Fans of model aircraft fly high at Festival of Flight in St. Charles
Paul Lund of Sycamore has long held a love of planes and decided to visit St. Charles for the event.
'I used to be a member of the club a while back that is putting this on, but then we moved out to Sycamore and were too far away,' Lund said as he stood near some bleachers in a field operated by the Fox Valley Aero Club. 'I used to have some planes myself but I sold them. I came to hang out with a couple guys I know and I just love flying. It was fun to just come out and watch the planes fly.'
The event, which ran from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Fox Valley Aero Club Field at 3831 Karl Madsen Drive, featured model aircraft including 'civilian and military replicas to non-scale sport planes, with power sources including electric motors, small gas and glow engines and even real jet turbines,' according to the club's website.
Todd Culbertson of St. Charles, who handles public relations for the club, said the event has been held 'for more than 20 years,' noting that the club holds two such air shows a year along with about 10 other events. The club, he said, has been in existence for almost 100 years.
'These shows are community-focused. The purpose of this show is to showcases miniature versions of every full-sized aircraft in existence,' Culbertson said. 'We're talking about jets, biplanes, warbirds from World War I, World War II, commercial aircraft – every aircraft in full-scale is represented here in miniature. We fly using a transmitter and they look like the real things when they're flying.'
Culbertson said that 'some of our planes have wing spans up to 20 feet.'
'It gets kind of crazy. It's a hobby for club members but it's a real community event and a chance to bring whatever kind of craft you have and hang out with other enthusiasts,' he said. 'It is a community event as tickets are $5 and kids are free and it helps pay for the upkeep of the field every year.'
Those attending had a chance to to see planes built and flown by their owners.
'We're talking about things like a jet with an eight-foot wing span – an F-16, military jet, all scale – and it goes 300 mph,' Culbertson said. 'It's flying right over the 800-foot runway and people are 'oohing and aahing' while it's doing it. There are real jet engines in these planes and these things cost $30,000. This is pretty series hobby action.'
St. Charles resident Laura Molter said she came with her cousin to the event.
'I love this event and I actually am going to become a member and learn how to fly,' she said.
Mark Ramsgard of Geneva said he has worked as a commercial pilot for 35 years and that he is amazed at the authenticity of the planes hobbyists fly.
'It's incredible the way they make things seem so real now. Back when I was a youngster, guys were doing things out of balsa wood,' he said. 'I usually just come out here whether there is a show or not and find guys flying. People enjoy seeing the historical airplanes and they like the history.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Wall Street Journal
4 hours ago
- Wall Street Journal
‘Threads of Empire' and ‘Carpet Diem': The Weave of History
A famous photograph captures Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin during the 1945 Yalta Conference. They look cold in their greatcoats, and Stalin alone wears military dress. A handful of luxurious carpets warm the ground and provide an air of Black Sea luxury suitable to the occasion. The largest rug, figured with floral motifs, projects opulence and taste. For the textile scholar Dorothy Armstrong, its designs reveal something deeper. The rug, she observes, lacks the patterns of traditional carpet making from Tatar artisans who would have been native to the Crimean Peninsula where the resort was located. 'In the summer of 1944,' she reminds us, 'Stalin had purged the Crimea of its Tatars.' The rug used was an import from elsewhere. 'The world beneath our feet tends to be less observed than the world at eye level,' writes Ms. Armstrong. 'Once we begin to look, we can see carpets in every environment which celebrates power.' In 'Threads of Empire,' she takes readers on a beguiling tour of the past, one in which carpets become talismans of culture, aspiration, deceit and imperialism. The book displays deep learning, endless curiosity—and a conviction that seemingly mute objects can be anything but. 'Even when they are appropriated as props by the great and powerful,' she writes, 'carpets find ways to tell their individual stories, which sometimes subvert and always complicate received histories.' Take the carpet known as the Ardabil, widely regarded as the finest example of the Persian carpet-making tradition and today housed in London's Victoria and Albert Museum. At 33 feet by 17 feet it is a gigantic specimen of hand-woven artistry. The nearly 500-year-old Ardabil, Ms. Armstrong writes, embodies 'a refined Persia of intellectual clarity and unmatched visual inventivenes.' Yet the carpet's uniqueness and outstanding state of preservation both waver upon inspection. The Ardabil was originally one of a matched pair, but the other carpet had at some point been mutilated to restore the ruined edges of its sibling. (The damaged version, still a treasure, found its way to the collection of the oil magnate J. Paul Getty.) A theme running through 'Threads of Empire' is the difficulty of dating rugs and ascertaining where they were made. The Ardabil bears an inscription and year on one edge, as well as a notation of the court that the weaver served. 'To have this amount of information woven into a carpet is vanishingly rare,' Ms. Armstrong writes. Carbon dating is expensive and cannot determine geography; chemical analysis of dyes has its own limitations. Instead, carpet experts usually place textiles through visual inspection, examining a rug's patterns and motifs, as well as its knotting and weave.
