Fly-in
Encyclopedia
Recreation
Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The "need to do something for recreation" is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for enjoyment, amusement, or pleasure and are considered to be "fun"...
al and social
Socialization
Socialization is a term used by sociologists, social psychologists, anthropologists, political scientists and educationalists to refer to the process of inheriting and disseminating norms, customs and ideologies...
purposes.
Fly-ins may be formally or informally organised, members of the public may or may not be invited, the gathering may be at an airport or in a farmer's field.
Fly-ins can be aimed at specific aircraft classes, such as taildraggers, warbird
Warbird
Warbird is a term used, predominantly in North America, to describe vintage military aircraft.- Naming :Although the term originally implied piston-driven aircraft from the World War II era, it is now often extended to include all military aircraft, including jet-powered aircraft, that are no...
s, experimental aircraft
Experimental aircraft
An experimental aircraft is an aircraft that has not yet been fully proven in flight. Often, this implies that new aerospace technologies are being tested on the aircraft, though the label is more broad....
or specific aircraft models. They may be organized by a national organization, such as the Canadian Owners and Pilots Association
Canadian Owners and Pilots Association
The Canadian Owners and Pilots Association is a federally registered not-for-profit association that provides information and advocacy services for Canadian pilots who fly for non-commercial purposes...
or the Experimental Aircraft Association
Experimental Aircraft Association
The Experimental Aircraft Association is an international organization of aviation enthusiasts based in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Since its inception it has grown internationally with over 160,000 members and about 1,000 chapters worldwide....
, the airport owner or authority, a flying club
Flying club
A flying club or aero club is a not for profit, member run organization that provides its members with affordable access to aircraft.Many clubs also provide flight training, flight planning facilities, pilot supplies and associated services, as well as organizing social functions, fly-ins and...
, an aircraft type club
Aircraft type club
Aircraft type clubs are organizations that provide information and support to a single aircraft type or a group of aircraft types from the same manufacturer or family of aircraft....
or by a group of friends meeting perhaps for a barbecue
Barbecue
Barbecue or barbeque , used chiefly in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Australia is a method and apparatus for cooking meat, poultry and occasionally fish with the heat and hot smoke of a fire, smoking wood, or hot coals of...
and to socialize.
The term "fly-in" is not formally defined in the aviation legislation of many countries and it may refer to a range of events, while in others it has a specific legal meaning. For example in Canada fly-ins may not legally include air displays or competitive flying.
History
The first fly-in was the Grande Semaine d'Aviation (English: Grand Week of Aviation) held in ReimsReims
Reims , a city in the Champagne-Ardenne region of France, lies east-northeast of Paris. Founded by the Gauls, it became a major city during the period of the Roman Empire....
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
between 22–29 August 1909. The event attracted some of the world's foremost pilots of the day, including Louis Bleriot
Louis Blériot
Louis Charles Joseph Blériot was a French aviator, inventor and engineer. In 1909 he completed the first flight across a large body of water in a heavier-than-air craft, when he crossed the English Channel. For this achievement, he received a prize of £1,000...
, Henry Farman
Henry Farman
Henri Farman Henri Farman Henri Farman (26 May 1874 – 17 July 1958 was a French pilot, aviator and aircraft designer and manufacturer with his brother Maurice Farman. His family was British and he took French nationality in 1937.-Biography:...
, Léon Delagrange
Léon Delagrange
Léon Delagrange Léon Delagrange Léon Delagrange (Ferdinand Léon Delagrange; March 13, 1873 was a pioneer French aviator and also a sculptor .He was born at Orléans and studied at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris...
, Hubert Latham
Hubert Latham
Arthur Charles Hubert Latham was a French aviation pioneer. He was the first person to attempt to cross the English Channel in an aeroplane...
, Charles de Lambert
Charles de Lambert (aviator)
Charles, Count de Lambert, was an early European aviator.De Lambert was the first person in France to be taught to fly by Wilbur Wright. The first lesson took place at Le Mans on 28 October 1908...
