I'm baffled by the easy ride that some are willing to give the organisers, good organisation and planning mitigates all bar the most unfortunate of circumstances, extreme weather, major incident, etc my understanding is the traffic plan was signed off with caveats and they are trying to shift the focus from their own mistakes onto others, Stockton Council Events manager advised the plan was unworkable and apparently had full agreement from her counterpart in Darlington, both sit on the Safety Advisory Board and both expressed grave concerns that TMP was unworkable.
The organisers need to take responsibility for their mismanagement offer immediate refunds, honestly explain what the issues were and if involved again show that all lessons have been learned and this debacle was part of a steep learning curve, lame excuses and an attitude of pointing the finger away from themselves and at others should not be allowed to wash, you want the kudos and profit of success you need to take the anger and loss of failure.
What should have been a flagship event that showcased the region has now become a cause celebre and has been met with more negativity than positivity, to even the most uneducated the notion of holding a 22k ticket event at a working airport and to not expect problems seems to show a degree of naivety and a lack of cognisance that would make their ability to execute such an undertaken questionable.
No other commercial airport in the UK is having an air show at their premises, the majority are free events held in places with diverse communication links and with basics like Park and Ride, shuttle buses and contraflow systems in place, no other event this year will have as many ticket holders who won't even make it to the venue, the idea of a Teesside Air Show is a great one that I'm sure all of us are behind, but it shouldn't be at Teesside Airport but somewhere else in the region with a track record of being able to handle expected numbers, with proper provisions for traffic and crowd management, with alternative transport options and where everybody gets in and the talk of what a great day they've had and spectacular display they've seen is the major topic of conversation.