Regional air festival returns for centennial of flight

In three short generations, American aviation has gone from flying a few yards to flying around the world without refueling.

The centennial of Orville and Wilbur Wright's historical Kitty Hawk, N.C., flight in 1903 will be celebrated July 11-13 during the annual Cape Girardeau Regional Air Festival at Cape Girardeau Regional Airport.

"This will show just how far aviation has gone," said festival director Bruce Loy, who is also the airport manager. "It's going to be our largest show ever, and everyone is very excited about it."

The festival -- dubbed Heroes & Legends, a Celebration of a Century of Flight -- will feature a variety of vintage and modern aircraft as well as performances by pilots and skydivers from around the world.

The event will be a homecoming for Master Sgt. Jeff Weimer, a Cape Girardeau native and 1987 graduate of Central High School who is also the team chief of the Air Force's F-16 Viper West flight demonstration team stationed at Hill Air Force Base in Ogden, Utah.

The festival will be Weimer's first demonstration in his hometown in his 15-year military career.

"It's going to be great, really the tip of the iceberg for me," Weimer said. "Performing in Cape will allow people to see that hometown people can accomplishment so much."

Weimer's team will exhibit the capabilities of the F-16 by performing high- and low-altitude combat maneuvers. Cape Girardeau's festival is one of just 27 venues Viper West will perform at this year.

The Cape Girardeau Regional Air Festival began in 1997, but the downturn of the economy after Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks prevented the event from taking place in 2002.

Thousands attend

In past years, as many as 10,000 people from across the United States have attended, and festival officials expect this year's to be even bigger because of the 100th anniversary of flight.

"To me it's remarkable what we've accomplished in the past 100 years," said Scott City resident Lana Arnzen.

Arnzen and her family have never missed a regional air festival, and they've even played host to a few of the pilots in the past.

"The air show is always wonderful. It's a great time for the whole family. You don't get to see this collection of aircraft anywhere else," Arnzen said.

Lima Lima, the world's only civilian six-plane formation aerobatic team, is this year's featured act. The festival will also include performances by the All-American Free Fall sport parachute team, the Navy's F-18 Hornet strike fighter and the Dodge Ram Jet Truck driven by Big Bend, Wis., professional stuntman Paul "Hot Rod" Stender.

Stender's act will also feature a jet-powered Port-O-John -- an outhouse equipped with a 1000-horsepower jet engine that can reach speeds of more than 40 miles per hour.

One of the show's highlights will be a heritage flight, in which the Air Force's F-16 jet will team up with a World War II-era fighter plane.

"I think this year is going to be the best one yet," said Kristi Thurman, project assistant for the festival. "The planes fly right in front of you, so you really get to see the power of the war birds."

cclark@semissourian.com

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