The 2025 Avalon Airshow is underway, with tens of thousands of visitors set to flock to Avalon between now and Sunday.
Avalon Airshow is a global event. Aside from bringing us tourists to the region, it brings defence leaders from across the world to Geelong.
What better opportunity to showcase our capability to support the defence industry?
With Hanwha’s arrival at Avalon, and other defence industry showing interest in the precinct, this is a significant opportunity for the Geelong economy.
We are in a period of heightened global conflict and threat; defence spending will be increasing in the coming years. Why wouldn’t Geelong use our advantages, including the Avalon precinct, to attract that economic activity?
We have a precinct of strategic importance, we have the educational and research capability, not to mention Advanced manufacturing. We should be selling Geelong as a defence industry hub to the world.
But defence is just one part of the story.
Avalon is already an important freight and logistics hub, and one that can grow to be of state and national significance connecting air, road, rail and sea.
The airport itself has capacity to bring visitors to our region and service the Victorian market. 3.3 million people live within 60 minutes of Avalon Airport, some 800,000 more people than the new Western Sydney Airport.
Unlike Western Sydney, which is receiving billions of dollars in Government investment, the Avalon precinct requires funding for permanent and enabling infrastructure, especially transport improvements, to unlock productivity and economic opportunities for Victoria.
This would attract deeper commercial investment, strengthen supply chains, and facilitate trade, expand the Geelong region’s tourism gateway, and secure the future of the Airshow. Dedicated investment would also create significant new jobs in the Geelong region.
Last month the Committee for Geelong and G21 joined forces to launch an advocacy booklet – Unlocking the future of G21–, detailing three priority areas and the funding required for each.
One of these priorities is the Avalon Employment Precinct.
$70m is needed to support installation of enabling infrastructure such as power, water, and other critical services.
We require investment in permanent infrastructure to boost the Airshow’s economic value and secure other major defence industry and large-scale events.
And $1m towards a business case to deliver vital transport infrastructure. Longer term this must include rail, and in the short term a bus route connecting Lara station to Avalon and improvements to key roads- starting with Beach Road.
When you hear the sound of jets flying overhead this week, think of the investment needed at Avalon to enable the infrastructure required to keep and attract new events, expand industry investment, and to establish Avalon as a nationally significant employment precinct and airport.