MIDLAND This weekend, the High Sky Wing will be putting on its annual Aviation Fun Day.
The event is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the Commemorative Air Force High Sky Wing hangar, located at 9600 Wright Drive, in Midland.
The event is free and open to all ages.
“We do this once a year,” Wing Leader Gena Linebarger said. “It’s like an open house to the public. We want the public to come out and see the treasures that we have inside the hangar. But we’ve also added an educational component to it this year. It’s being sponsored by Chevron. Chevron is bringing in some of their pilots to talk about a career in aviation.”
Guests will get a chance to experience the sights and sounds of World War II aircraft at the Midland Army Air Field Museum. Visitors will get a chance to see historic aircraft, view a living history encampment, military vehicles and tour the museum.
The event will also include veterans outreach employees as well as Midland College’s Aviation Maintenance program.
There will also be Young Eagle flights for children ages 8-17 by the EAA Chapter 123.
“It’ll be first come and first signup,” Linebarger said. “It’s to give kids a first taste of aviation and hopefully, they’ll be our next generation of aviation pilots or mechanics or aircraft builders. You never know.”
The day will also include food trucks as well as a live re-enactment of life during World War II.
“We enjoy putting this on each year because we enjoy seeing people who haven’t been here before come here and get close to the aircraft and see everything. It’s a unique venue that we produce for people,” Linebarger said.
Tom Reneau has been a volunteer with the High Sky Wing for about seven years now and enjoys helping out with Aviation Fun Day.
“Every year, we like to do an Aviation Fun Day,” Reneau said. “The big thing about it is that it’s for the kids. We get to have them come out and they get to see the airplanes. We’ll take some flights through the day so they can see the sights. It’s pretty cool.”
Reneau also hopes that this event can inspire the next generation of aviation enthusiasts.
“It’s a lot of fun,” Reneau said. “It’s rewarding. Kids get to have a little bit of hands on time with aviation and the goal is to peak their interests, if not for aviation, then for other aspects of aviation. Aviation requires math and things like that. I know that I grew up always wanting to fly so it made me try extra hard in school.”
For more information on this year’s Aviation Fun Day, go to tinyurl.com/56hd4njr.
If you go
- What: Aviation Fun Day.
- When: 10 a.m.-3 p.m. April 1.
- Where: High Sky Wing hangar (9600 Wright Dr. in Midland).
