Well-known aerobatic pilot and air race World Champion Matt Hall will headline a fundraiser for the Northern Rivers Aero Club to help the club recover from devastating floods.
On 28 February this year, the town of Lismore was inundated by a 1-in-500-year flood, which destroyed the NRAC's entire fleet of aircraft and almost everything in the hangar and the club rooms.
The fundraiser, planned for Saturday 3 September, will be held at Ballina RSL all revenue from ticket sales going to NRAC.
"The Richmond River is a spectacular backdrop to do a display, I'm really looking forward to it," Hall said. "Everyone will enjoy this from little kids to war veterans in the area.
"It's really important from an aviation industry perspective to ensure that club's like this are supported when times get tough so they can continue with their work and love of aviation."
NRAC Senior Instructor and 2020 Wings Awards Young Achiever of the Year Nathan Parker said the floods almost wiped out the club.
"There were 27 aircraft from across the airport on the flood mound, of which most were damaged or lost," he said. "We're now trying to rebuild the club and its fleet to continue training pilots of all abilities now and into the future.
"The damage bill across the club and at Lismore Airport is likely in the order of millions of dollars, but we have lost pieces of history too.
"The club has accrued a lot of memorabilia which is now badly damaged, including a one-off photo of Charles Kingsford Smith and the Lismore mayor back in the 1930s."
Parker said the fundraiser on 3 September would provide critical funding for the club's battle for survival, and called for the aviation community to help out.
"Pilots of Matt Hall’s calibre don’t come to our region everyday. It’s going to be a never before sight over Richmond River.
“If people can’t come to the whole event but want to see the air display, it will be on at approximately 4.00 pm in front of the Ballina RSL and down the boardwalk towards Fawcett Park.
"You don't need to buy tickets just to watch from the boardwalk, but a donation big or small at the Go Fund Me page would really help the club out," he said.
Tickets for the NRAC fundraiser can be bought through Eventbrite. or donations can be made through the club's Go Fund Me page.
At the time of writing, the Go Fund Me campaign had raised $2100 of a $40,000 target.