Royal Easter Show: The Airvision Skyshow Legacy

In 1995, Airvision Aviation (then Skylark Promotions) secured the rights to produce the skyshows for the Royal Easter Show—and we set a global precedent. For the first time anywhere in the world, a live aerial display ran twice a day for 14 days, with skydivers and motorised paragliders both towing giant banners.

The shows combined daytime and night-time performances, enhanced by a downlink camera system streaming live footage from the skydivers to the giant stadium screens. The audience could watch the jumpers in the aircraft, waving signs like “Hi Mum!”, “Look Up!”, and “Be There Soon,” before leaping out and flying directly into the stadium. This was the 90s—when live video downlink was cutting-edge, and it left a massive impression.

We didn’t stop there. For the night shows, we designed custom-illuminated suits for the jumpers, creating a dazzling effect. And for a touch of novelty, Hooch the Wonder Pooch—the only skydiving dog—completed a week of tandem jumps into the stadium with her handler, wearing a custom-made harness.

Our motorised paraglider pilots would fly directly into the stadium, circling inside with 6x4-metre banners, both day and night, before exiting just ahead of the skydivers. Paul Smith wowed crowds with a high-speed canopy skysurfing routine—cutting ribbons at over 100 km/h, even “grass surfing” across the stadium floor for up to 50 metres on landing.

The rest of the team carried giant advertising banners, creating a dramatic aerial spectacle. Over the 14 days, we completed 28 skyshow performances viewed by over one million people, with a staggering 155 skydives and paramotor flights—still one of the largest combined day-and-night airshows for public crowds in the world.

We ran these skyshows for seven consecutive years, starting at the original showground in Moore Park. In 1998, we expanded to Olympic Park for its grand opening, where a massive display of 21 skydivers, banners, motor-paragliders, and helicopters officially launched the new venue with a bang.