HOULTON, Maine — The fourth annual Houlton International Wings and Wheels festival takes off Saturday, July 23, 2016 at the town’s airport.
Throughout the day, vendors will be selling a variety of items, including handmade crafts to an assortment of concessions. In 2014, about 2,500 people came out for the event. Last year, inclement weather resulted in fewer attendees and a number of events, including the air show and skydiving, had to be cancelled.
Jane Torres, executive director of the Greater Houlton Chamber of Commerce, said there were some changes to this year’s event. A new acrobatic air show vendor — Dan Marcotte — was chosen who can perform at a lower altitude, should cloud cover be a problem again this year.
Jim Parker Airshows performed two years ago in Houlton. Torres said Parker was unable to come to Houlton this year because his permit to do aerial acrobatic shows had expired and he had not been able to find a place to get recertified.
“We were very lucky to nab Dan Marcotte,” Torres said. “Dan is based in Vermont and while his show is a bit more expensive, it is also a much bigger and more exciting production.”
The first airshow takes off 10:30 a.m. the first airshow, with a second show planned at 1 p.m. and a third show at 2:30 p.m.
Since private planes like to arrive early, organizers will be offering a breakfast buffet from 7-10 a.m. The buffet is open to anyone in the community who would like to join the pilots. After breakfast, the opening ceremonies begin at 10 a.m. with a color guard and skydiving exhibition.
A precision air drop competition will be held with pilots trying to drop a bag of flour on a bullseye painted on the runway at 11 a.m. A candy drop takes place near the end of the event at 3 p.m. for local children.
Vacationland Skydiving will once again offer opportunities for tandem jumps out of an airplane. The event was so popular last year, that a second day of jumps set for Sunday has been added this year. Bi-plane rides for those interested in flying in an open-cockpit style plane are also available.
Jerry Wilcox will once again bring an airplane engine from a Grumman Avenger bomber plane. Wilcox’s engine was a popular attraction last year, as people got to feel the power of the engine rumbling throughout the airport.
Another popular attraction returning is John Gattis of the Border Patrol with his narcotics-sniffing dog Zoley, who will do a drug detection demonstration. A group of World War II re-enactors, who will set up authentic camps, complete with tanks, trucks and weapons displays.
The idea for a “fly-in” formed when Torres, former Town Manager Eugene Conlogue and former Economic and Community Development Director Lori Weston were brainstorming new ideas to draw people to the town.
