister event in Huntington Beach showed exactly why Australians should be getting excited.

With millions of people in attendance over the event’s three-days, the 2022 Pacific Airshow Huntington Beach didn’t disappoint, providing an incomparable spectacle in the sky with heart-pumping aerobic displays and awe-inspiring aviation feats.

Major Events Gold Coast CEO Jan McCormick said the event was everything she had expected it would be, and much more.

“The sheer scale of the Pacific Airshow Huntington Beach is something most of us would never have experienced before and knowing that we’ll be bringing this spectacular event to the Gold Coast from 2023 is something we are incredibly excited about,” said Ms McCormick.

“Now that we have seen the reaction of spectators to the airshow at Huntington Beach first hand and witnessed the economic benefits it brings to that local economy, we’re confident this will be a game changer for the Gold Coast and deliver a significant economic boost.”

“Wow. That’s the only way to describe what I witnessed at Huntington Beach,” said Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate.

“This show will blow people’s minds when it takes to the skies over our city in 2023. I applaud Code Four and Major Events Gold Coast for making it happen. The best news for Gold Coasters is – it’s free. See you in August 2023.”

The Pacific Airshow Gold Coast will be the first time the event is held outside the United States and will take off over the skies of Surfers Paradise from 18-20 August 2023.

“Our event here in Huntington Beach continues to draw more fans every year and we believe it will be the same when we head to the Gold Coast – big the first year and then bigger again, year on year,” said Kevin Elliott, Pacific Airshow Executive Director. “It’s going to be like nothing the Gold Coast has ever seen before.”

While visitors will be able to watch the spectacle from Surfers Paradise beach for free, tickets will be on sale later this year for premium seating and corporate hospitality areas at the Pacific Airshow Gold Coast. To find out more visit the Pacific Airshow Gold Coast website.

The Gold Coast looks skywards to secure major international event

Posted on by Kesha West

In a huge coup for the Gold Coast, Major Events Gold Coast (MEGC) with the support of the Queensland Government through Tourism and Events Queensland, has secured one of the world’s biggest and most spectacular airshows.

Renowned for its heart-pumping aerobic displays, awe-inspiring aviation feats, huge crowds and dazzling party atmosphere, Pacific Airshow is the biggest event of its kind in the US.

The inaugural sister event – Pacific Airshow Gold Coast – will launch over Surfers Paradise beach in August 2023.

It marks the start of a five-year partnership that will see this globally popular event take off on the Gold Coast every year until at least 2027, injecting a significant boost into the local economy.

Major Events Gold Coast CEO Jan McCormick said securing a major international event of this calibre was a game changer for the Gold Coast.

MEGC CEO Jan McCormick:

MEGC was created in July 2020 to build a portfolio of major world-class events and attracting the Pacific Airshow is everything we have been working towards. The Gold Coast, and indeed Australia, has never seen an airshow of this scale before.

The event helps cement our city’s reputation as a world-class events destination with capacity to host the biggest events and shows on the planet.

Forget what you think you know about airshows – Pacific Airshow Gold Coast will completely redefine the experience, with an amazing family-focused entertainment and lifestyle festival over three days.

Pacific Airshow Gold Coast

Pacific Airshow is the brainchild of leading US events company Code Four which is planning to transform the sky over iconic Surfers Paradise into Australia’s biggest stage, with high-flying performances by elite military aviators and the best civilian performers from around the world.

Code Four CEO Kevin Elliott:

We looked around the globe to find the best venue to recreate the Pacific Airshow experience and we couldn't go past the Gold Coast. The destination is ideal with its long coastline, great climate, world-class hospitality and accommodation.

Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate said the Pacific Airshow will put the city on the map as a global player on the events stage.

Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate:

This is the kind of event people will travel far and wide to experience, attracting not just aviation enthusiasts and families from across Queensland and Australia, but international visitors as well.

Today’s exciting announcement follows more than two years of negotiation and meticulous planning, all while navigating a global pandemic and multiple time zones.

Pacific Airshow Gold Coast is supported by Major Events Gold Coast and the Queensland Government via Tourism and Events Queensland and will feature on the It’s Live! In Queensland events calendar.

Watch the Pacific Airshow Gold Coast video to see what everyone’s talking about.

Pacific Airshow Gold Coast will soar across our skies in August 2023. Look out for more details landing soon on the Pacific Airshow website.

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