Corona virus, Covid-19 and airshows?

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TooTallDean
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Corona virus, Covid-19 and airshows?

Post by TooTallDean » Sun Mar 08, 2020 11:19 am

I am wondering if the Covid-19 scare will affect airshows this summer.

I'm glad I didn't make plans to visit Zhuhai, China this year!

However, I AM seriously making plans to go to England in July for RIAT, and RNIAD at Yeovilton the weekend prior.
So, naturally, I am watching the news very closely.
It is a way too early to predict with any certainty, but it aint lookin' good...

Has anyone heard any back-room chatter about cancelling shows yet?

Cheers,

Dean
Last edited by TooTallDean on Sun Mar 08, 2020 11:20 am, edited 1 time in total.
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TooTallDean
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Post by TooTallDean » Sun Mar 08, 2020 11:22 am

And there's my answer...
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=2142
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RyanS
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Post by RyanS » Sun Mar 08, 2020 3:00 pm

TooTallDean wrote: Sun Mar 08, 2020 11:19 am I am wondering if the Covid-19 scare will affect airshows this summer.

I'm glad I didn't make plans to visit Zhuhai, China this year!

However, I AM seriously making plans to go to England in July for RIAT, and RNIAD at Yeovilton the weekend prior.
So, naturally, I am watching the news very closely.
It is a way too early to predict with any certainty, but it aint lookin' good...

Has anyone heard any back-room chatter about cancelling shows yet?

Cheers,

Dean
I haven't heard anything in particular, but I am a bit concerned as it progresses. The virus itself isn't terribly frightening to me but the 'prevention at any cost' attitude certainly seems to be picking up steam. I just read that a Formula 1 race is being run without fans and countless other events have been canceled. It may end up being a 'lost summer' if these decisions hit airshows because once one cancels there will be much more pressure on subsequent shows to do the same.

Honestly I'm sort of hoping that it just spreads so far and wide in the next month or two that everyone gives up on containing it and goes about their normal lives accepting the risk.

On the plus side, airline tickets are getting cheaper for those willing to take the chance!
Last edited by RyanS on Sun Mar 08, 2020 3:00 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Adam
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Post by Adam » Sun Mar 08, 2020 6:28 pm

It's not just the German show that's been called off - China, being much worse affected, has cancelled a lot of events, including next month's Zhengzhou Airshow, which I would otherwise have attended. I imagine it's a massive headache for one European team in particular, who ferried out their jets some months ago and probably can't easily get them back! On that note, I guess there could also be situations where airshows go ahead, but foreign participants do not, or cannot, attend (note how two big acts pulled out of the Singapore Airshow last month as a precautionary measure).

RIAT was asked about the virus by the local press last week, and gave a "wait and see" kind of response, which is I guess all that can be said at this stage. I doubt there's much "backroom chatter" worth listening to yet as everyone on the organising side is just as confused as we are. I saw a very lively discussion online a few days ago involving some airshow pilot and organiser friends, with several utterly convinced that all UK airshows would go on as normal and at least one other predicting an inevitable end-of-civilisation scenario! I wouldn't call it particularly meaningful or informed discussion.

The UK Events Industry Forum (via the British Air Display Association) released this guidance to event organisers last week - probably the best indication of where things stand so far in the UK - which suggests that outdoor events are not particularly high-risk and that there are currently no plans in the to enforce a ban on them.

https://www.bada-uk.com/2020/03/covid-1 ... arch-2020/

It could so easily go both ways. Either everyone could get bored after a few weeks and life goes on as normal, or the hysteria worsens and everything gets shut down. Unfortunately the UK government prediction (not sure about other countries) is that the virus peaks in June, which is absolutely awful timing as far as the airshow season goes. Like Ryan, I have no qualms about travelling and attending events (at least, as it stands) and it ought to be remembered that attending an airshow is a voluntary affair with known risks. The next few months will be very interesting.
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Post by kalamazookid » Mon Mar 09, 2020 11:22 am

I am bracing for cancellations. I am particularly worried about my West Coast trip to Chino, given its proximity to LA County. I paid up front for a lot of that trip to save money and it's going to be a real bummer if I can't get any of that back in the event of a cancellation.

As others have said, it could probably go one of two ways. Either people are going to go on with their day-to-day lives or there's going to be mass cancellations of non-essential public gatherings. Even if the worst estimates are true, I personally can't see changing much about what I've planned. If it's as prevalent as some of the worst-case scenarios have imagined it seems that I'd be just as likely to get it at the grocery store as the airport and that point, does it really matter? If the CDC explicitly says not to do something though, I'll listen. I'm not smarter than anyone who works there.

FHCAM has already shut its doors for the time being. Johns Hopkins hosted a Division III basketball national tournament pod without allowing fans in the building. These could be anomalies or more of a taste of what's to come.
Last edited by kalamazookid on Mon Mar 09, 2020 3:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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RyanS
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Post by RyanS » Mon Mar 09, 2020 1:04 pm

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Post by kalamazookid » Mon Mar 09, 2020 1:47 pm

Aviation specific: FHCAM closed for the time being.

https://flyingheritage.org/
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Post by Ken91 » Mon Mar 09, 2020 5:46 pm

SUN 'n FUN has a public safety notice available on their website that talks about COVID-19/corona virus. Basically, they are planning for the show to go on.

"SUN ‘n FUN is working closely on a daily basis with local, state, and federal agencies to plan for a safe event with appropriate precautions and safeguards in place. As a result of this informationand the recommendations of theCenters for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)for large events and festivals, we are proceeding with SUN ‘n FUN 2020 with the health and safety of our attendees, staff, and volunteers, as our top priority."

http://snfflyin.com/wp-content/uploads/ ... letter.pdf

https://www.flysnf.org/
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n33d4sp33d_85
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Post by n33d4sp33d_85 » Tue Mar 10, 2020 12:06 am

In case you guys haven't heard, the entire country of Italy is on lockdown.
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Post by Flightline Uk » Tue Mar 10, 2020 11:51 am

Comparison between countries isn't really possible as the various outbreaks will all have different characteristics and there are different rates/types of testing. The same goes for containment and delay techniques used by different countries. What worked in China has not necessarily helped other countries that tried the same methods. Nor is the outbreak going to a short term issue and it will not be dealt with by the summer. That does not mean events will inevitably be cancelled - there are mitigation measures that can employed and there's little point to over-reacting when we don't know how things will play out.
Last edited by Flightline Uk on Tue Mar 10, 2020 11:54 am, edited 1 time in total.
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