Can or do airshows make money?

.. I wonder how often the local Evironmental Health officers make a random check? once in a blue moon

I have extremely fond memories of Hazel, the EHO who rigorously checked the catering stalls at Fighter Meet back in the late eighties, early nineties.

She was stunning. 😮

Despite which she never did anything about our complaints that the beer served at The Squadron gave the public a headache. We offered to show her, invited her across almost every night, even offered to put her up in our camper.

😀

Moggy

PAH! Shan’t tell you when the next one is now…. :p

Seriously though -we DID think about catering at our show and its one of the things that we’ve been praised for (we weren’t expecting it after the first show – but it was what everyone was raving about 1) not being ripped off and 2) not having ****e food)

our caterer chums of choice are www.theseacow.co.uk

🙂

TT

Mildenhall was fab – half an oil drum, large staff sergeant bellowing at you that their squadrons ribs were better than next doors and a mountain of grub for a couple of quid – happy days!

Take it you chaps didnt come to Sywell then, one thing we have been VERY careful about is catering – best fish and chips FACT 🙂

TT

:mad:You inconsiderately had your airdisplay whilst we were away,:p ,i’ll take you up on the Fish and Chips though 😀
Seriously,if people are bringing their own grub and drinks someone is’nt doing their job properly,see how many make their own pic nics nowadays.
It is a shame that some good causes ie scouts ,charities can’t run their own burger and hotdog stalls to raise money for local causes.The 1 place i have seen this happen is Gransden and they go down a treat:D

I think many airshow organisers are pretty lazy when it comes to the catering side of things, chips with everything etc and I wonder how often the local Evironmental Health officers make a random check? once in a blue moon

It’s not off topic as it’s part of the pricing.Personally i agree with you about Mildenhall,i never took food or drink to Mildenhall so they had my money,the prices and quality of food and drink at Duxford = i bring my own,so thats a loss for them.Lesson learnt.

Mildenhall was fab – half an oil drum, large staff sergeant bellowing at you that their squadrons ribs were better than next doors and a mountain of grub for a couple of quid – happy days!

Take it you chaps didnt come to Sywell then, one thing we have been VERY careful about is catering – best fish and chips FACT 🙂

TT

Decent catering at airshows died with Mildenhall, but I am going off topic

It’s not off topic as it’s part of the pricing.Personally i agree with you about Mildenhall,i never took food or drink to Mildenhall so they had my money,the prices and quality of food and drink at Duxford = i bring my own,so thats a loss for them.Lesson learnt.

The airshows probably dont!, I bet the outside caterers at Duxfords airshows do though!, £1.60 for a cup of hot water and a teabag, and you still have to stand there and wind it up yerself!

Don’t forget that the caterers pay a hefty price for their pitch and usually, the prices are agreed by the event organiser. So Duxford are complicit with the pricing structure. But every sip of tea is a fraction of a penny going towards some rivet or drop of paint so it’s a worthy cup of tea after all. As for the quality, thats another question, one donkey burger per season is usually enough for me.

Decent catering at airshows died with Mildenhall, but I am going off topic

I can’t think of many airshows that make millions

The airshows probably dont!, I bet the outside caterers at Duxfords airshows do though!, £1.60 for a cup of hot water and a teabag, and you still have to stand there and wind it up yerself!

well profit is not really a vague issue, an event either makes a profit or it does not. But, I suppose, to make something worth doing, it would be measured against the investment both in terms of time, risk and cash so yes, then it does become vague.

The fact that airshows do come back, year after year, is great (especially for us enthusiasts) but I just wanted to know if RIAT for example, publish financial reports to see how much they make and then donate some to charity (not much this year for sure).

Also, I would think that many receive some form of subsidy. For example, I would assume (perhap wrongly) that The Fighter Collection do not have to pay the market rate to hire Duxford as a venue or that the RAF events make use of the infrastructure at a reduced rate.

The Dunsfold show as a great example of a new kid on the block which has quickly established itself as a regular event so it must be possible, but I can easily see the massive effort that goes into putting on a decent airshow.

As someone who runs their own business, it’s tempting to think of an airshow just like any other business plan. The revenue streams:

tickets
sponsorship
sale of pitches
memorabelia
extras (posh marque for posh people etc)
any other ideas?

as for costs, well almost too many to mention

My wife is involved in the charity sector and is no great fan of airshows. She was asking me how much money, if any, airshows make. With ever rising costs in most areas, I would be surprised if any real profit is made from these events.
Are there any figures available?

I understand. although happy to be corrected, that Waddington for example usually makes a sizeable sum for charity.

My wife is involved in the charity sector and is no great fan of airshows. She was asking me how much money, if any, airshows make. With ever rising costs in most areas, I would be surprised if any real profit is made from these events.
Are there any figures available?

Understandable, but Pat, that’s as vague as asking how much musicians make. Some make millions – most struggle, a lot do it on a part-time volunteer basis. Applies to both musicians and airshows – oh, except I can’t think of many airshows that make millions…

Why do you ask? Can you be more specific as to why you want to know, what for? – you’ll get more precise answers.

Presumerably it is possible to make a profit itherwise we wouldn’t see the same organisers coming back year after year BUT you have to bear in mind that they will have built up years of contacts to help keep things running smoothly. The time, manpower and financial outlay to get a show up and running from scratch including the cost of booking participants (even if we assume some of the military still appear for free) together with insurance, hire of airfield, toilets and staff etc must be huge. The UK weather must also mean that the chances of a loss are high – bear in mind the washout at Fairford this year.
Sorry to pour cold water on the idea but quite honestly if you want to raise some money for a charity then there must be ways which involve far less outlay and far less risk of failiure due to weather etc than an airshow.
Maybe something like a classic car show or classic motorcycle show would be less daunting and financially more viable for a small charity.
I don’t know where you live but if it is near me then by all means send a PM and I will try to point you in the direction of some people who may help with cars or motorcycles. Please don’t dismiss the motorcycle idea – most classic bike enthusiasts are in their 50’s and 60’s and are way past being Hells Angels and the truth is few , if any, were Hells Angels even when they were young.

Legends generally makes a very small profit for TFC

Moggy