Airshow benefits 'outweigh costs' insist new South Ayrshire Council leaders amidst funding concerns

Daily Record

16-07-2025

Brian Connolly and Alec Clark agreed that officers should have budgeted for an increase in airshow costs, but remain firmly behind the event.
Council Leader Brian Connolly has agreed that officers should have been more upfront about the budget for September's International Ayr Show.
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But Cllr Connolly and his independent depute Cllr Alec Clark are adamant that the benefits would still outweigh the costs.
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Officials had significantly underbudgeted for this year's event despite clear signs that the allocation they had agreed would not cover the cost of running the event.
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That led to councillors being asked to set aside up to £590k to meet any financial shortfall.
Cllr Clark said: 'You heard a bit of turbulence at the last meeting about the air show.
'The International Ayr Show last year had about 250,000 visitors. That is absolutely huge.
'I was listening to the television this morning about the Great Yorkshire Show. They said they were going to have 36,000 visitors over a period of time.'
Cllr Clark said that the numbers and prominence had highlighted the potential of a career in the aerospace industry to young people attending the event, with education and training a major part of the show.
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Cllr Clark added that the increased profile was already having an effect.
He said: 'Look at what it has done for the Prestwick apron. There's the Red Arrows going to get work done on their new aeroplane at Prestwick.
'There is tie-in between that and the airshow and what is happening at the Prestwick apron is generating a host of new jobs.'
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He pointed to the impact of partners Skylab, who run a series of educational activities alongside the airshow, with a focus on Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths and the highly skilled jobs these subjects open the door to.
Cllr Clark said: 'If you were to go to the Marquee, where the STEM exhibition is taking place, you would see it was absolutely full and all of the kids were getting involved, hands on. They were absolutely loving it, as were the dads and mums.
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'That is steering them towards a career in engineering or in aeronautics. That is great for South Ayrshire. '
The council leader cited another sign of the impact of that educational slant, from the businesses operating in Prestwick.
He said: 'The level and quality of the applicants has gone through the roof, and the STEM is raising the profile of technology, maths and science.'
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Cllr Connolly also said that he had attended an education careers event at Ayr Racecourse this year.
He said: 'The actual aeronautics 'corner' was absolutely mobbed. You could walk around the rest without a problem.
'But you couldn't get into that corner and it was 16 and 17-year-olds wanting information and wanting to put their names down.
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'These are incredible careers to get into.
'We are potentially looking at more than a thousand jobs. That means houses. That means great jobs. It generates for the whole of South Ayrshire.
'Some will turn their nose up at it, but there is no question that the airshow has lifted the profile of that aeronautical environment. Absolutely no question. '