2011 Longmont Airport Expo this weekend to include airshow and vintage airplanes

The 2011 Longmont Airport Expo is this weekend, Saturday, June 25. Admission and parking are free. The theme is "Looking Back to the Future" and will include airplanes from World War I and World War II and progress to a modern-day jet. The Northern Colorado Mustang Car Club will also be participating in a race down the airport runway while being clocked by a radar gun. There will be activities for kids that include flight simulators provided by the Wings Over The Rockies Air and Space Museum.

The event will kick off with the "dawn patrol" launch of approximately 15 hot air balloons at 5:30am, which will give them plenty of time to clear the airspace over the airport for the planes. Gates will open to the public at 7am. A pancake breakfast will be offered for a minimal cost and food vendors will be on site. The mayor of Longmont will be skydiving from the King Air airplane owned by Mile-Hi Skydiving in honor of Operation Gratitude. There also will be aerobatics performed at the expo.

This event is designed to give the public an up-close and personal glimpse of Longmont’s Airport (officially known as Vance Brand Municipal Airport) and how it operates. Many local and airport businesses will be making their services available to the public that day and to provide education about the airport and information regarding careers in the aviation field.

According to Longmont Airport manager Tim Barth, the airport has been in its current location since 1942 and is the 7th busiest in the state of Colorado. In addition to the general aviation traffic, 120 jets landed at the airport in 2010. Tim was recently interviewed on "Around Town," The Longmont Channel's local news program about the airshow and airport. You can view the program by clicking here (at the 4:15 mark).

The Longmont Airport is also home to 14 businesses and provides a variety of services ranging from flight training and skydiving to aircraft production, aircraft maintenance and air transportation through aircraft charter. There are currently 350 aircraft that call Longmont Airport home. In addition to those services on the airport, the airport also plays an extended role to the region by providing a base for forestry fire fighting support, medical transportation, aerial mapping and surveying, law enforcement and infrastructure inspection.

For more information, visit LMOEXPO.org

Related: Pictures from the 2009 Longmont Airport Expo

The airport last hosted an expo in 2009, which thousands showed up to support. The airport is also undergoing a review of its master plan. To see the TV interview recently conducted regarding the master plan, click here

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