I can highly recommend volunteering as a way to spice up the 'same old airshow' vibe.
Depends on the volunteer!
I flew into main on Wednesday and had to move the aircraft to east on Friday at an 8:40 slot.
I rock up at the gate at 8 with my trade visitor card and paid ticket, with a group of the Plane Crazy Down Under media guys I was staying with. The wannabe fascist biatch at the gate wouldn't let me in before 9, even after explaining why I really kinda needed to.
I reckon she must have heard the "I need to get in an hour earlier because I have a fixed departure time I need to make" line from too many people before that morning and really felt the need to protect the exhibitors from visitors like me as, when I got slightly annoyed at her, I was asked if I wanted to get in at all that day.
Fortunately, the guy next to her called me over and on his advice I went into the registration tent and they swapped my visitor pass for an exhibitor one. Easy.
There's always some...