'Celebrating the Centenary of Powered Flight' was the official theme of the 2003 show, 100 years after the Wright brothers changes the course of history at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina on 17 December 1903.A lot had happened in the two years since the previous show. Ansett has disappeared from Australian skies and Virgin Blue has entered the scene. The tragic events of 11 September 2001 has changed everything and prompted war in Afghanistan. But much more was about to occur. Preparations for the US-led invasions of Iraq were well underway in February 2003, including participation by all three Australian services. The battle for Iraq started just a month after the show and the uncertainty created by this – especially for the airlines- was exacerbated at the same time by the outbreak of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) virus.