Details on the next iteration of Wings Over Illawarra will be revealed next week. Residents near Shellharbour Airport will be treated to a display from Australian aerobatic pilot Paul Bennet on Tuesday, before details and dates for the new show will be announced.
The airshow was left in limbo in July when operators AMDA Foundation announced they were pulling out of the show less than eight months before the show was due to take place in March. AMDA Foundation was announced as the new operators in 2023, and changed the name of the airshow from Wings Over Illawarra to Airshows Downunder - Shellharbour.
At the time of the announcement that it was exiting the 10-year license agreement to operate the show, the CEO of AMDA Foundation, Justin Giddings, explained why the operators were leaving. "AMDA's priority has always been to support and promote the Australian aviation and aerospace industry," Giddings said. "Staging a major airshow requires significant operational planning and resourcing. We believe a new operator, with an existing presence in the region, will provide a better product."
Shellharbour City Council Mayor, Chris Homer, said he hoped the event would continue. "My only hope is that the active discussions with prospective new organisers to ensure the event's continuation is solid and it will move forward," he said. "To honour the Wings Over Illawarra event that Mark Bright put on for something like 15 years, which obviously everyone loved. I just hope that in some way, shape or form the event continues on and someone comes in and takes on the event on behalf of the Illawarra."
