BETHEL – Bethel Regional Airport will be buzzing Saturday, Oct. 11, when the Bethel Airport Authority hosts its first Fall Foliage Fly-In.

Topping the list of attractions is a special fly-by at noon by the VP-8 Fighting Tigers (Patrol Squadron 8), a P-3 Orion Flying Lockheed squadron out of Brunswick Naval Air Station.

Patrol Squadron 8 was the first U.S. Navy Patrol Squadron to fly the P-3 Orion. It was also the former squadron of Airport Authority member Randy Autrey, who requested the fly-by.

From 7 to 9 a.m., there will be two hours of powered parachute flying by the Maine Power Chutes Association, the same group that flew the chutes to Kitty Hawk, N.C.

“There will be a few biplanes here and exciting scale jets, which are one-fourth of the scale of real jets. They’ll be flown down the runway in excess of 200 miles per hour,” Autrey said.

The runway will be closed from 1 to 2 p.m. during the scale jets demonstration.

The visual flight rules airport features a 3,818-foot-long runway that’s 75 feet wide, and 100 low lead octane fuel is available at $2.40 per gallon (self-pump), “which is one of the lowest prices around,” Autrey added.

Rides will be offered in a Cessna 180, slated to be flown in by a Bangor pilot.

Additionally, from 9 to 10 a.m., there will be lectures on aircraft topics, and a Federal Aviation Administration safety seminar about mountain flying from 10 a.m. to noon.

“We don’t usually get the FAA to come to western Maine, so this will be great,” Autrey said.

Admission is free for the fly-in event, which is open to the public, and parking is plentiful for aircraft and cars. The event will be held rain or shine. The Bethel Fire Department will run a cookout with hamburgers and hot dogs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. with covered seating.

Recently, the airport runway was expanded and the facility “greatly improved.” T-hangars are currently under construction. Attendees will receive a free commemorative booklet highlighting the runway improvements and the history of the airport.

“This fly-in is a first for us, but we’re going to try to do it every fall because the color in western Maine is absolutely beautiful,” Autrey said.

In conjunction with the fly-in, other weekend attractions include the area’s Fall Festival, the North American Wife Carrying Championships at Sunday River Ski Resort in Newry, and the sixth annual Bethel Antique Show and Sale at Telstar Regional High School on Route 26.

Bethel Regional Airport is located on the North Road just off Route 2 east of Bethel.

For more information about the Fall Foliage Fly-in, call the Bethel town office at 824-2669 or the Bethel Chamber of Commerce at 800-442-5826 or 824-2282 for information on lodging or other area events.

tkarkos@sunjournal.com

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