Stratford flight enthusiasts planning ‘fly-in’ at Sikorsky Memorial Airport
STRATFORD — Pilots and aircraft from across the region are expected to touch down at Igor I. Sikorsky Memorial Airport this weekend as part of a two-day celebration of the area’s storied aviation history.
The Connecticut Air and Space Center is hosting a general aviation fly-in during the Second Annual Whitehead Weekend — a now yearly event honoring pioneering aviator Gustave Whitehead, who some believe was the first to achieve powered flight as early as 1901.
In addition to the aircraft taking part in the fly-in, the center plans to display a working replica of the German immigrant’s No. 21 “Condor” aircraft, in addition to restored fighter planes and military helicopters built locally by Sikorsky Aircraft.
Mark E. Corvino, the president of the center and aviation museum, said the nonprofit is aiming to draw people interested in what he called Connecticut’s unique role in aviation history.
“These pilots and aircraft owners want to go somewhere,” Corvino said. “Where better to go than a museum that is right next to an airport?”
Corvino described the fly-in as a kind of car show that instead of highlighting muscle cars and vintage vehicles will feature a wide range of privately-owned airplanes and helicopters.
The two day event, which begins at 10 a.m. and ends at 4 p.m. on Aug. 13 and Aug. 14, is also open to those interested in arriving by car. Tickets are $10 for adults, $7 for veterans and $5 for children aged six and up.
Corvino said the funds will help pay for the nonprofit’s ongoing restoration of the Curtiss Hangar, which was constructed in 1929 and named for the famed aircraft innovator and industry magnate Glenn Curtiss.
Once slated for demolition, the center has repurposed part of the historic structure as a tourist attraction to exhibit its aircraft. Corvino said the nonprofit ultimately aims to restore the entire hangar to its original conditions.
The hangar is well known among Connecticut residents passionate about aviation. Famed aviators Amelia Earhart, Howard Hughes and Charles Lindbergh all once visited the facility.
“We just can’t let this go,” said Andy Kosch, a center founder who built the replica of Whitehead’s aircraft. “We’ve got to raise all that money that we can to fix up the hangar. This is a very historic site.”
Kosch’s original replica of Whitehead’s plane, a second version and a third reproduction that is now under construction, will be featured at the weekendlong celebration. The first aircraft was built to help strengthen the claim that Whitehead achieved powered liftoff before the Wright Brothers’s famous flight in 1903.
Contemporary newspaper reports and later witness accounts claim Whitehead made short flights in his steam engine-powered flying machine in 1901 and 1902 in Fairfield, Bridgeport and elsewhere.
The claim has been disputed by Wright supporters, but championed by Connecticut politicians. State lawmakers even passed a bill in 2013 officially recognizing Whitehead as the first person to achieve powered flight.
Kosch’s replica has a 36-foot wingspan, weighs about 400 pounds and is powered by a pair of engines built into its 16-foot wooden body. Like Whitehead’s plane, the aircraft’s bird-like wings are made from bamboo and silk.
“People should know this story and about this guy because he spent so many years wanting to build an airplane that could fly,” he said. “And here we have it.”
According to Corvino, the center’s partially-restored FG-1D Corsair will be displayed along with the Whitehead replica. The aircraft, a fighter-bomber that played a pivotal role in World War II, was one of thousands that were assembled in Stratford.
Other center-owned aircraft that will be at the event include a Sikorsky S-60 Flying Crane, a Hughes OH-6A Cayuse and a Bede BD-5 — a small but aerobatic single-seat airplane.
Kosch said videos from some of his replica’s first successful flights in 1986 will be screened for visitors. He said he hopes the weekend events will help spark greater interest in the art of flying, especially among young people who might not have been exposed to aviation.
Kosch, 83, recalled how he first became enamored with airplanes as a young boy during trips with his father to watch aircraft take
off and land at what was then known as Bridgeport Municipal Airport.
“Everybody looks up into the sky and sees birds and planes flying and they think, ‘Wow, I wish I could do that,’” he said.
Kosch said his early fascination led him to a lifelong affection for hang-gliding, which in turn got him interested in Whitehead’s legendary early flights. Ultimately, he wants the center’s growing collection of historic aircraft and aviation memorabilia to be preserved as much as possible.
“We’re hoping that we’ll get more and more people interested in aviation in this area,” he said. “Hopefully we’ll be able to get Curtiss Hangar fixed up so that we have a big beautiful museum where we can show off all the airplanes, helicopters and flying machines that we’ve been working on restoring for years.”