Imagine looking down at NoVA’s gorgeous fall foliage from the back seat of a World War II biplane. You can make it happen this weekend.
The Commemorative Air Force Capital Wing offers rides on six warbirds from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at Culpeper Regional Airport and Shannon Airport in Fredericksburg.
Admission to the Culpeper airport is free both days. There’s a $15 admission fee at the Shannon Airport on Saturday because that’s when the 10th annual Harvest Festival Fly-In also happens.
In addition to seeing planes in Fredericksburg on Saturday, pilots will participate in candy drops from noon to 3 p.m., and there will be the first-ever haunted hangar tour. Bring the kids in costume. Proceeds from the festival support the Shannon Air Museum. Festival tickets are sold separately from the biplane flights.
Planes flying both days in Culpeper include the 1942 Boeing Stearman open cockpit biplane, a Fairchild UC-62 Forwarder that can carry three passengers, and a Grumman AA-1B, a news release said.
A Stinson OY-1 that flew during the Battle of Saipan, a strategic moment in WWII, plans to be at the Harvest Festival on Saturday and in Culpeper on Sunday. It will fly at both locations.
Capital Wing said a TBM Avenger torpedo bomber, a rare Japanese Fuji LM-1 observation warbird, a French Alouette II, the world’s first jet-powered helicopter, and a B-26 twin 50-caliber machine gun turret will be on display in Culpeper.
There will be models and swag for sale and food from the Law Dawgs food truck.
Plus, a professional drone operator will answer questions and provide demonstrations in Culpeper.
Biplane Flight Costs
Tickets for the fall foliage flights on the biplanes range in price from $125 to $1,300.
For $125, you can spend 15 to 18 minutes of the 30-minute experience in the air looking out the glass cockpit of a Grumman AA-1B with a maximum speed of 138 mph.
The 1946 Fairchild UC-61 Forwarder holds three passengers. Its 30-minute experience costs $275.
Buy advance tickets online. Flights not sold ahead of time will be on sale at the airports.
Feature image of a Boeing PT-17 Stearman biplane courtesy Commemorative Air Force Capital Wing
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