“This is the 61st Annual Flying Circus and it is the 19th show at the Butler County Regional Airport. So, that’s very exciting,” said Mark Feist, a member of the airshow committee for the Flying Circus and head of public relations for The Greater Cincinnati Radio Control Club.
The show will run on Saturday and Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. each day. The cost of admission is $5 per person. Children ages 7 and under are free. Free parking is available on site. Refreshments will be available for purchase.
“We fly all types of model airplanes. We’ll fly almost 250 model airplanes in a four-hour show. It will be everything from sport planes that we fly normally on weekends, all the way up to radio-controlled jets and very complicated scale airplanes, including our radio-controlled space shuttle that we launch as a finale to the show,” Feist said.
Spectators also will see other fun and interesting things like Iron Man, Snoopy on his doghouse, flying stop signs, and a witch and Harry Potter on their broomsticks.
The Greater Cincinnati Radio Control Club is a group of model airplane enthusiasts, who put on a radio control model air show every summer called The Flying Circus. This year’s two-day event will be the 61st Flying Circus.
“A lot of people don’t understand exactly what this is all about, but these model airplanes are pretty large and complex. Some of the scale airplanes will have nine- and 10-foot wing spans. Some of the jets are eight and nine feet long, and the jets are pushing 150 to 200 mph,” said Feist.
Flights will be continuously scheduled throughout the event each day, including “Unusual Flying Object” at 12:10 p.m., “Stearman Squadron” at 12:38 p.m., “WW1″ at 12:53 p.m., “Helicopters” at 1:08 p.m., “Pearl Harbor” at 1:23 p.m. and “Military Jets” at 2:59 p.m. The event will conclude with “Space Shuttle Launch,” starting at 3:27 p.m. There will also be a “Spina Bifida Presentation” beginning at 12:48 p.m. and a “Veteran Tribute/Heritage Flight” at 3:17 p.m. The show schedule will be duplicated on both Saturday and Sunday. For a complete show schedule, go to www.RCFlyingCircus.com.
Proceeds from the event pay for the cost of the airshow and go back into the community, supporting select charities.
“Most year’s, we give $10,000 or more to charities, if all things go well with our raffle, attendance, and good weather. We try to give back to the community as much as possible,” Feist said.
The primary charity the event supports is the Spina Bifida Coalition of Cincinnati. Kids with Spina Bifida are invited to the event each year and they have an opportunity to fly some of the planes.
The event typically draws about 5,000 people over the course of the weekend. Last year, there were about 4,000 attendees on Saturday alone, because of the great weather. There have been some year’s where the crowds were estimated at 8,000-plus. Guests are encouraged to bring chairs and sunscreen. There are designated areas in the back of the spectator viewing area if attendees want to bring large umbrellas.
“You are going to be highly entertained. There’s never a boring moment in the Flying Circus. There’s always something in the air and something going on … It’s certainly exciting for everybody to see all of the different things we can do with models,” Feist said.
The event will also promote the model airplane hobby and there will be flight simulators on site, so guests can try it out. Information will be available from The Greater Cincinnati Radio Control Club as well as from other area model aviation clubs. The Greater Cincinnati Radio Control Club has about 200 members.
How to go
What: 61st Annual Flying Circus Airshow presented by The Greater Cincinnati Radio Control Club
When: Saturday and Sunday, 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. each day.
Where: Butler County Regional Airport, 2820 Bobmeyer Road, Hamilton
Cost: $5 admission per person. Children ages 7 and under are free. Free parking. Reasonably priced refreshments will be available for purchase.
More info: Visit www.RCFlyingCircus.com or call Mark Feist at (513) 608-8521.
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