06/14/2026
Despite having to cancel this event at the end of May due to flooding at our flying field, we successfully held the Outer Banks Festival of Model Aviation yesterday under clear skies and temperatures in the mid-80s.
Flying conditions throughout the day were near-perfect, and those who attended the day's events enjoyed food and excitement as our forth-nine guests participated in flying and learning about model aviation as a family-friendly and educational recreational activity.
Each festival attendee provided at least one non-perishable food item as admission to the event, with these items being collected by Beach Food Pantry director, Elisabeth Silverthorne, to aid local residents in-need.
Nine club members and three family members worked at the event in various roles to make it a safe, rewarding, and enjoyable day for all. Diane Medlen Yanacek and Peter Fynn welcomed, checked-in and socialized with our guests while Virgil Kee directed his efforts to the youngest attendees to explain how an airplane flies and how a radio control aircraft works. Kim M. Lloyd worked tirelessly throughout the day charging flight batteries, while Robert Yanacek photographed the day's activities to provide everyone with good memories to share.
Jim Davis, Richard Boyd, Stephen Yanacek, and Philip Garey performed the demanding task as flight-instructors, supervising our first-time guest fliers.
Thirty-nine of our guests took advantage of the opportunity to try flying a radio control airplane for the first time, under the watchful eyes of one of the club's four flight instructors. All those who flew, including a youngster who was just four years old, flew very well and without incident.
Around noon, attendees were treated to a lunch prepared by Matt and Paul Yanacek, consisting of hamburgers, hot dogs, chips, and beverages. Our food preparation team did an excellent job in ensuring that everyone was well-fed.
Following the day's flying activities, our club conducted a drawing to determine the three guest attendee winners of our no-cost try-to-fly raffle. Unfortunately, none of the winners were present to claim their prize, however, all three will be notified shortly.
The grand prize winner of our raffle will be receiving a 1.2-meter ready-to-fly Apprentice S2 airplane, a one-year membership in the Academy of Model Aeronautics, and membership in our club.
The second and third place winners will also be receiving a slightly-smaller ready-to-fly airplane, along with one-year membership in the Academy of Model Aeronautics, provided they demonstrate their desire to continue in model aviation by applying for membership in our club.
A separate raffle event to determine the winners of a Viper 64mm electric duct-fan jet and a WACO UPF-7 radio control biplane was also conducted. The winners of these two prizes will also receive notification shortly.
Our club wishes to thank everyone who participated in, and made this event so successful. Your donations for admission to the event for the Beach Food Pantry are greatly appreciated and will undoubtedly assist this worthy organization that does so much to help our local residents.
We enjoyed meeting and flying with all of our guests, and we hope that you will fly with us again in the near future. We also wish to recognize the Academy of Model Aeronautics Foundation for their generosity in providing event funding and prize donations.
