The roaring of airplane engines, beating of helicopter propellers, giggling of little kids and revving of a monster truck engine can all be heard at the air show on Saturday.

The 11th Coles County Airshow will take place at noon Saturday at the Coles County Airport. 

Airport Manager Andrew Fearn said at least six groups will perform in almost an hour-and-a-half-long show. 

The show will feature Susan Dacy and her plane Big Red, Patrick McAlee and the Blue Demon Pitts Special, and the “World’s Smallest Airport.” A F8F Bearcat and a 300 mph jet van will also perform.

“Most of the acts are new; we have not had them before,” Fearn said.

Fearn said they have never had a F8F Bearcat, a 300 mph Jet Van or Patrick McAlee and the Blue Demon Pitts Special in the show before. 

Susan Dacy has performed in the show before but has not appeared in a few years, and it has been almost 18 years since the “World’s Smallest Airport” has performed.

Display planes and vehicles will be available to tour during the show. 

Dacy said she is happy to be able to perform in Coles County again because she gets to meet a lot of people.

“Something I always keep in my mind about this show, it’s almost like the whole town comes out,” Dacy said.

Dacy said she had a great experience at the show the last time she performed in Coles County.

“It’s kind of, in a way, like coming to see old friends again,” Dacy said. 

Fearn said the performers will also talk to audience members after the show to provide more information. He added that they want the show to be educational as well as exciting.

“For me, I’m a big airplane fan,” Fearn said. “I just like planes—just seeing things flying—being around it is all exciting for me.”

Fearn said some of the display planes will range from military vehicles, emergency helicopters, a C47 Chinook helicopter and a UH-60 Blackhawk.

Other activities will include a tractor pull, bounce houses, food and merchandise vendors.

Community members can also take a ride in a monster truck for a small fee.

Fearn said the performers will fly early Saturday morning to wake people up and remind them of the show, but will not be practicing much. 

Dacy said she will be taking her performance back to old fashioned aerobatics. 

“It highlights barnstorming aerobatics, which is a term younger generations are not familiar with,” Dacy said. “It goes back to the grassroots of aviation where the pilots would fly across the country, land in a farm field near a town, and give rides throughout the day.”

Fearn said he wants people to know to be there by noon to see the show. He added that the show will not last long.

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“These people are athletes to be able to withstand what they do,” Fearn said. 

Fearn said they are doing extreme and intense maneuvers, and they have to have time to recover. 

“What these people are doing, you get in your car and drive to Indianapolis, it’s a couple of hours, no big deal,” Fearn said. “Put 500 curves between here and Indianapolis and run it at 200 mph.”

Fearn said the show is also limited by rules about airspace use.

Fearn said in order to have a show like the Coles County Airshow, the airport has to submit forms for a waivered airspace. These forms are needed for these pilots to legally perform their stunts. 

Fearn said the gates will open at 11 a.m. and handicapped parking is limited. 

The airport will be able to accommodate 5,000 cars, and there will be parking crews to help with traffic. 

Seating will not be provided for the show, but people are welcome to bring lawn chairs and blankets to sit on. They will also be allowed to bring a cooler with food and drinks, though there will be vendors at the airshow.

Pets, alcohol and smoking will be prohibited during the event. 

Fearn said the rain date for the event will be Sunday.

He said the show should be a great family event and children can learn a lot. 

“We want to educate people about aviation and these performers are usually tickled to death to talk about airplanes,” Fearn said. 

Samantha McDaniel can 

be reached at 581-2812 

or slmcdaniel@eiu.edu.