Wings Above Illawarra

On a sunny Saturday morning, we took chairs and photo gear travelling on the train from Kiama to Albion Park where the annual Wings Above Illawarra airshow was taking place.

The airfield had helicopters offering scenic flights and hot air balloon rides on one side, a runway to the top side, and parked aircraft, food stalls and hangars on the other sides. 

1943 Boeing Stearman Biplane

From the vantage point of our handy chairs, we watched airforce paratroopers descend from on high with flags and smoke billowing behind whilst the crowd sang the Aussie national anthem.

Throughout the day, we saw a whole range of aerobatics, mock dogfights, and flybys from aircraft, including the  RAAF Roulettes Aerobatic Team looping, the venerable Caribou transport careening slow and steady, the amazingly manoeuvreable Squirrel helicopters often used for TV, the Spitfire fighter with the unforgettable hum of its Merlin engine, two World War I fighters duelling, and an incredible aerobatics ace throwing his plane up, down, upside down and backwards. Gunfire erupting in front of us proved to be a Bofors gun set up by the military so you could take potshots at the aircraft with what I assumed were blanks?

Lockheed P2V-7 Neptune

de Havilland DHC-4 Caribou

                          Pilatus PC-9A A23-037

                  Wolf Pitts Pro

Fokker Dr.I

CAC CA-18 Mk21 Mustang

 Wolf Pitts Pro