Themed the Shape of Things to Come, the 2005 Australian International Airshow once again attracted one of the biggest crowds on record. The week started with thousands of industry people visiting the trade shows to see the latest in aerospace and military equipment. Many of the huge names in areospace including Boeing, Airbus, Lockheed just to name a few of the 500 names attending. The airshow has become an important event of Geelong’s calendar of events, and it is estimated over $15 million dollars was pored into the local community during the event.
The RAAF’s brought their new Airborne Early Warning Control aircraft, otherwise known as Project Wedgetail. The aircraft is basically a Boeing 737 modified with a large radar system on top of the fuselage and was a very interesting sight. The RAAF also put on an amazing show of their A-18 Hornets to commemorate the 20 years of service the jets have given to the air force. The UK’s RAF also attended with their Hawker Sidderley Nimrod, a plane with a design that dates back to the De Havilland Coment and has seen plenty of service since its inception in 1969.
The Americans brought a great display of fighter aircraft which amazed the huge crowds with their incredible flying, they also brought examples of their massive C-17 Globemaster and the B-52 Stratofortress.
