RIP Airventure

AirVenture Australia 2019 has suffered a significant financial shortfall, which Recreational Aviation Australia has declined to make up, prompting the event organisers to cancel plans to giveaway a BushCat aircraft and cease staging the event in the future.

Held in Parkes on 20-22 September, the event was plagued by high winds and a duststorm that caused the site to be shutdown, which organiser David Young says significantly impacted ticket sales and restricted income for the event.

The resulting funding deficit prompted Young to go cap-in-hand to Recreational Aviation Australia (RAAus) to make up the shortfall, which RAAus declined to do.

"To understand what has ... unfolded, it is important to explain the role of AirVenture Australia Pty Ltd," Young said in a statement issued late on Friday.

"AirVenture Australia Pty Ltd is a company trustee of a trust named The OzKosh Trust of which the sole beneficiary is RAAus. Our small team are mostly volunteers. We give up our time to plan and stage the AirVenture Australia event annually, using trust funds.

"In early November this year, AirVenture Australia Pty Ltd made a formal request for RAAus to inject capital into the trust, to offset the losses caused by the inclement weather. This would allow AirVenture Australia Pty Ltd to meet its financial commitments, including finalising payment for the promotional giveaway prize, the BushCat aircraft.

"We are disappointed to report that following consideration by their management and board, RAAus have declined to fund the trust. We point out there was no legal obligation for RAAus to do so. No reason was given for their decision. However, without the trust having sufficient funds, the BushCat promotional giveaway is unable to proceed.

"AirVenture Australia Pty Ltd is now taking the only steps available to it to resolve this situation. Additional to the cancelation of the BushCat promotional giveaway, the AirVenture Australia event will not be conducted in 2020 or beyond."

Young has directed those holding tickets in the BushCat giveaway to refer to the AirVenture Australia website.

Comment has been sought from RAAus.

http://www.australianflying.com.au/latest/financial-woes-hit-airventure-australia-as-future-plans-canceled

You'll just have to step in and finance it FT.

http://www.australianflying.com.au/latest/raaus-responds-to-airventure-australia-over-funding-decision

Totally agree with how Raaus has handled this. 

I'm sad to hear this! David and his team did a great job and did not deserve this. There is just not enough people who are interested in flying

to have annual AirVenture type show.

This is sad but also a chance to get the band back together and make Ausfly 2020 the place to be.

Make Ausfly Great Again or MAGA for short I have some red caps printed up.... Wait what ?

This is sad but also a chance to get the band back together and make Ausfly 2020 the place to be.

 

Make Ausfly Great Again or MAGA for short I have some red caps printed up.... Wait what ?

 

This year I was met on arrival at Narromine by the SAAA president, I said that i feel like an imposter in my numbered  aircraft but he just smiled and said all aviators are welcome. A nice simple event at a perfect location, I will be back next year.  

This year I was met on arrival at Narromine by the SAAA president, I said that i feel like an imposter in my numbered  aircraft but he just smiled and said all aviators are welcome. A nice simple event at a perfect location, I will be back next year.  

 

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Narromine was a great event. Your numbered plane was not out of place at all. We just need way more RAA/GA planes to make this event the premier Australian recreational aviation fly in.

If the RAA are the sole beneficiary of the trust that runs Airventure, it is very ignorant of them to say they "know nothing".....

there are no cheap lessons in aviation administration. think what the RAA could have done with $150,000.

"Over the four years of AirVenture RAAus has invested more than $135,000 into the event by way of direct cash contributions. In addition to this RAAus has also contributed non-direct funding around $24,000. RAAus has also provided in non-financial ways by providing in kind support, free services to youth engagement programs.

"Despite these contributions and other forms of support, RAAus did not have any management input into the event and was not privy to the details regarding the BushCat promotional giveaway, insurance arrangements for the event or any risk mitigation plans put in place.

"AirVenture Australia requested in excess of $60,000 of member funds, almost half of the cash investment of the past four events, to cover the deficit of one single year. The RAAus board has noted that it is not appropriate to continue funding the shortfall with no ability to control or influence the decisions made to ensure the risks around such an investment can be managed appropriately.

I don't know for sure but I think that Airventure was set up by RAAus to run the airshow and fly in. The idea being that they would delegate all the work and money raising to others. The previous shows all went well and therefore there were volounteers ready to work. RAAus is happy to let others do the work and take the responsibility, while they sit back and bask in the glory.

I really wonder how we at The Old Station ran fly in and air shows for over twenty years, which attracted probably bigger crowds than Airventure and raised a vast amount of money for charities. About $250,000 for the Capricorn Rescue Helicopter, from memory. Plus others. All done with one grazing family and a small aero club.

I reckon anyone on this forum who has been to Old Station and Airventure Airshows, would agree that Airventure was a lesser show.

Free entry to those flying in, but come by car and camp means you had to pay.

I don't know for sure but I think that Airventure was set up by RAAus to run the airshow and fly in. The idea being that they would delegate all the work and money raising to others. The previous shows all went well and therefore there were volounteers ready to work. RAAus is happy to let others do the work and take the responsibility, while they sit back and bask in the glory.

 

I really don't know anything, but think originally OzKosh / AirVenture was setup by more than just the RAA,   My understanding, which could easily be flawed, was that the others jumped ship as they had little oversight and no control of expenditure, decisions etc.  Similar reasons to those given by RAAus now.  Did the previous AirVenture at Cessnock go well?  And do you mean by ' went well' that it made money or that people had a good time?   And regardless of anything else I think its a really sad outcome.

It IS a sad outcome as nobody sets out to have a disaster but weather is always an unknown.  IF there was any implied support I hope that wasn't abused for the convenience of saving money on an alleged difference. Would the RAAus have expected any of the profit if it had eventuated?. If the loss is the airventure peoples, the profit should have been also. Nev

If the RAA are the sole beneficiary of the trust that runs Airventure, it is very ignorant of them to say they "know nothing".....

 

They call it "Scapegoating". I'll bet you a 1x year RAAus membership, the RAAus management/board were more aware and involved, than what they are letting on.  Plus, didn't the RAAus Chairman claim that he came up with the idea for Airventure? Fly Tornado, you posted a copy of the/his article back in March-ish this year. It's an insult to Paul Poberezny and the EAA. Also, wasn't there much more to the story of why Ausfly and Airventure Australia became separate events? Cheers

I have been to several Old Station and RAAUS flyins and I agree with Yenn. The Old Station flyin left the "official" RAAUS event for dead. Maybe the RAAUS/Airventure crew could have sought some advice on how to stage one of these events from the Creed family.

The Old Station flyins stopped after Leonie passed away, but I'd bet London to a brick, if her boys decide to put another one on, the attendance would be what they used to be.

One big difference I noticed between the two events was that there was an air of conviviality at Old Station that seemed missing from the RAAUS events. The RAAUS events always had an air of "officialdom" for me which was offputting.

Suffering from "Officialdoom" is terminal..  Nev

An earlier airventure was marred by RAAus trying to prevent one exhibitor from attending, because the opposition was an official sponsor.

I attended that flyin and it was very poorly run.