As the longest day marks the start of a new season this week, so does the First Fly-in of Summer.
As the longest day marks the start of a new season this week, so does the First Fly-in of Summer.
Held June 24 at the Geauga County Airport, 15421 Old State Road, Middlefield Village, the event is traditionally planned for the first Saturday after the Summer Solstice and includes breakfast, free airplanes rides for youth ages 8-17 and activities for kids of all ages, said Patty Fulop, a member of the Experimental Aircraft Association Chapter 5.
“Local pilots donate their time, aircraft use and fuel costs to provide free airplane rides through the national EAA Young Eagles program,” she said, adding rides will run from 8-11 a.m. for youth ages 8-17 (weather permitting) with parental permission, and families should register in advance for rides online at youngeaglesday.org.
Geauga County Airport Manager Rick Blamer said it’s important for youth to pre-register because scheduling is vital to the program.
“That way, we can plan. We try to fly every kid who shows up,” he said, recalling one year, there were 148 excited kids waiting in line for their turn.
“It’s just a life-changing experience for the kids. Sometimes, they are nervous going in, but they come out with big smiles,” Blamer said.
He knows of at least three children who have gone up and later, followed their dreams into the wild blue yonder, majoring in aviation at The Ohio State University, Kent State University and Bowling Green State University.
“That’s one of the great things about the program,” Blamer said, adding Katie Blake, a former Geauga County resident, had an early flying experience with him and became an aerospace engineer.
“Sometimes, she comes back to fly the kids,” he said.
On June 24, while the pilots take care of the flying, Blamer’s main job will be juggling their schedules, beginning with the first one at 7 a.m.
“It involves deciding where they will fly, who will fly, finding the pilots and volunteers to escort the kids into and out of the planes. If there are any anomalies, I’m the head trouble-shooter,” he said, adding if the pilots need a break, he has to work that into the schedule.
“Basically, I’m a gofer,” he said.
The second Young Eagles Day is held in the fall to celebrate the opening of the airport, which occurred in 1969, Blamer said, adding due to COVID-19, the events were cancelled in 2020, but the program has since come back strong.
“We really do (the First Fly-In of Summer) to interact with the community,” said Fulop, who has been involved with the chapter since she started managing the airport in 2005.
Fulop, currently manager of Lake County Executive Airport, said the Geauga event starts a little earlier than at other locations, which begin serving visitors later in the morning.
“The Amish think we’re having breakfast way too late if we do that,” she laughed, adding many Amish families attend for the breakfast and hang out for the show.
“They set up their lawn chairs and watch the planes take off and land,” Fulop said.
Although she has only seen a couple of Amish children take a flight, she recalled the year a non-Amish visitor showed up with a jet-powered buggy and ran it down the runway.
While Fulop does not expect that kind of excitement next weekend, she noted a few newer additions to the youth stations, including one where youth can experiment with simple machines, but Fulop said her favorite is the marshalling station, where kids can learn the arm signals used to direct aircraft on the ground.
“I know a lot of pilots who don’t know marshalling,” Fulop said.
Local pilots and volunteers will be cooking and serving “the best pancake breakfast in aviation,” she said.
“The pancakes are made from scratch with lots of butter and buttermilk,” she said. “The eggs are farm fresh, picked up the day before the breakfast from the farm, and the sausage and bacon are purchased from an Amish butcher in Middlefield.”
Cost for the day is $10 for adults, $5 for children ages 3 to 11 and free for toddlers under 3.
“The proceeds go to EAA Chapter 5 to help bring events like these to local airports and to foster an interest in aviation in our local youth,” Fulop said.
Volunteers also set up hands-on activities for kids of all ages. When they arrive, kids will register and receive a “flight plan” that is stamped as they visit any of the “waypoints,” which include the free airplane rides, the tower of information, weight and balances, marshalling signals, a magnetic board, simple machines and a reading corner with lots of aviation-themed books. The “final destination” is the chance to choose a prize from the suitcase.
Also, a cherry wood live edge coffee table built by the chapter’s aircraft builders will be raffled off and the local Model A automobile club usually has a car show on the grounds, Fulop said, adding the programs are run by the EAA Chapter 5 youth coordinators Tim and Sherry Niederkorn.
