Pantagraph.com | News | Air show hosted in Twin Cities

Note: All views and opinions expressed in reader comments are solely those of the individual submitting the comment, and not those of the Pantagraph or its staff.

To: Taxpayer... wrote on Sep 4, 2007 7:23 AM:

" You are quite right. This is but ONE thing that Hamilton actually HAS NOT messed up!!!! "

John wrote on Sep 3, 2007 11:47 PM:

" I'm a volunteer at Prairie Aviation Museum and I'm very proud of what we, as volunteers, have been able to do in a short period of time. Let me clear the air of the opinions made short of fact. This event is not an Air Show or intended to be one, Bloomington and CIRA, are not sponsoring our event but we at the museum are. This event is and always has beed headlined as a fundraiser. The museum is a non-for-profit, 501 (c) 3, organization and is not supported by any tax dollars. The museum can't give you an Air Show, Air Shows are managed by the airshow board and within guidelines of the host airport, FAA and TSA Homeland Security. The article may have had a play on words that once was here in Bloomington, but to have you distort the facts and blame this event on the city and CIRA is unfair. Prairie Aviation Museum needs the support of our community more than ever, you can makr a difference by helping all the museum volunteers be successful. "

mickwd1-volunteer wrote on Sep 3, 2007 11:10 PM:

" PART 2 Rome was not built in a day. Successful airshows, such as all you naysayers say you prefer, are not either. Aircraft are not able to take-off without a runway. Neither are successful airshows born overnight. So, give us a day. Our effort is to welcome B-N back to A Day At The Airport, to once again introduce them to the avaition community and the excitment that comes with roar and thunder of airplanes and the beauty and the history those airplanes possess, and the pilots' willingness to share that excitement with the community. Bloomington-Normal's Day At The Airport will be a success any way it is measured, even against those who oppose our effort. What a complete success if our support included all of you who find our effort hopeless. "

mickwd1-volunteer wrote on Sep 3, 2007 10:59 PM:

" Congrats AND kudos to all of you who self-label yourselves as B-N supporters. While you pen, what may be in your own mind, your concerns for our community's best interests, and the current effort of reestablishingshallow sense of progress and what a success is, in all reality, detract in every way from your deluded intention. FYI - This is not an event sponsored nor funded by the city, nor is it an event that CIRA is responsible for. Local government is not affiliated with our effort. Those responsible for the demise of earlier successful airshows are no longer affiliated with the current efforts to reestablish future successful airshows. Efforts for A Day At The Airport are strictly from volunteers who hold a deep affection for avaition, our community, and the Prairie Avaiation Museum's long term presence in the community. "

A Day At The Airport wrote on Sep 3, 2007 9:56 PM:

" All you nay sayers speak of are the events that our area has lost. The aviation museum with the learning center may just be the next one to go. The museum volunteers have created this event as a way to try to keep this organization in our area and to educate the public about our nation's aviation history. The city and the airport are not sponsoring this event. It is a way that the volunteers are trying to save the museum with a fundraiser. This event is no more than an expanded Open Cockpit Day as the museum has had in the past. You can join the museum volunteers to make this a great fundraiser event or you can continue to make negative comments that will only make you happy. If this organization becomes a way of the past, you can put them on your list for the next time that you wish to vent. "

MattG wrote on Sep 3, 2007 8:53 PM:

" Awesome! I can't wait to Volunteer at this event! It has been awesome to plan it and Market our campaign for the "Day at The Airport" I am glad I suggested doing the labor day parade and executing that function. I have enjoyed planning this event and look foward to the execution of the FUNDRAISER!!! It's a donation not an admission! get it right! "

M.Greenlee wrote on Sep 3, 2007 8:43 PM:

" Looking Forward to volunteering at the event. Planning it has been a blast. Kudos to all of the people helping to plan the event, you know who you are! see ya at wednesdays meeting. "

SAM wrote on Sep 3, 2007 6:57 PM:

" 1) Ask the writer of the article to re-name it. 2) Re-read article. 3) You can't fire volunteers. I commend these people for their hard work and hope the "A Day at the Airport" FUNDRAISER is a huge sucess!!! "

