Festival is being reintroduced to Americans at Copperstate. photo courtesy Aerostar
“It’s a sight to see that many CTs all lined up,” said organizer Roger Lee.
Just when you thought the airshow season was over, well… except for AOPA’s Summit starting in 10 days, here are four events in October, every one with substantial or exclusive Light-Sport Aircraft attention. |||| First up is LoPresti-Powered LSA fun at the Sebastian, Florida airport where the “speed merchants” are based. Before the event starts Phil Lockwood will give a maintenance training class on October 6th and 7th with service training following the event on 10th and 11th. Contact Lockwood Repair for preregistration info. *** The main fly in begins on October 8th with breakfast starting at 9 AM. Speakers are planned for the morning hours and at noon music starts with the Latin Festival that runs until 9-ish. At around 3 PM LoPresti promises three different bands with the headliner starting at 6 PM. *** Skydiving demos run all day. Also featured will be a LSA spot landing competition and flour bombing. Visitors can also try fishing or kayaking and golfers get special pricing for Sunday. Several events will be off-airport. *** Check at LoPresti for hotel rooms. Shuttle service is available from the airport to nearby hotels. |||| Next up is the Fifth Annual National CT Fly-in scheduled for Page, Arizona over October 13-16, 2011. “This is the world’s largest CT Fly-In. We take up the entire FBO ramp and then overflow to another ramp,” stated organizer Roger Lee. Participating CT owners fly Grand Canyon, Lake Powell (which has more coastline than California!), Monument Valley, Bryce & Zion National parks and other attractions in the area. People come from Germany, Canada and from all over the USA in their CTs. “After the mornings fly outs we have day tours and question & answer sessions,” added Lee. ” All transportation is provided free, we have an entire restaurant to ourselves and we not only fly out each morning to breakfast at the above mentioned scenic spots, but we have ground-based day tours that include Antelope Canyon and Glenn Canyon dam.” For more info call Roger Lee at 520-574-1080. |||| In the third weekend of the month is Arizona’s Copperstate Fly-In over October 20-21-22, 2011 in Casa Grande. This year’s event, which has run since 1973, has a renewed focus on LSA, thanks to VP Steve Bass. “We had just over 7,000 paid attendees through the gate in 2010 compared to 5,600 in 2009, so we are growing,” reported Bass. Steve has a further goal of creating a standalone LSA Expo as are held elsewhere around the country. Exhibit space is still available for LSA vendors eager to gain access to west coast light aviation enthusiasts. *** One aircraft to look for is the reintroduced Festival 40S-GC (glass cockpit version). |||| Finally, at the end of the month is the Southeast Aviation Show on October 29th, sponsored by the South Carolina Aviation Association (SCAA). Designed after the Northwest Aviation Conference, the event at Greenville Downtown Airport (GMU) will include aviation products, a static aircraft display, and educational sessions. The event is open to the public and costs $5. *** “For 28 years, the Northwest area of the United States has had an aviation conference and trade show that attracts more than 10,000 people,” said show official Eric Ramsdell. “The SCAA wants to provide a show for aviation enthusiasts in our region.” KGMU is the busiest general aviation airport in South Carolina and is a self-sufficient entity with financial strength that doesn’t rely on local taxpayers for funding. The airport is home to more than 25 aviation related businesses.
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