National Aviation Day to feature airplane displays, exhibitors and food trucks

Published 7:09 am Monday, August 8, 2022

: The Capital Wing of the Commemorative Air Force will provide warbird rides in its 1945 General Motors TBM Avenger torpedo bomber as part of the National Aviation Day celebration in Manteo. Courtesy First Flight Society

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The First Flight Society will soon celebrate the fourth annual National Aviation Day at Dare County Regional Airport. The event will run from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. on August 19, 2022 and is set to feature airplane displays, exhibitors and food trucks. The mission of the celebration is to provide a fun and educational experience promoting, honoring and celebrating the accomplishments of the Wright Brothers and helping educate the world about aviation.

National Aviation Day is a free event aimed at all ages.

August 19 is also Orville Wright’s birthday. “Former president Franklin D. Roosevelt was the creator of National Aviation Day, deciding for the first time in 1939 that the nation should celebrate the growth and advancements being made in aviation,” stated a press release from the First Flight Society.

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The keynote speaker will be historian Larry Tise, with the presentation “The Elusive Orville Wright from Kitty Hawk and Beyond.”

Another highlight will be Warbird rides. To combine the First Flight Society observation of National Aviation Day and the mission of the Commemorative Air Force, the Capital Wing will bring the queen of its fleet – a TBM-3E Avenger named “Doris Mae” – on August 19 and 20 and provide warbird rides to the public. Advance purchases of rides can be made online at capitalwingwarbirdrides.org.

According to the First Flight Society, confirmed exhibitors include Kitty Hawk Kites, Civil Air Patrol, Military Aviation Museum, Elizabeth City State University, Dare County Radio Control Flyers, AOPA, Dare County and Tubbs Hot Dogs.

Dare County Regional airport (MQI) is located at 410 Airport Road in Manteo.

Additional information can be found at nationalaviationday.org.

The Kill Devil Hills Memorial Association, later named First Flight Society, began as a group of local businessmen who successfully petitioned the US Congress to fund and build a monument to the Wright Brothers’ 1903 achievement. The group plans an annual celebration at the Wright Brothers National Memorial on December 17 to memorialize the accomplishments of the Wright Brothers at Kitty Hawk.

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