What?? wrote on Sep 3, 2007 5:45 PM:

" All I've read here is a bunch of opinion spouted as fact. The only fact stated here is Bloomington does not have an "Air Show". Hey gang; complaining about it is not fixing the situation. Join what ever organization you are complaining about and MAKE A DIFFERANCE! Remember, if you are not part of the solution then you are definitely part of the problem. I was at the Parade today and received one of the flyers, at the top it states “A Prairie Aviation Museum Fund Raiser”; nothing in it about the city or the airport authority. Also, seems they are calling it an “Event”, not an Air Show but really… SO WHAT! It’s a start. The only real question is what are you going to do to help them? "

A Day At The Airport wrote on Sep 3, 2007 5:38 PM:

" From reading the article I can see that this is an event that is being held by the Prairie Aviation Museum and not the city. As far as I know the museum is run by volunteers, can't fire them for trying to do something that everyone here thinks is such a horrible idea. Want to know why we don't have an airshow here people, it's really no that hard to figure out, it's a safety issue. Everywhere around our airport is flooded with homes, and those people are the ones that don't want the planes flying over. I say way to go to the people who are organizing this event, have some kids that are excited to go already. As for all the cynical people, stay at home and post some more negative remarks on the Pantagraph about community events. "

Taxpayer wrote on Sep 3, 2007 4:02 PM:

" Uh, I don't think that the city manager has anything to do with airport operations or the operation of the Prairie Aviation Museum. "

M.Greenlee wrote on Sep 3, 2007 3:52 PM:

" Good Job Prairie Aviation Museum!! Looking foward to seeing our community get together with a focus on aviation! Keep the dream alive! "

MG PAM Member wrote on Sep 3, 2007 3:31 PM:

" The Prairie Aviation Museum is not funded by the city of bloomington, nor the state of Illinois. We are a not for profit organization a 501 (c) 3 and we are funded by the efforts of members volunteers and members of our community (visitors). It is an event of static display aircraft, which means nothing will be flying, maybe one day we hope to grow this event out and have an airshow. The Members of PAM and the volunteers want to get the community together while bringing with it a focus on aviation & space. "

To: Wow wrote on Sep 3, 2007 1:54 PM:

" Your $5 admission will be missed. "

oh my god!! wrote on Sep 3, 2007 12:24 PM:

" Just when this town couldn't get any more boring they book this garbage. Give me a break. I'll bet if they took a poll to find out the most boring towns in america this town would be in the top 10. "

To: WOW wrote on Sep 3, 2007 12:11 PM:

" This is the first poster. I said fire them tomorrow. If this is the best someone can come up with they should be fired. The city leadership keeps talking about growth and opportunity. How long have we given the city manager? How long are we going to give the city manager? If the best this city can get is an exhibition of aircraft and then attempt to call it an air show we have serious problems! "

? wrote on Sep 3, 2007 11:33 AM:

" is the CIRA unable to deal with incoming and outgoing flights during the airshow. are the people in the tower that undertrained? the peoria and springfield airshows were always able to deal with the airshow and the commercial flights. if CIRA is so unable to deal with this it would seem best to use another airport in the first place. "

Wow wrote on Sep 3, 2007 11:03 AM:

" I agree with Wow Completely. That's why I haven't set foot inside the Coliseum and don't plan to. That's why I never went to another Air Show in Bloomington after it took three hours to get out of the parking lot last time I went. I vote with my money, especially after elected officials have gone behind my back and done whatever they wanted in spite of what the majority voted for. "

wow wrote on Sep 3, 2007 9:28 AM:

" Why does everyone have to be so cynical? Hell, the first poster says "fire them tomorrow"? Why? Are any of you loosing money on this deal? No, your not. You just want something to complain about. If you don't like the idea, then don't go to the event. "

not anymore wrote on Sep 3, 2007 9:26 AM:

