Riverfestival, which began in 1998, is a week-long festival held in September each year at South Bank Parklands and surrounding areas (including the Victoria Bridge), to celebrate the Brisbane River. In 2009, the festival merged with Brisbane Festival[1].
Riverfire, which is held at the beginning of Riverfestival, includes a choreographed display of fireworks. Using some of the most advanced pyrotechnic technology, Riverfire is one of Brisbane's most popular annual celebrations. It includes 30 minutes of non-stop pyrotechnics and fireworks from Brisbane's three major bridges (the Victoria Bridge, the Story Bridge, and the Goodwill Bridge), as well as from boats and buildings, and often includes a flyover and "Dump-and-burn" from one or more of the F-111 Strike aircraft based at RAAF Amberley. The final dump-and-burn of Riverfire 2010 was able to be seen as far as the Gold Coast and Toowoomba as the F-111 climbed from 300 ft to a higher altitude of about 10,000 ft. 2010 saw the extended use of the F-111's despite the fact that they were retired from Riverfire in 2009. The return of the F-111's weren't publicised until the release of the program in early September. [2]Unlike previous dump-and-burns, 2010 Riverfire featured three passes of the F-111's instead of the usual two, with the third being a surprise that was kept a secret to the public and television crews.
Riverfire was not held during two of the Riverfestival years.
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