Wings Over Illawarra can clearly certainly lay claim to being one of the biggest and best air shows in the country.
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Conditions were absolutely perfect for the 2018 event at Albion Park and the crowds voted with their feet.
There was huge crowd in attendance on Saturday and those that were there both days can attest Sunday’s crowd appeared bigger.
“First time visit and very impressed. Been to plenty of historic airshows here and in Blighty and to me this was the best I've seen in Australia and better than nearly all the British ones,” one commentator said on the Wings Over Illawarra Facebook page on Sunday night.
That’s a pretty big wrap and was the norm in terms of the comments.
“Thank you for putting on the best show I’ve ever been to. It was the best large scale event ever,” another commented.
“I know I say this every year.... but BEST air show ever!!! Love everything about it, it’s the highlight of my year,” another said.
The Albion Park venue provides the perfect venue for an airshow, allowing for plenty of space and variety.
The escarpment provides a unique and magical backdrop for the aerial action, which is literally non-stop across both days.
The event is something this region can be very proud of and provides a significant boost to local tourism across the weekend.
Visitors come from around the country and indeed around the globe for this event.
The continued growth and success of the event can be attributed largely to Mark and Kerry Bright who took Wings Over Illawarra on as a personal venture and have made it their own.
They do so with the support of hundreds of volunteers and supporting organisations and make generous donations to those organisations as way of thanks. Those organisations in turn are able to support a range of worthwhile projects in the local community.
To name but a few from last year, the St Mark’s Anglican Church feeding the needy project, Dapto Anglican Church’s Streetcrew project, the Sky’s the Limit Mini Olympics and the Wollongong Emergency Family Housing all benefited financially from donations.
There will be other local projects expected to be announced later this year. Congratulations to the Brights and all of the volunteers who made this year’s event possible.
