Air show to mark first trans-Tasman flight

All eyes will be focused skywards at the Rotorua city lakefront on December 12 when the 'Let's GO Rotorua! Lakefront Air Show' is staged to celebrate the commencement of trans-Tasman flights.

The two-hour series of air displays will be staged by the Rotorua District Council over Lake Rotorua, leading up to the afternoon's arrival of Air New Zealand flight NZ978 from Sydney.

Events & Venues Rotorua general manager Peter McLeod says generous support from the Rotorua Trust, The Daily Post and MediaWorks has meant the show would be a free family event. 

Rotorua residents are invited to bring a picnic lunch and enjoy a programme of free entertainment in a real family-friendly carnival atmosphere.

"Our Event Venues team has been working on the air display behind the scenes for some time and the event has now secured approval from the Civil Aviation Authority. It's a huge undertaking with some major logistics to deal with but there's no doubt in my mind that the Rotorua Lakefront will be the place to be on December 12.

Peter says the full programme for the air show will be announced over the next few weeks, but there would be at least 12 separate aerial displays and a range of fun activities on the ground to keep everyone entertained.

"We're putting the final touches to the individual events right now for the programme, which will include wing walking, skydivers, vintage aircraft, solo and team aerobatics, helicopters and gyrocopters, and will culminate in the arrival of the inaugural Air New Zealand Airbus A320 at Rotorua Airport at 2.35pm."

© All material on the website is copyright. If you wish to use this news item in any publication or website, please credit rotoruaNZ.com as the source.