A different event will be taking place this weekend in Columbus, focusing on a passion for aviation.
From today through Sunday, Columbus Municipal Airport will present “The Flying Fords.” The four-day event is named for its main attraction, a 1928 Ford Tri-Motor 5-AT-B that will be offering rides, courtesy of the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA).
Ford only manufactured 199 Tri-Motors, and there are only 18 left in the United States. The same Tri-Motor coming to Columbus this weekend also made a brief stop at the airport in early May, with a few select community members going for a ride.
This particular Ford Tri-Motor or “Tin Goose” (as the planes are sometimes called) belongs to the Liberty Aviation Museum in Port Clinton, Ohio, and is leased to the EAA for tours. Ed Kornfield, an EAA pilot for the Tri-Motor, said in a previous interview that a tour stop in another town was canceled due to some problems with hangar availability, so the plane ended up making a pit stop in Columbus instead.
It was too last-minute to put together an event at that time, said Payne, but airport officials were able to hangar the plane before it departed and made its way to Owensboro, Ky. for another tour stop — and able to make plans for a return.
The EAA had another opening in its schedule and asked the airport if it would be interested in hosting a Ford Tri-Motor event.
“We thought it was a good opportunity to showcase aviation and showcase some history of aviation here at the airport,” Payne said. “So we took that opportunity and ran with it.”
He recalled that there was a Tri-Motor in Columbus as part of Aviation Day festivities in 2015. In years past, the airport has celebrated Aviation Day in early- to mid-June.
However, airport officials said that due to COVID-19, they decided to postpone the annual celebration and instead offer an event that would be over several days.
Payne said that Aviation Day is typically planned out months in advance. Given the uncertainty of what pandemic restrictions would look like in June, the airport decided to hold off on the event.
The airport has worked with the county health department to ensure they have the safest environment possible for the Flying Fords, Payne said. The event is largely being held outside, and mask-wearing will be optional. Weather cancellations will be shared on social media.
“It’s last minute from a planning standpoint,” he acknowledged. “We’re used to planning six, eight months out. So for us to be able to plan this whole event in less than a month — it’s been interesting. But we’re excited about, again, the opportunity just to showcase aviation to Columbus.”
The airport would like to return to a “traditional Aviation Day” in the future, he said.
Besides the Ford Tri-Motor flight, several other activities are also scheduled for the Flying Fords weekend. Aircraft, local organizations, cars and tractors will be showcased at the event. Payne said that a hot air balloon is scheduled to be at the airport on a couple of days, weather permitting.
There will also be activities for kids, including bounce houses and educational events through the Boy Scouts of America, the Atterbury-Bakalar Air Museum, C-119 tours, the Columbus Public Safety Touch-A-Truck/Car and the Smoke Trailer.
EAA Chapter 729 President Brad Stinebring said that in addition to hosting the Tri-Motor, Chapter 729 will also be completing Young Eagles Flights and displaying a 1940 Taylorcraft, which high school students are rebuilding through the chapter’s Aviation Youth Center. The Young Eagles Flights have already filled up, said Stinebring.
The events listed above are just some of the planned activities for this weekend. A more comprehensive schedule has been shared on both the airport’s website and the event’s Facebook page.
This weekend certainly promises to be a busy one, between the airport’s events and the county fair festivities. Payne said that while he’s aware that the event coincides with some of the fair activities, the dates the EAA offered the airport were their only option. He added that he hopes people who attend the fair will also visit the Flying Fords, especially since they’ll be holding the event across multiple days.
There’s also a possibility that fairgoers may look up and be able to see some of the flights this weekend, said Payne.
“At the end of the day, there’s never just one thing that happens in this community,” he said, “And that’s what makes Columbus so great.”
[sc:pullout-title pullout-title=”Where to learn more” ][sc:pullout-text-begin]
More information about The Flying Fords, including a schedule, is available at columbus.in.gov/airport/ and on the event’s Facebook page. Updates, including any cancellations due to adverse weather, will be posted on Facebook, Payne said.
To learn more about the Ford Tri-Motor and register for a ride in advance, visit flytheford.org. Walk-ups are also available.
[sc:pullout-text-end][sc:pullout-title pullout-title=”The schedule” ][sc:pullout-text-begin]
Today
2-5 p.m.: EAA Ford Tri-Motor rides, register at flytheford.org
2-4 p.m.: Atterbuy Bakalar Air Museum open
Friday
9 a.m.-5 p.m.: EAA Ford Tri-Motor rides, register at flytheford.org
9 a.m.-4 p.m.: Hoosier Aviation Poker Run, Ford Model A car show, Ford tractor display, bounce houses, Red Stars Static Display, Ivy Tech Aviation and Aircraft, Higher Education booths, Civil Air Patrol Static Display.
10 a.m.-4 p.m.: Atterbuy Bakalar Air Museum open
Tentative: Civil Air Patrol hot air balloon, Kentucky Air National Guard C-130, Indiana National Guard parachute jumpers (338th Co.)
Saturday
9 a.m.-5 p.m.: EAA Ford Tri-Motor rides, register at flytheford.org
9 a.m.-1 p.m.: Young Eagles Flights
10 a.m.-2 p.m.: RC Flyers Static Display
9 a.m.-1 p.m.: Columbus Public Safety, Touch-A-Truck and Smoke Trailer
9 a.m.-5 p.m.: Hoosier Aviation Poker Run
9 a.m.-4 p.m.: Huey Helicopter Static Display and flyovers, Tuskegee Airmen Information and History Booth, bounce houses, Ford Tractor static display, Cummins Gulfstream G280 static display, Civil Air Patrol static display, Ivy Tech Aviation and aircraft, Columbus Jet Discovery Flights, Higher Education booths
10 a.m.-4 p.m.: Atterbury Bakalar-Air Museum and C-119 Tours
Tentative: Civil Air Patrol hot air balloon
Sunday
9 a.m.-5 p.m.: EAA Ford Tri-Motor rides, register at flytheford.org
9-10 a.m.: RC Flyers Flight Demonstration
10 a.m.-2 p.m.: RC Flyers static display
9 a.m.-4 p.m.: Red Stars stic display and flyovers, Cub Scout Push Cart Derby track, Ford Tractor display, bounce houses, Ivy Tech Aviation and aircraft, Huey Helicopter static display and flyovers, Propeller Makerspace tours, Columbus Jet Discovery Flights
10 a.m.-4 p.m.: Atterbury Bakalar-Air Museum and C-119 Tours
Noon to 4 p.m.: Columbus Public Safety, Touch-A-Truck and Smoke Trailer
9 a.m.-3 p.m.: Ford Mustang Club Car Show
9 a.m.-3 p.m.: Propeller Makerspace Tours
[sc:pullout-text-end]