" went to the bloomington air show each year, it always got bigger and better. this year i went to the peoria want to be air show. that was one of the worse air shows i have been to in 40 years. the ol air shows at rantoul air bace in the 60's was much better than peoria's. now the city of bloomington was expanded around the cira and most military air (blue angles, thunderbirds) will not proform over homes and business that have people in them with in a measured distance of the air port. yeas bloomington gold, the air show have gone from here and will stay gone because of big dollar divelopers, elected politictions, the lack of leadership from the people running the lost shows in this area. bloomington, normal, mclean county has become one of the most boring areas in the state. "

reader wrote on Sep 3, 2007 9:13 AM:

" An air show,HA.Thats like calling it an auto race with all the cars parked on the side of the road. "

Great wrote on Sep 3, 2007 8:48 AM:

" BN loses a fantastic air show that was a money maker and the people wanted, then builds a coliseum that is a money loser and the people did not want. "

Pathetic wrote on Sep 3, 2007 8:47 AM:

" All this article is is free advertising for what should be called "Land Show". What a joke. "We Might" have a few bi-planes flying around during the day ..... hello, you're talking 3 weeks away, you'd better make a decision. "

COB wrote on Sep 3, 2007 8:40 AM:

" The air show was pushed out of our community by the airport managers who fought everything because it was "inconvenient" for other flight operations. Although the chief airport manager from that time is now gone, current airport management has done little to lure it back. Although initially successful in Peoria, attendance has waned there. The Corvette show outgrew the facilities here and wanted paved surfaces, so it went to the state fairgrounds in Springfield. It was not successful there, so new owners took it to a golf dourse and exhibition center in the Chicago suburb of St. Charles IL, and it is under contract there for another year or two. It has never been as successful as it was here in Bloomington. "

Wrong wrote on Sep 3, 2007 8:27 AM:

" It should be called a ground show put on by air heads! "

Henry wrote on Sep 3, 2007 8:23 AM:

" You can thank former mayor Jessee (not so) Smart for the air show going to p-town. He should have gone with it. "

Harrruuummmpppfffff.... wrote on Sep 3, 2007 8:17 AM:

" Why, we cannot possibly have an "air show" at our fair airport. We're much to busy and important to take time away from our incredible rapid growth for something so low and inconvenient as this. Why just the other day, ol' Beauford was heard to say that we're just a stone's throw away from becoming an International airport. Just like O'Hare actually. We're so affluent and pretentious, we don't have time for that drivel. We gave away our previous air show to Peoria in an attempt to sabatoge them. Look how smart we were!!!! "

Decline wrote on Sep 3, 2007 7:59 AM:

" No Air Show. No Corvette Show. Way to go Mayor, City Manager et al. Maybe someday our banal "leadership" will reach their ultimate goal : a town where citizens are frozen at stoplights for eternity while on their way to church or to pay taxes. "

Sad Day wrote on Sep 3, 2007 7:56 AM:

" Bloomington has done everything in it's power to strangle the town. Sure, they have given the people, more or less, what the people wanted, but that came at the cost of what is best. The council has made it so that people are not interested in Bloomington other than as a shopping center for the small towns around it, and even then it is losing out to Normal. People need to face the facts. What they want as residents is not what others want from the town. "

Former resident wrote on Sep 3, 2007 7:15 AM:

" This is just so sad. The "Prairie Air Show" in it's heday had some of the best acts/displays in the country. Bloomington has a long history of losing great events. It is the Prairie Aviation Museum who is the big loser in this deal, not to mention all the airshow fans! I'm looking at framed pictures of the "Blue Angels" from 2000 hanging in my home right now with fond memories. "

John wrote on Sep 3, 2007 2:44 AM:

" Sounds like the air in this show is in the heads of the organizers "

Pride of Prairie in Peoria wrote on Sep 3, 2007 12:43 AM:

" That's called "We blew it when we had a real air show. Peoria does it better so it stays in Peoria." Perhaps on display can be photographs of real airplanes flying. "

Fyi wrote on Sep 3, 2007 12:20 AM:

" No air show if there's no air show. Can't this town hold down any events? "

What wrote on Sep 2, 2007 10:29 PM:

" an airshow on the ground. Who came up with this grand idea. Fire them tomorrow! "

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