Second Taupo Flying Proms To Proceed

The organisers of the Taupo Flying Proms, which took place for the first time in February this year, will be holding another Taupo Flying Proms at Centennial Park, Taupo, on 14 February 2009, aiming to build on the success of this year’s inaugural event.

Hugh de Lautour, one of the organisers, says he is delighted to have received sufficient backing to confirm that the event will be staged along similar lines to this February’s successful show.

The event is based around an informal picnic atmosphere at which spectators watch an airshow set to music, followed by a real Proms concert in an outdoor setting and a fireworks finale. It is a formula which was begun by the world famous Shuttleworth Collection in the UK, but had never before been done in New Zealand.

The positive reception to this year’s show—by participants as well as the audience—encouraged organisers to repeat the event in 2009 and they plan it to be a biennial event thereafter.

The Taupo Flying Proms has the co-operation of the Taupo Gliding Club and the Taupo Racing Club. The Gliding Club will allow the use of its runway for the flying display and to allow private aircraft to land to attend the show, providing a unique opportunity for New Zealand aviators to fly in to a concert.

The stage for the musical events will be within the Racing Club’s racetrack immediately adjacent to the airfield. The combination of adjoining venues provides an ideal opportunity for spectators to enjoy both the airshow—of mostly vintage aircraft and gliders—and the musical events.

Special attractions of next year’s show will be appearances by the “Red Checkers” aerobatic team of the RNZAF and the Central Band of the Royal New Zealand Air Force, which recently performed a Proms Concert at the Michael Fowler Centre in Wellington. There will also be appearances by local artists and performers, as well as other displays and features such as classic and vintage cars.