, Louis Paulhan
Louis Paulhan
Isidore Auguste Marie Louis Paulhan, known as Louis Paulhan, was a pioneering French aviator who in 1910 flew "Le Canard", the world's first seaplane, designed by Henri Fabre....
, Roger Sommer, Claude Grahame White
Claude Grahame White
Claude Grahame White was an English pioneer of aviation, and the first to make a night flight, during the Daily Mail sponsored 1910 London to Manchester air race.-Early life:...
and one American, Glenn Curtiss
Glenn Curtiss
Glenn Hammond Curtiss was an American aviation pioneer and a founder of the U.S. aircraft industry. He began his career as a bicycle then motorcycle builder and racer, later also manufacturing engines for airships as early as 1906...
. The event was primarily a competition for record setting. Curtis set a speed record of 80 km/h (41 kn) flying a biplane he had designed, winning the first leg of the Gordon Bennett Coupe Internationale d'Aviation. Henry Farman set a distance record of 180 km (97 nmi) in just over three hours. Hubert Latham won the altitude contest by attaining 155 m (509 ft). The event attracted large crowds of spectators including 3,000 from the United Kingdom and 2,000 from the United States.
The first fly-in located in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
was held at Doncaster
Doncaster
Doncaster is a town in South Yorkshire, England, and the principal settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster. The town is about from Sheffield and is popularly referred to as "Donny"...
between 15–23 October 1909. It preceded the second UK event held at Blackpool
Blackpool
Blackpool is a borough, seaside town, and unitary authority area of Lancashire, in North West England. It is situated along England's west coast by the Irish Sea, between the Ribble and Wyre estuaries, northwest of Preston, north of Liverpool, and northwest of Manchester...
by only three days. Both events competed for the honour of being the first of their type in the country and as a result neither drew the expected public interest. The Doncaster event attracted a dozen aircraft and pilots, but bad weather prevented much of the planned flying and many of the trophies were not awarded. The event lost a considerable amount of money.
The first fly-in held in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
was the Los Angeles Aviation Meet, held 10–20 January 1910 at Dominguez Field. Again this was a competition-style meet with almost all the aircraft from France. Louis Paulhan set a height record of just under one mile (1.6 km) and also took the prize for endurance with a flight of 1:49:40 that covered 61 mi (98 km).
The first Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
n fly-in was the Grande Semaine d'Aviation d'Egypt held at Heliopolis
Heliopolis (Cairo Suburb)
Modern Heliopolis is a district in Cairo, Egypt. The city was established in 1905 by the Heliopolis Oasis Company, headed by the Belgian industrialist Édouard Louis Joseph, Baron Empain, as well as Boghos Nubar, son of the Egyptian Prime Minister Nubar Pasha.-History:The Baron Empain, a well known...
, east of Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
, 6–13 February 1910. The event took advantage of the good winter weather found in that country and attracted fliers from all over Europe. The event was organized by the Aero Club of Egypt assisted by the Aero Club de France and was sponsored by Prince Pasha, uncle of the Khedive of Egypt. Pilots flew from an aerodrome that was staked out in the desert that had a landing and take-off surface that was 5 km (3 mi) by 3 km (2 mi) wide. Competitions were flown between the twelve pilots participating and 173,000 Francs in prize money was disbursed. One participant was "Baroness" Raymonde de Laroche
Raymonde de LaRoche
Raymonde de Laroche , born Elise Raymonde Deroche, was a French aviatrix and the first woman in the world to receive an aeroplane pilot's licence.-Early life:...
, the first woman in the world to earn a pilot's licence, who won a 10,000 Franc prize for her flight of 10 km (6.2 mi).
The People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
has been a difficult environment for general aviation, having had severe limits placed on it in the communist era, but by 2011 the government agreed to lift restrictions and to promote the use of business and personal aviation. China's first fly-in was to be held 20-24 September 2011 in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
as part of a five day conference on general aviation, but the fly-in was "postponed indefinitely" due to a Beijing Police Department helicopter crash that raised safety concerns.