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Thread: Why fly-in breakfasts ?

  1. #1
    MickYoumans's Avatar
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    Why fly-in breakfasts ?

    After reading the "Now for something completely different" thread, I have not had any negative issues with EAA'ers being unfriendly, but I certainly don't understand why so many EAA chapters do fly-in breakfasts. How many people are actually going to be able to fly-in for a breakfast? It is too early to have time to pull out your plane and fly there. Our EAA Chapter 172 (near Augusta, Ga.) has our meetings the second Saturday during lunch time. People can actually fly-in from other areas for our meetings and enjoy a good lunch with us. I check the EAA Aviation Calendar of Events on a regular basis looking for places to go and new EAA'ers to meet. All the groups within 150 miles of me do breakfasts instead of lunch except for the EAA chapter at St. Simons. Unfortunately they have their lunches and meetings on Sunday. Since I attend church, I am not able to fly down there either.

    I would love so much to pull out my old Cherokee and fly around to the various EAA chapters within an hour’s flight of KBXG and meet other fellow aviation enthusiasts.

    So...why do they all have fly-in breakfasts? Do they really not want outsiders flying in?

  2. #2

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    Quote Originally Posted by MickYoumans View Post
    After reading the "Now for something completely different" thread, I have not had any negative issues with EAA'ers being unfriendly, but I certainly don't understand why so many EAA chapters do fly-in breakfasts.
    My opinion is that a fly-in breakfast is a 2-3-4 hour event for most involved. It starts at daylight and everyone is finished eating, cleaning up, etc. well before noon. That means they have the remainder of the day to fly more, go home and do chores, etc. Fly-in lunches take a big bite out of the middle of the day, and leave you with a fragment of a morning and a fragment of an afternoon if you have other responsibilities.

    Also, the weather is generally better for fly-in breakfasts. The winds are lighter, the air is cooler, and there are fewer thunderstorms threatening your ability to get home safely.

  3. #3

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    A few years ago the EAA chapter here had a fly-in chili lunch that was very successful. Of course, perfect weather usually helps.

    The pancake breakfast is the best deal going, pancakes are cheap and easy to make and that's what it's all about.

  4. #4
    Hangar10's Avatar
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    I won't claim to know the history of fly-in breakfasts, but the reasons given sound about right. Our chapter holds our regular meeting on the 3rd Monday of the month @ 7:30 in the evening. When the days are long and the weather is nice we get some fly-in traffic. Our pancakes are on the Saturday following the meeting and we get a pretty good turnout even when flying is not an option. When the weather is nice we always get at least a few flying in.

    While not an EAA function, there is an aviation booster club in Ponca City, Oklahoma that puts on an excellent breakfast the first Saturday of each month. The often serve over 400 people and occasionally have as many as 100 airplanes on the ramp.

  5. #5
    Barnstorm's Avatar
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    Thermals. Light fixed wings are much more relaxing to fly in calm cooler air.One reason I like rotorcraft, a very, very high tolerance for turbulence..
    "The exhilaration of flying is too keen, the pleasure too great, for it to be neglected as a sport"— Orville Wright
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  6. #6
    PaulDow's Avatar
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    Chapter 1310 tries to have an eating event almost every month. Breakfasts are good because the cost of materials is still relatively low. We coordinate with the area FAA Safety Team manager, and have a seminar twice a year with a burger and hot dog cookout following. We once tried having the meal before the seminar, but we had a hard time breaking up the group to start the seminar. Our biggest event is a corn roast and cookout in August. (We actually boil the corn, but we got complaints that a corn boil sounds like a foot disease.) We tried a spaghetti lunch twice, and I thought they worked out well, but the other cooking members didn't seem to like it.

  7. #7
    rosiejerryrosie's Avatar
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    Soup and sandwiches are inexpensive, easy and can be eaten any time during the day......
    Cheers,
    Jerry

    NC22375
    65LA out of 07N Pennsylvania

  8. #8
    Steve Buss's Avatar
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    Mick,

    I would agreee that the morning weather likely contributed to the popularity of the fly-in breakfast and as pointed out earlier, you have the remainder of the day for other activites. Or maybe it was Wilbur and Orville who liked pancakes more than sandwiches. This one may be lost to aviation foklore.

    But one thought did occur while reading the thread. Has any chapter (or chapters) teamed up with another chapter in the area to hold two events on the same day, one chapter hosts a fly-in breakfast and the other a lunch. Just wondering.

    Steve

  9. #9
    MickYoumans's Avatar
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    That would be a lot of fun to fly-OUT to a fly-IN. . I saw on the EAA calendar where the Vidalia Ga chapter was having a fly-OUT this weekend. I think that would really be fun to get a group of planes together to fly to another location.

  10. #10
    Barnstorm's Avatar
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    EAA Chapter 174 has a fly-out volunteer that chooses a local event or destination and works out a time good for everyone to meet up.
    "The exhilaration of flying is too keen, the pleasure too great, for it to be neglected as a sport"— Orville Wright
    Tim OConnor, CFI, Commercial Pilot Rotorcraft, Sport Pilot Fixed Wing, FAA Advanced Ground Instructor:..
    You CAN Afford to FLY ! --> http://www.YouCanAffordToBeAPilot.com

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