Fears over future of Torbay Airshow because of £250k cost

Torbay Airshow might not return due to the amount it costs the council. 

Tens of thousands of spectators crammed every vantage point in Torbay at the weekend as the English Riviera Airshow served up two days of sun-soaked action.

But the leader of Torbay Council has warned that the £250,000 cost of the show could be too much for the council to bear in future and it may have to create another, cheaper, event instead.

Cllr David Thomas (Con, Preston), who re-took the reins as leader after the Conservatives won control of the council after the elections last month, said: “It’s all about the head and the heart.

“My heart says why would we not put this on when you see the people here, and you see the buzz and the vibe in the town? Absolutely – why would we not?

“But then the head says that £250,000 is an awful lot of money.”

The airshow began in 2016 and has run yearly since, apart from a two-year break because of the pandemic. The event, which has become a fixture on the national airshows’ calendar, is organised by the council with the support of its ‘key events partner’ the English Riviera BID Company and a number of commercial sponsors.

The BID company of hotels, tourist attractions and hospitality businesses supports and promotes tourism and events across Torbay.

This year’s airshow programme delivered two days of displays centred on Paignton seafront, ranging from freefall parachutists and vintage warplanes to aerobatic teams including the world-famous RAF Red Arrows, who appeared on both days.

Locals and visitors thronged the beach and Green to watch the displays, and crowds gathered at numerous other vantage points around Torbay. 

Cllr Thomas, who spent much of the weekend walking along the prom selling airshow programmes, said: “It has been absolutely fantastic, and we’ve been absolutely blessed with the weather.

“People want to be here, and they’re having a great time.”

He said hosting events such as the airshow is a key way for Torbay to attract visitors. “It’s about getting people to come to Torbay for a reason, and what’s better than events?

“But is the event here to stay? That’s the billion-dollar question. It has cost £250,000, and clearly with where we are at the moment we have to ask it.

“There will be a piece of evaluation work being done in the next month to evaluate where we are, and how this fits in with that programme of bringing extra business into the bay.

“The council does have a huge financial element in the airshow. It’s the council working in conjunction with its partners, so we need to know where we are financially.

“If we can put it on again – great. But I think if we can’t put it on, we have to find another event we can produce that maybe isn’t quite as expensive, but still has that big impact.”

Credit: Guy Henderson, Local Democracy Reporting Service