Back into the Skies | Palatka Daily News, Palatka, Florida

Officials hope company can take event to new heights

Putnam residents and visitors attend the 2020 Fly-in and Classic Car Show, one of the last large events locally before the COVID pandemic began.
A child sits in the cockpit of a vintage plane during the 2020 Fly-in and Classic Car Show.
One of the vintage planes at the 2020 Fly-in and Classic Car Show prepares to take off from the Palatka Municipal Airport.
Positively Putnam FL

After a year on ice, officials hope the Palatka Fly-in and Classic Car Show can continue to thrive with a private company organizing the event in 2022.

The Palatka City Commission voted unanimously Thursday to give the Palatka Airport Advisory Board the authority to allow Ormond Beach-based Tomlinson Aviation to run the event at Palatka Municipal Airport.

Starting with a crowd of about 700 people in 2011, the January 2020 fly-in garnered about 8,000 people, according to organizers. The fly-in was one of Putnam County’s few pre-COVID events in 2020 and was canceled in 2021 due to the pandemic.

Palatka Airport Advisory Board members said last year the event had become too large for a small group of board members and volunteers to host.

Board Chairman Jud Neufeld said the fly-in was donation-only and its growth made hosting the event a logistical challenge. Neufeld felt a new group could carry on the board’s success because the airport is an asset and the fly-in is an advertisement for the city and its aviation community.

“The local community receives the benefits of such an event and we’re happy to support that,” Neufeld said. “It’s a lot of work the way we did it. There was no charge to get in and that’s very hard to do these days.”

Airport Manager John Youell said pursuing the fly-in as a capital venture is the best way to continue growing the event. Youell said Tomlinson Aviation has supported the previous fly-ins and is a familiar name with aviation shows.

“In the past, the goal was to break even – and we did – and to grow the event,” Youell said. “Now, it’s gotten big enough. I think it’s a good thing.”

Board member John Browning said the pivot to Tomlinson Aviation is promising. He said the board members can assist with future fly-ins, but the switch is to take the event to the next level.

“I think it’s great. It’s much bigger than it was when we started,” Browning said. “The advisory board will continue to oversee things as we move forward. The more people involved with the airport, the better we’ll be.”