Plans For Additional Expositions Scrapped, Company Liquidated

The company which put on the New Zealand International Air Show in late January has folded up its tent, squelching plans for an annual Auckland event. The company was placed in liquidation this week.

The New Zealand Herald reports that the primary issue was ticket sales that were described by chief executive Peter Newport as "dismal." Hoped-for sales of some 60,000 of the $35 to $55 tickets never materialized, with only about 5,000 people buying tickets on the first day.

Newport said that the event was very expensive to stage. Some acts, like Yves "Jetman" Rossy were paid to perform at the show. But organizers think a bigger problem was parking and logistics. Attendees were directed to remote parking lots with shuttles to transport them to the airport. A representative for Auckland Transport, which devised the remote parking plan, scoffed at the notion that people didn't want to park in a remote lot. Spokeswoman Sharon Hunter said there had been no complaints from the show's organizers leading up to the event. "Maybe Aucklanders just headed to the beach," she said.

Organizers tried to get people to come to the show on the final day by offering two-for-one admissions and upgraded VIP passes, but to no avail. the North Shore Aero Club said that North Shore Airfield at Dairy Flat was owed "tens of thousands of dollars" and that the issue was in the hands of their attorneys.

FMI: www.facebook.com/NorthShoreAeroClub