Warm weather, warm welcome

Jeff and Nancy Kling of Houston set up camp beside their Cessna 205 on March 26, a relatively quiet day for arrivals. The action heated up on March 27 with attendees rolling in. Jim Waldron, AOPA Airport Support Network volunteer for St. Simons Island Airport in Georgia, watched the hustle and bustle beside his Cessna 120.

Early arrivals like the Klings and Waldron had action in view on March 27, watching exhibit aircraft and other attendees land and taxi or get towed to their spaces. Modern aircraft like the Cirrus SR22, Icon A5, Epic E1000 turboprop, Enstrom 480B helicopter, Kodiak 900 and a TBM from Daher, and Tecnam P2008 MkII garnered as much attention as vintage aircraft such as the Hughes OH-6A helicopter, Cessna 195, Beech 18, Stinson Reliant, and Boeing Stearman. Warbirds and current military and special-use aircraft like the North American B–25 Mitchell bomber, Boeing CH-47 Chinook, and a Lockheed WC-130 flown for hurricane reconnaissance are always a hit. There are also plenty of aircraft you don’t see every day like the Eclipse EVO gyrocopter, multiengine Velocity, Maule M-7 on floats, and Sea Twister.

AOPA staff set up our campus—right across from the FAA building—and brought in plenty of aircraft. Two of our most popular aircraft, the AOPA Sweepstakes Cessna 170B and the AOPA Extra 300L that is up for auction, were already drawing a lot of attention. Our display area also features a Cessna 152 and Beechcraft Bonanza A36.

Aircraft spotting wasn’t all that was going on early in the show—you never know who you might bump into. We spotted Kevin Lacey of the television show Airplane Repo leading a group of youth through the warbird area.

Attendees will have plenty of time to people spot at our campus this week too—we have a full schedule of meet-and-greet opportunities with social media influencers and aviation giants (check out our lineup).

The warm weather and even warmer welcomes from friends old and new are sure to make this another standout Sun ’n Fun. We hope to see you here.

AOPA Senior Director of Digital Media Alyssa Cobb contributed to this report.