Rush to the air show

Big rush to Airpower: fans need patience

The new Dreamliner paid a brief visit to Airpower.

(Bild: Pail Sepp/Sepp Pail)

The second day of the Airpower air show in Zeltweg, Styria, also ended as planned, with no incidents in the air. The rush of fans was huge, and the capacity limit was reached in the afternoon. There was also a traffic jam on departure. Highlights included the Spanish squadron and a new Dreamliner.

Beautiful weather, packed flight program: the crowds stormed Zeltweg on Saturday to watch the Airpower air show. Even at lunchtime there were still traffic jams, which only cleared up in the early afternoon. The area was full, the capacity limit was reached - but according to the police, it was not necessary to close the area.

"Patience will be the watchword of the day," said a police spokesperson early in the morning. "Unfortunately, what was predicted is happening, the traffic network is reaching its limits and the flow of traffic is coming to a standstill." Problems were also caused by buses arriving without pre-booked parking tickets and cars parked on side streets.

Fans were already leaving in the afternoon. There were extensive traffic jams in the evening. Two traffic accidents on the S36 (one with three vehicles involved) exacerbated the situation. At around 8 p.m., the police reported that things were now largely progressing well.

Here are some impressions of the second Airpower day: 

Lots of applause for the Spanish squadron
The flight program generated a lot of enthusiasm. The Spanish Patrulla Aguila aerobatic team demonstrated their skills - on Friday their show fell victim to the rainy weather. Another highlight was the low-level flight of an AUA Boeing Dreamliner, which came directly from New York to Styria.

A successful advertising campaign by AUA.

(Bild: Pail Sepp/Sepp Pail)

The flight program ended shortly before 6 pm. There were no incidents or accidents during the demonstrations. According to the Austrian Armed Forces, a total of 250,000 visitors were welcomed: 100,000 on Friday and 150,000 on Saturday.

Departure on Friday went smoothly
The night from Friday to Saturday was calm and the departure of the fans on Friday evening went smoothly without too many traffic jams on the roads, according to the police. The impression was that the two-hour-long accompanying program with music and film screening ("Top Gun: Maverick") after the end of the air show at 5.30 p.m. had delayed the departure. In fact, it took barely fifteen minutes to get from one of the parking lots to the highway at around 6.30 pm. The departure by bus and suburban train also went smoothly and without incident.