Lancaster Airport has been hosting the Lancaster Airport Community Days and Air Show for over 20 years, and this year our family visited for the first time! I wasn’t sure what to expect, other than what we read about the event: check out planes close up, talk to pilots and even ride some planes.
The Lancaster Airport Community Days was A LOT more than we were expecting. It wouldn’t be hard to spend all day at the event, learning everything you possibly could about airplanes and helicopters. Here is some of what you can experience:
- Looked at numerous planes close up.
- Walked through a HUGE helicopter.
- Saw parachute jumpers leap from an airplane overhead.
- Watch a biplane do loops and acrobats and fly upside down in the air for about 10-15 minutes straight (if you don’t believe me, check out this Instagram video!).
- Try a FREE sample of Turkey Hill Ice Cream.
- Talk to pilots and even airplane designers.
- Learn about the army and military with hands-on exhibits.
- Experience barometric science experiments, explaining and showing how changes in air pressure create clouds.
- Try on a parachute.
- Kids can participate in a short scavenger hunt to “earn their wings”. A small gift they receive when they leave.
For a fee, you can also . . .
- Ride in a HUGE airplane.
- Walk through the airplane that the parachute jumpers jumped out of.
- Let your kids enjoy numerous bounce houses (about $1/ride or $10/wristband).
- Enjoy multiple Lancaster County food trucks or a meal at Florentino’s Restaurant.
The pilot of this plane was so friendly and eager to answer any questions. He flew here to Lancaster Airport in his P60 airplane, which we later saw fly at over 400 miles per hour. He told us it took him 14 minutes to fly here from Atlantic City! Whoa, that’s crazy!
We made this 2 minute video to show you some of the highlights of the day!
Admission is FREE to the show, however there is a $5 fee for parking. The event is open from about 9am – 6pm on both Saturday and Sunday, with the air show running from about 12noon to 2pm. Expect to wait in traffic to enter and leave the show, however please do not skip the air show. It is incredible!
Please note that you will only have access to the airport from Lititz Pike. The road will be closed from the other direction, because it is taken down to one lane. You also can only exit in one direction and will not be able to exit onto Lititz Pike.
The Lancaster Airport Community Air Show is usually the last Saturday and Sunday in August. You can find more details about the event here.
Enjoy the air show and these extra pictures showing things we did not include in the video!
