Austria's biggest airshow takes off on 24
and 25 June
World-famous aerobatics teams, aircraft from the great eras of aviation, the incomparable
Red Bull Air Race – on 24 and 25 June, AirPower05 takes to the skies above Zeltweg.
Admission is free, and over 250,000 visitors are expected.
AirPower in Zeltweg, Styria, is regarded as one of the world’s greatest airshows.
This year, as in the past, all the major aerobatics squadrons will be taking part and
making AirPower05 a show of superlatives: Frecce Tricolori from Italy, Great
Britain’s Red Arrows, Patrouille de France, Patrouille Suisse, Spain’s Patrulla
Aguila and Sweden’s Team 60.
Breathtaking aerial maneuvers will also
feature in the many solo displays performed before the magnificent backdrop of the Upper
Styrian landscape. A major strength of AirPower05 is the diversity of the participating
flying machines. From historic birds to hypermodern jets, the show will be packed with
winged celebrities: the Eurofighter Typhoon, Mirage 2000, Phantom, Tornado, De Havilland
Sea Vixen, a US Air Force tanker, the A-10 Warthog, F-16, F/A-18 and the Lockheed Super
Constellation. Plenty of rotors will be whirling as well: alongside the Saab Draken, F5
Tiger Jets, giant C-130 transport planes and numerous paratroopers, the Aviation Division
of the Austrian Federal Army will also be deploying its squadron of ultramodern Black Hawk
helicopters for the occasion.
A special highlight of AirPower05 will be
the Red Bull Air Race. This competition involves nine world-class stunt pilots who fly
against the stopwatch – and each other – through a spectacular slalom course
made of plastic pylons, executing difficult aerobatic maneuvers along the way. The Air
Race in Zeltweg is part of the inaugural, 2005 Red Bull Air Race World Series, which will
also see races in Abu Dhabi, San Francisco and Budapest.
For the Austrian military’s Aviation
Division, which is celebrating 50 years of existence, AirPower05 is an important show
indeed – as it also is for the international aerobatics scene and for numerous
collectors of historic airplanes from around the world. Food and drink, culinary Styrian
highlights, all-day childcare and much, much more make AirPower05 an event for the entire
family. And as last time, a sophisticated traffic control system will help ensure that
getting to Austria’s biggest airshow remains easy. Admission is free.
