Look! Up in the sky! It's a Flying Circus!

Saturday, June 7, 2014

photo Kids can fly an RC plane with a club instructor at the Chattanooga Radio Control Club Flying Circus.

A quad-copter, otherwise known as a drone, will be in the skies over Summit Field on Saturday, June 21, as the Chattanooga Radio Control Club holds its fourth annual Flying Circus. Proceeds from the event will be donated to Siskin Children's Institute.

photo Charles Perry will fly his turbine-powered jet "Deviator."
photo This quad-copter will be in the skies during the event.

According to club member Paul J. Wright, the term "Flying Circus" was first applied to the Red Baron's group of colorfully painted fighter planes during World War I.

"In our case," he says, "spectators will be treated to a continuous flying display of colorfully decorated model aircraft, featuring everything imaginable -- from antique biplanes to modern jets, both fixed-wing and helicopters."

The day will include giant-scale aerobatic models performing gravity-defying stunts, warbirds scrambling into the sky and turbine-powered jets roaring past at speeds exceeding 150 mph, he says.

Gate opens at 9 a.m., and flying lasts from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The day will finish up with a benefit auction and "buddy box" flying, in which guests get assistance in flying a remote-controlled craft with an instructor's assistance.

Grilled hot dogs and hamburgers will be available, and prize drawings will be held. Folding chairs are recommended for seating.

Admission is by donation, with $5 per person and $10 per carload suggested.

Wright says the club is hoping to pass the $10,000 mark in total donations with its fourth-year proceeds. Donations of cash and auction merchandise are also welcome.

Summit Field is the former site of the Summit landfill. The entrance is at 4223 Old Woodland Drive, Ooltewah. A map and directions are posted on the club's website, www.crccflyers.org.

photo Darrel Sprayberry will fly his H-34 Sikorsky "Choctaw."