RAAF Base Darwin will open its tarmac to the public for the Pitch Black RAAF Darwin Open Day 2026, between 9:00am and 4:00pm, on Saturday 1 August 2026. (This event has been scheduled to avoid conflicting with the Royal Darwin Show).

The Pitch Black RAAF Darwin Open Day is a free community event, but all visitors, of all ages will require a ticket for bus transfer and entry. Tickets will not be available at the event and must be pre-ordered via TryBooking.

To help with crowd management and to ensure that as many people as possible have the opportunity to attend, there will be two allocated bus transfer and entry periods (morning and afternoon). This will need to be selected at the online ticket booking stage.

The Open Day is a great opportunity to see the latest operational aircraft and meet Australian and international air and ground crews from across the nations participating in Exercise Pitch Black 2026.

The event will feature Australian and international military aircraft in a ground display, as well a wide range of military equipment. It will also include demonstrations and exhibitors from across the services and the local community.

A full activities schedule and event site map will be available on this website nearer the time of the event.

Watch video of RAAF Base Darwin Open Day 2024

Schedule of Events

To be confirmed nearer the time of the event.

Important Event Information

Transport and parking

• There will be NO Walk-in/out pedestrian access to RAAF Base Darwin for the 2026 Open Day. This important change to previous years has been made for public safety.
• There will be no vehicle or pedestrian access to the Open Day via the RAAF Darwin Main Gate.
• Access to the event site is ONLY via the dedicated park-and-ride bus shuttle service from the Darwin Showgrounds or Hidden Valley Raceway, selected with your ticket.
• Park-and-ride hubs will be at the following two locations:
• Darwin Showgrounds, Tate Place, Winnellie, NT 0820.
• Hidden Valley Raceway, Hidden Valley, NT 0822.
• For those using Public Buses, Taxis or Rideshare, we recommend drop-off / pick-up near one of these dedicated park-and-ride hubs, as there will be no walk-in/out pedestrian access to RAAF Base Darwin.
• Mandatory bag-checks will be conducted prior to boarding the buses at both park-and-ride hub locations – please be ready, to help to reduce delays to you and others.
• To maintain efficient bus loading and unloading, spectators are encouraged to travel light (no eskies, chairs, ‘gorilla’ carts etc).
• Accessibility
  • A limited number of accessibility-disabled parking spots will be available, by ticket, at the RAAF Base.
    • This will be for accessibility permit holders with significant mobility issues (wheelchairs, and similar mobility aids).
  • Once these limited tickets have been allocated, there will be signposted disabled parking at the two park-and-ride hub locations.
    • Note that the car parking at these locations will be on uneven ground and up to approximately 500M distance from the bus pick-up location.

    • For those with mobility aids, there are a limited number of low-floor buses but delays are likely to be encountered due to loading, unloading and transit times.

Tickets

• No Ticket = No Entry. Tickets will not be available at the event, and must be pre-ordered.
• Your preference of a morning or afternoon bus transfer and entry should be selected during the online ticket booking. This is not changeable after booking.
• Your preference of park-and-ride hub location should be selected during the online ticket booking. This is not changeable after booking. 
• Spectators requiring ‘Accessibility Parking’ should select this during the online ticket booking.
• All spectators will require an entry ticket – regardless of their age.
• When making your online booking please ensure that you;
• (1) book a ticket for each individual attending the event, and
• (2) book a ticket for each vehicle that you will be parking at the park-and-ride location.
• There is no Waitlist or Re-sell option through Trybooking or the Organiser.
• Please be cautious booking tickets via other websites and Social Media. Trybooking and the Organiser will not be able to assist you in the event of scams or fake tickets.
• Tickets are only valid for the day and for the timings shown on your ticket.
• As per the Ticket Terms & Conditions, tickets are not changeable for personal reasons.
• Parking and Open Day event tickets will be scanned on Entry – please have them ready on your device to reduce delays to you and others.

Timings

• The car parks at both park-and-ride hub locations will be open from 8:00 am.
• The first shuttle bus will depart each location at approximately 8:50-am. Toilets and coffee will be available at both park-and-ride hub locations.
• The last bus will depart Showground / Hidden Valley Raceway for the Open Day at 2:30pm, to allow sufficient time to enter and enjoy the event.
• Regardless of your event entry (morning or afternoon), you are welcome to stay at the event for as long as you wish, with return shuttle buses operating until 4:30pm. These will depart from the two designated areas at the event site:

- Bus Stop 1 where you arrived from the Darwin Showground / Hidden Valley Raceway, and

- Bus Stop 2 at the end of the aircraft static display area. This second bus stop will be clearly sign-posted and avoids having to walk back through the event area.

Connectivity

• Please be aware that there could potentially be poor commercial mobile network coverage on RAAF Base Darwin. If this is the case then it may affect your ability to use social media, and could possibly restrict phone calls and messages.
• Vendors and merchants may have supplemented networks, but there is no public WiFi available.

Exhibits, vendors and amenities

• Exhibits, merchandise and vendors are located across the event site. Please explore them all.
• Most vendors will accept EFTPOS and Cash. Some merchandise vendors will be EFTPOS only.
• Merchandise from the Squadrons will be predominately ‘Cash-only’.
• An ATM will be available at the event.
• Personal food and drink is permitted, but alcohol is not permitted.
• Free filtered water refills will be available at the event.
• There is limited shade at the event site, and we recommend sunscreen, sun-safe hats, clothing and other protections.