New York Times
9 hours ago
- New York Times
Two Children's Literature Giants on World War II Rites of Passage
If you think there's nothing new to say about World War II, these two works by children's literature giants — and immigrants to America — will prove you wrong. The Caldecott medalist Uri Shulevitz's final book, following his death at age 89 in February, is a riveting companion to his award-winning memoir 'Chance: Escape From the Holocaust' (2020), and a story that stands on its own. 'When I was little,' begins THE SKY WAS MY BLANKET: A Young Man's Journey Across Wartime Europe (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 160 pp., $19.99, ages 10 and up), 'I couldn't fall asleep unless I had a piece of bread under my pillow. Why? you may ask. Because I was born in 1915.' Yehiel Szulewicz, the youngest of four boys growing up in a time of hunger in a devoutly religious Jewish home in Żyrardów, Poland, chafes at his father's strictness. 'When you've got nothing,' he thinks, 'use what you've got.' Wit and deception get him free entry to the local cinema and even a trip to Warsaw. But he longs to see more of the world — and so, at age 15, he leaves home, not realizing he will never see his parents again. Yehiel shaves his sidelocks but still embraces his Jewish identity. As he crosses Europe by foot and train, he finds food, work and mentors in Jewish communities in Czechoslovakia, Vienna and Italy. When the Nazis gain power, he moves to Paris, then Spain, where he joins a Polish brigade fighting Franco's fascism. From there he ends up imprisoned in a work camp in France. World War II has begun. Yehiel escapes and joins a Jewish branch of the French Resistance. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Tom's Guide
a day ago
- Tom's Guide
How to watch 'VJ Day 80: The Nation's Tribute' on BBC iPlayer — it's *FREE*
"VJ Day 80: The Nation's Tribute" is one televised memorial we should make the extra effort to watch. When we do, we remember those who fought and died to secure victory against Japan and finally bring the conflict to an end but also extend our thanks to the last few remaining veterans... Here's how to watch "VJ Day 80: The Nation's Tribute" online from anywhere with a VPN — and potentially for free. "VJ Day 80: The Nation's Tribute" airs on Friday, August 15 on BBC One from 11.30 am BST. It is also available to stream on BBC iPlayer.• WATCH FREE — BBC One/ BBC iPlayer (U.K.)• Watch anywhere — try NordVPN 100% risk free It begins on BBC1 at 11.30 a.m. on Friday and includes the national two minute silence at Noon. There will then follow the official Royal British Legion's commemoration from the foot of the iconic Armed Forces Memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire. It is guaranteed to be an emotional and poignant broadcast as it includes memories and testimonies from many who were sent to the other side of the world and felt forgotten when they returned. Many of them were too traumatized to tell others what they had suffered and seen. Some speak here for the first time. A key element will be the diversity of the forces that fought in this theatre of operations with over 40 languages spoken by this multinational force and they will all remembered and honoured together by the "Last Post" performed by the Royal Marine Buglers, a piper's lament from the Brigade of the Gurkhas, a tribute from the Red Arrows and a traditional World War II flypast. Read on to find out how to watch "VJ Day 80: The Nation's Tribute" online, on TV and from anywhere. "VJ Day 80: The Nation's Tribute" airs on Friday, August 15 on BBC One from 11.30 am BST. It is also available to stream on BBC iPlayer. You don't have to miss it if you a Brit exiled abroad because you can unblock BBC iPlayer with a VPN. We'll show you how to do that below... Thanks to the wonders of a VPN (Virtual Private Network), "VJ Day 80: The Nation's Tribute" should be available to Brits no matter where they are. The software allows your devices to appear to be back in your home country regardless of where in the world you find yourself. Our favorite is NordVPN. There's a good reason you've heard of NordVPN. We specialize in testing and reviewing VPN services and NordVPN is the one we rate best. It's outstanding at unblocking streaming services, it's fast and it has top-level security features too. With over 7,000 servers, across 110 countries, and at a great price too, it's easy to recommend. Get 70% off with this NordVPN deal Using a VPN is incredibly simple. 1. Install the VPN of your choice. As we've said, NordVPN is our favorite. 2. Choose the location you wish to connect to in the VPN app. For instance, if you're away from the U.K. and want to view a U.K. service, you'd select U.K. from the list. 3. Sit back and watch the show. Head to BBC iPlayer to watch "VJ Day 80: The Nation's Tribute" online and on-demand. Unfortunately, "VJ Day 80: The Nation's Tribute" is not available to stream in the U.S. but it will be available to watch via a live simulcast on However, if you are a Brit in the States for work or on vacation you can catch the show for FREE by using a VPN such as NordVPN, choosing U.K. from the list and selecting BBC iPlayer. "VJ Day 80: The Nation's Tribute" airs on Friday, August 15 on BBC One from 11.30 am BST. It is also available to stream on BBC iPlayer. You don't have to miss it if you a Brit exiled abroad because you can unblock BBC iPlayer with a VPN. We recommend NordVPN. As with the U.S., "VJ Day 80: The Nation's Tribute" is not available to stream live in Canada but it will be available to watch via a live simulcast on However, if you are visiting the Great White North for work or on vacation you can catch the show on your own domestic streaming platform by using a VPN such as NordVPN. At the time of writing there has been no announcement about where "VJ Day 80: The Nation's Tribute" will be broadcast in Australia but it will be available to watch via a live simulcast on Brit working in Oz? You can catch the show on the BBC you can do so by using a VPN such as NordVPN. At the time of writing there has been no announcement about where "VJ Day 80: The Nation's Tribute" will be broadcast in New Zealand but it will be available to watch via a live simulcast on Brit working in New Zealand? You can catch the show on the BBC you can do so by using a VPN such as NordVPN. "VJ Day 80: The Nation's Tribute" programme on BBC1 - 11.30 Two Minute Silence - 12 Noon Royal British Legion commemoration including readings and musical performances by special guests, films of veterans giving their version of events presided over by broadcaster Paddy O'Connell - 12.02 p.m. Last Post performed by the Royal Marine Buglers, a piper's lament performed by the Brigade of the Gurkhas, a tribute from the Red Arrows and a traditional World War II flypast. O'Connell is an English television and radio presenter who will be providing historical context and commentary during the BBC's "VJ Day 80: The Nation's Tribute". He currently hosts BBC Radio 4's "Broadcasting House" on Sunday morning and is a regular presenter on "Newsnight" on BBC Two. He also occasionally presents the "PM" programme on Radio 4 We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example: 1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service). 2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad. We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.
