Residents share reaction as Weston Air Show cancelled
North Somerset Council says it cannot justify the cost
Residents are sharing their disappointment online at the news the Weston Air Show will not go ahead in 2023.
North Somerset Council announced the news in a post on Facebook on Thursday (December 22), saying the cost of it has got so high that it cannot be justified during the cost of living crisis.
"As a council we are facing some extremely challenging budget decisions for the financial year ahead and dealing with the same inflationary pressures as all our residents," the statement reads.
"The costs of organising Weston Air Festival have increased year on year and it now requires a £135,000 subsidy from council taxpayers which we don't feel is reasonable at a time of cost of living pressures on our budgets and those of households.
"Therefore the air show won’t be taking place in 2023.
"We're always open to new events and activities for visitors and residents, but we are unfortunately no longer in a position to subsidise these routinely at the expense of council taxpayers."
At time of writing, the post has received hundreds of comments from the local community, with one saying they're "absolutely gutted".
"Would rather the airshow than the see monster," they say, referencing the recent art installation on the waterfront.
"Still I will have some good memories of the red arrows, typhoon and of course the vulcan, what a noise that was."
Another says they are "extremely saddened", while a third calls it a shame.
"I understand the strain on the council, but this will result in even more hardship for local businesses that would normally benefit from the added tourism that this would bring," they write.
Many others though express support for the council for having made the decision in tough financial times.
"It was good whilst it lasted, but priorities are priorities, thank you NSC for making tough decisions for us," one says.
Another writes that they agree with the move.
"One thing they should do however, is have a review of the air show and look at how it can be improved and what people want to see from it before bringing it back (fingers crossed) in 2024," they say.
Another writes, "Good decision, never really saw the point in air displays."
It remains to be seen whether the show will be back in 2024.