One of the highlights from the 2011 North Cascades Vintage Fly-In was a visit from local pilot Erik Lindbergh. Erik is the grandson of Charles Lindbergh and is actively involved in the aviation community. His most recent efforts are aimed at electric aviation and getting kids engaged in aerospace through his Lindbergh Electric Aircraft Prize (LEAP).

Erik made a presentation during the fly-in and it was interesting for those from the vintage airplane community to hear from the front lines of the up and coming world of electric aircraft. After the fly-in here, Erik was off to Oshkosh where he presented this year’s LEAP winner.

One of the highlights for us was having the opportunity to introduce Erik to Warren Meyer. Warren is one of our favorite people and frequently visits the museum. A retired Pan Am pilot, Warren was the captain on the flight that flew Charles Lindbergh on what would be his final trip home to Hawaii in 1972 (picture).

Warren did not know Erik was going to be at the fly-in and it was pure coincidence that he happened to be wearing a t-shirt with and image of Lindbergh on the front. Warren learned how to fly in the 1930s and his airline career spanned from the DC-3 to the 747. Like many pilots of his generation, he was greatly inspired by Charles Lindbergh and had many fond recollections of meeting the legendary pilot.

Erik Lindbergh talking electric airplanes at the 2011 Vintage Fly-In.

After a being out of the cockpit for a while, Erik was right back at home flying in the Champ.

With apologies for the delay, we finally have some time to get some pictures up from this year’s fly-in. This year’s fly-in was once again a big success despite some weather over the Cascades preventing some visitors from the east side of the state from making it over the mountains. Our best count was around 160 airplanes that flew in during the day. The picture above was taken late in the afternoon, and there are still over 110 airplanes on the ground.

The word continues to spread throughout the vintage airplane community here in the pacific northwest and each year we see several new faces as well as welcome back those who have been making the trip for many years. This year one of the many highlights was the arrival of Jeff Paulson and his Stinson Model O reproduction. Several other Stinsons, including a Junior, made it to Concrete as well to celebrate this year’s featured manufacturer.

Continue reading »Belated Pictures From 2011 North Cascades Vintage Fly In

The fly-in here in Concrete was a great success again this year. Despite some weather woes with IMC mornings and thunderstorms in the evening, there were plenty of airplanes flying in old and new. It was one of the better years for antique airplanes and it was also a better than normal year for non flying visitors.

We have plenty of notes on improvements for next year, especially for parking of antique, vintage and classic planes, and we hope to have a few new things for the fly in next year as well.

There were some some great aircraft on display and the awards handed out by the Concrete Vintage Fly-In are listed below.

Grand Champion – Howard DGA 15P – Fred Lundeen – Olympia, WA

Reserve Grand Champion – Stinson SM-8A – Greg Larson – Snohomish, WA

Champion Warbird – Sterman N2S4 – Kent Johnson – Auburn, WA

Champion Antique – Lockheed 12A – Jim Perry – Monroe, WA

Champion Classic – Cessna 195 – Bob Juranich – Des Moines, WA

Champion Contemporary Classic – Bellanca 14-9-2 Cruisemaster – Rock Snodgrass – Lake Tapps, WA

Champion Experimental – Van’s RV8 – Marc Drake – Arlington, TX

Best Short Wing Piper – PA-22 150 – Herb Huesitis – Point Roberts, WA

Antique Airplane Association Choice – Stinson SM-8A – Greg Larson – Snohomish, WA

The day turned out to be a beautiful one with the temperatures staying a bit cooler. We had a great turnout of antiques and vintage airplanes and a lot of people driving in.

Here are a few pictures from today, more on the way including some of our award winners…

Hopefully the weather will look better tomorrow for the busiest day of the fly in. There should be some great planes flying in and scroll down a post to see the schedule for the weekend. Hope to see you up here!