Warbirds Over Wanaka has confirmed its status as a major New Zealand event with the 2026 airshow contributing more than $57million to the regional economy – up 40% on 2024.

The numbers are contained in an Economic Impact Assessment Report prepared by independent Christchurch-based researchers, The Curiosity Company.

Much of the increase in total direct spend has been attributed to an increase in the number of New Zealanders from outside the region attending.  That number increased from 73% to 76%.  At the same time international visitors remained strong at 8% of the total audience.  Internationals spent a total of $8.6million this year.

Warbirds Over Wanaka General Manager Ed Taylor says for 2026 they specifically targeted the big Auckland market and this initiative resulted in a jump in the number of Aucklanders attending the airshow, up 2% to 14% of total visitors. 

“Canterbury continues to be our biggest market with 39% of visitors coming from that region but Auckland is now tied for second with Otago on 14%. We believe there is further growth to be had in the Auckland market and the North Island in general”.

Ed says the airshow once again proved popular with visitors with an overall positive rating of 88% which is up there with the best New Zealand events.  “Health and Safety is also a big focus for us and we scored a 96% positive rating for safety which we’re very proud of,” says Ed.

The numbers have also shown the major positive effect the airshow has for local businesses with total bed nights in the region increasing by just over a thousand to 130,517.  At the same time the average length of stay was an impressive 4.6 nights.

Destination Queenstown and Lake Wanaka Tourism CEO Mat Woods says those numbers are outstanding and show what an important event Warbirds Over Wanaka is.

“Warbirds has been producing internationally acclaimed airshows for almost four decades contributing a remarkable $350million+ to the local economy over that time.  There’s nothing else quite like it and all indications are the 40^th anniversary show in 2028 will be one for the ages,” says Mat.

The next Warbirds Over Wanaka International Airshow will be held on April 14, 15 and 16, 2028.

 

Photo credit: Geoff Marks