THE organiser behind the postponed Skylive Airshow due to take place at Durham Tees Valley Airport (DTVA) on Saturday has responded to frustrations being aired by angry ticket holders.

It was announced last night (Wednesday) that the airshow has been put back until May with organisers citing the Shoreham tragedy - in which at least 11 people were killed by a vintage plane – and the resulting display restrictions as a reason behind the postponement

This prompted many ticket holders to vent their frustration over social media, with some claiming that the Shoreham tragedy was being used as an excuse to postpone an event that had been poorly organised from the start.

Skylive organiser Chris Petty has responded to these criticisms, telling The Northern Echo that safety issues and wanting people to get their money’s worth were the main reasons behind the postponement.

He explained that 40 per cent of the planes due at the show were vintage and as such their displays would be restricted by the new Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) regulations.

Mr Petty said it was sensible to wait until the outcome of the full investigation into what happened at Shoreham so that the Skylive Airshow could be confidently staged next year under any new regulations that may come out of the investigation’s conclusions.

He said: “To go through all the work of bringing it (an airshow) back to Teesside and have it be a half-hearted show just wasn’t right.

“We could have still gone ahead with it and done a half-hearted show that would have been profitable, but that isn’t what we are about.

“Safety is the main factor and all we have done is reschedule the event; we have not run away with everybody’s money and cancelled it.

“To be honest, it will probably be bigger and better next year and people can have their money back or keep their ticket.”

Responding to accusations that the event never looked like it was happening, Mr Petty explained that most of the show’s ground-based activities were taking place airside meaning that people arriving at the airport this week would not have seen signs of show activity.

He said that the fence line was being altered for the show, and the construction of marquees and stages was due to take place today (Thursday, August 27).

When asked why no flight schedule had been announced prior to the event, Mr Petty said that he was asked not to release one in a bid to prevent non-ticket holders parking up on roads around the airport trying to catch a glimpse of the planes.

Other airshows are continuing to go ahead across the country this weekend, including in Clacton and Rhyl but Mr Petty suggested that maybe their air displays were not so reliant on vintage craft.

Skylive is now due to take place at DTVA Airport on 28 May, 2016 and tickets bought for Saturday’s event will be valid.