The final numbers are in and a total of 37,000 people took in the two days of fun in the sun at 15 Wing during the Saskatchewan Air Show on July 6 and 7, a total that while not completely surprising, offered a measure of validation for a ton of preparation.
“We’re thrilled,” said air show director Maj. Regan Wickett. “After almost two years of work and planning, it all came together and it’s a little strange now that it’s all done. And now we start thinking about getting ready for 2021.”
Things got off to a huge start on Saturday morning as the first crowds started filing in, leading to a line-up to pass through the gates that moved swiftly but took over an hour to roll through.
That was simply due to the number of people who streamed into the base – by early afternoon, organizers had to shut the gates due to parking being at capacity, and the final numbers were staggering: no less than 22,000 people on the Saturday alone.
“We were really happy with the response from Moose Jaw and the local area,” Wickett said. “We definitely learned some important lessons over the course of the weekend. We were able to learn some valuable lessons on hosting large-scale public events out at the base, so we were able to incorporate that over the course of Saturday night to get ready for our show on Sunday.”
Those changes were a product of feedback and observation as the day went on. A major one was the lack of on-site bathroom facilities that resulted in long line-ups throughout Saturday. By the time the Snowbirds had completed their performance at 5 p.m., trucks were already hauling more port-a-potties into the base, with a final total of 216 on site by the time Sunday morning rolled around.
“One of the most amazing things about working out at 15 Wing and working with the highly skilled talent we have out there is we’re able to assess a situation and rapidly make changes to improve it and correct any errors that we see,” Wickett said of the overnight improvements. “That’s not something I think you’d see at any other large-scale public event. So we’re lucky to have that kind of crew working for us who were able to effect the change that quickly.”
As for the long lines for food much of the two days, that’s all something that will be looked at in preparation for future shows.
“It was in our planned capacity, but at the same time we’re re-learning how to hold this scale of event on the base,” Wickett explained. “And it did take us a few hours to iron out a few challenges that we had to deal with line-ups. But by the end of the weekend we were very satisfied with the results we were producing.”
When it came to the show itself, there were absolutely no issues. Crowds were oohing and awing at the action overhead, whether it was the CF-18 demonstration team, fly-bys by vintage Second World War aircraft or Kent Peitsch rolling his Jelly Belly plane to a stop inches from former Lt. Governor Vaughn Solomon on the tarmac.
“I think it honestly was one of the premiere air shows you would have found in Canada this year,” Wickett said. “We couldn’t have found a better line-up of performers to come out and entertain the crowds. And our static displays were also first rate and extremely popular.”
Now, it’s on to the future. While Wickett didn’t directly commit to future performances, plans are in place for the Saskatchewan Air Show to become a biennial event.
“We’re going to take a few months and see what worked and what didn’t, then we’ll start coming up with plans to see how we can go ahead with this in the future,” Wickett said. “These events take years to plan to achieve the world-class result we’re looking forward to. So we’ll take a few weeks to recover and see where we go from there.”
