Iberia Parish is home to all kinds of festivals and events throughout the year, but the possibility of a completely new kind of experience was floated at Tuesday’s Iberia Parish Airport Authority meeting.

Gerald Conley with Vampire Aviation and local lawyer Frank Barber addressed the Acadiana Regional Airport commission to propose the organizing of an air show in Iberia one year from now.

Conley, who said he has been involved with air shows throughout the state for decades, said the Acadiana Regional Airport was the perfect location for a brand new air show that could attract thousands to the area.

“This is a wonderful situation because you have one of the best runways in the state,” Conley said.

Air shows, which are public events that give demonstrations of various types of aircrafts, currently only happen in north Louisiana as well as parts of New Orleans. Conley said an Iberia Parish not only has the perfect infrastructure, but could also forseeably become a hub for hobbyists from Lafayette to Baton Rouge.

“You have a facility that’s already perfect for an air show, you have a lot of grass, you have plenty of parking,” Conley said. “This is something that people in the community look forward to and gets people involved.”

Conley estimated that a typical air show can bring in 50,000 to 100,000 people into the area, and possibly generate about $2 to $3 million to the local economy.

“There’s gas, housing, transportation, that all factors into it,” Conley said.

Members of the airport commission were receptive to the idea, and Conley said he only required permission to start organizing for the show, which would be taken up at a later time.

Conley said an Iberia Parish air show would occur sometime in late October of next year if it did get signed off on, which would put it shortly after an air show in Hammond, which would be more economical for performers.