This past Father's Day, the morning dawned bright, beautiful, and perfect for flying. The only question was "Where to?". After a quick search online of aviation events, I happened upon an inconspicuous listing for the Somerset, PA (2G9) Father's Day Fly-in Drive-in Breakfast. It was a good find. Not only did the flight there and back turn out to be beautiful, but the fly-in itself is a little gem. Due to my late decision to go and the distance (just over 100 NM) I arrived fairly late. Several planes were already leaving, but there was still plenty happening!
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| Rudolph on the ramp at Somerset |
In the pattern, the first thing I noticed was the C-123 parked on the ramp (it was pretty difficult to miss). This fine aircraft was piloted by Porky Pig, and drew a large crowd of admirers. Other military aircraft in attendance were a pair of Beechcraft T-34s with Navy markings. Parked on the ramp, there was also a beautiful RV-8, an RV-6 and Rudolph's side-by-side cousin, an Aeronca Chief.
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| C-123 parked on the ramp |
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| Pilot Porky Pig gazes down at the large crowd of admirers around the C-123 |
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| Pair of Navy T-34s |
Now, for the food - this was the most professional pancake breakfast I have been to. Pancakes, eggs, sausages, fruit toppings, coffee, milk and juice are all served from a huge building stocked as a professional kitchen. The line is very organized, the volunteers move you through with ease, quickly filling your plate with all sorts of goodies. An announcer for the event said at about 11 am that approximately 1400 people had been served - and that was still with an hour to go! Proceeds went to the local Aero club's scholarship fund.
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| The chow hall |
What I found to be most intriguing about this fly-in though, was the turnout. Though there weren't a large number of planes there, a large number of people were milling around. As I left the ramp, I discovered why. It looked like the whole town was there! In addition to the fly-in, there was a motorcycle rally and antique car show. The atmosphere was like a fair! Around the antique cars, there were even some booths set up, including a local radio station and several vendors. Whole families were there, providing a great opportunity for the general public to see general aviation. I stood by Rudolph for a while answering questions and letting kids sit in the plane. As I was beginning to think about leaving, I met a sweet old man and his daughter (who is pretty awesome and drives a huge dump truck). He began talking about his life long love of aviation, from which he has been held back by health concerns. I took him for a flight over his house and the surrounding area. He had a blast, with his face and camera pressed to the windows the whole time.
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| Motorcycles parked in front of the FBO building |
We need more opportunities like this to introduce our passion to the general public, foster good will in the communities surrounding our airports, and hopefully create some future aviators! If you're not busy next year on Father's Day, head on over to Somerset!
