Ex- AAP...........:
Perth Red Bull race cancelled
From: AAP
July 29, 2010 12:27PM
THE Red Bull Air Race, which has brought more than $12 million to the Perth economy annually, has been cancelled for next year.
Organisers of the Red Bull World Championship have told the West Australian Government they have cancelled all events scheduled for 2011.
The decision means the event, which attracts hundreds of thousands of spectators and is watched by millions of TV viewers worldwide, will not be part of WA's events calender.
In 2008, Tourism Minister Liz Constable said the race returned over $12 million to the Perth economy "which is good for business, especially small business".
That year the WA Government announced the race would stay in Perth and would resume in 2010 for three consecutive years until 2012.
Tourism Chair Kate Lamont said today that Tourism WA would aggressively pursue new international events to replace the Red Bull Air Race and they were currently finalising a strategy to attract major events.
"The future is very bright on the major events front and I look forward to sharing some exciting developments in the near future which will bring to life WA's Experience Extraordinary brand," she said.
The Perth leg of the series had been proclaimed by event organisers, pilots and crew as the 'benchmark setting' event of the Air Race championship.
In 2010, Perth witnessed a spectacular plane crash in which former airline pilot Adilson Kindlemann plunged into Perth's Swan River during a practice run but escaped virtually unscathed.
The race, which was held at various locations around the world, involves 15 pilots completing time trials at speeds of up to 400km/h, whizzing through inflatable pylons above the Swan River.