8/21/2019 Municipal Airport to host Fly Iowa this weekend - News - Boone News-Republican - Boone, IA

Municipal Airport to host Fly Iowa this weekend

By Michael Murrell General Intern
Posted Aug 2, 2019 at 12:01 AM
Fly Iowa is coming to the Municipal Airport Saturday, Aug 3 after a 25-year
hiatus from the City of Boone.

Fly Iowa is a program of the Iowa Aviation Promotion Group that travels across
the state and is hosted by local and regional airports.

“We’re a not-for-profit that takes on various projects that promote general

aviation in the state and the air show is one of them,” said Executive Director of
Iowa Aviation Promotion Group Chuck McDonald.

According to McDonald, the original Fly Iowa started in 1991 and last made an
appearance in Boone in 1994.

“It’s different than lots of airshow in that it is free,” said McDonald. “There is no
admission costs so that everybody that comes gets an afternoon entertainment or
a day’s entertainment for no admission costs.”

According to Joe Pundzak, Chairman of the Boone Municipal Airport

Commission, the Airport Commission first started talking to Chuck McDonald
early in the summer of 2018. Later they asked the Chamber of Commerce to
partner with them making it a three-way partnership to put on the event.

“The Airport Commission has been heavily involved along the way, specifically
Joe Pundzak who chairs the commission,” said Executive Director of the Boone
County Chamber of Commerce Kurt Phillips. “He is the head of that five
member commission. We’ve had a lot of people at the table to try and pull this
thing off.”

According to Phillips, the Chamber of Commerce was eager to jump in and

partner in the project of bringing Fly Iowa to Boone.

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8/21/2019 Municipal Airport to host Fly Iowa this weekend - News - Boone News-Republican - Boone, IA

“Well it’s kind of our role,” said Phillips. “In the last few years we’ve always tried
to, if one is available, embrace one activity, maybe it is an annual activity. So last
year was RAGBRAI, the year before that was RVTV. When it is well thought
out and well planned it is a heck of a lot of fun for the community and a lot of
times it brings a lot of commerce to the area.”

The event planning process has been underway for over a year to bring the event
to Boone.

“Yes there is a lot of planning,” said McDonald. “Usually there is a year-long lead-
in to doing the event. You start in the summer the year before and get a
community that wants to have a community event that just happens to take place
at the airport. That’s the way we describe Fly Iowa.”

The Chamber of Commerce has put a lot into planning the event including a
breakfast starting at seven in the morning on Saturday. The breakfast is just $6
for adults and $4 for kids.

“Number one is it is a fun event and the airport is one of the key economic
engines for not only the city but the county,” said Pundzak. “In doing this, by
bringing attention to the city, by inviting people to attend this event what we are
doing is saying ‘hey look at us, this is something worth valuing’, I’m talking about
the airport but also look at Boone.”

McDonald is really hopeful that everyone will come out for the event.

“They are seeing world class entertainment in their home town for free. That’s
why they should come out,” said McDonald. “They’re fun. They’re
entertainment. I’m a pilot myself, I’ve owned an airplane. You see some of the
best pilots doing some very remarkable routines in their performances. So that is
the fun of it really. To see someone do a really crackerjack job and entertain the
crowd.”

The forecast for Saturday is currently sunny with no rain which is welcome news
for Kurt Phillips as their year of planning comes to a close.

“We want everything to go off without a hitch. You always want it to go off
without a hitch, we are trying very hard to cover every single detail. Obviously
you want it to be a safe event, you want good weather and ultimately we’d like to

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8/21/2019 Municipal Airport to host Fly Iowa this weekend - News - Boone News-Republican - Boone, IA

see several thousand people out there.”

The Fly Iowa event is currently scheduled to go from 7 a.m. until 3 p.m. with the
Airshow starting at noon. For more information you can visit
www.visitboonecounty.comor email the Chamber of Commerce at
office@booneiowa.us.

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