Aircraft listed for the Kent State University Airport expo include a B-25 bomber, a Ford Tri-Motor and a Chinook helicopter. The school's Aeronautics & Engineering Expo returns on September 7 for a single day of flying history, engineering demos and STEM exhibits open to the whole community. The event runs from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., with aircraft on static display alongside live drone demonstrations and hands-on robotics exhibits.
The expo, hosted at Kent State University Airport, is put on by Kent State University and will showcase the university's aviation and engineering programs to visitors of all ages. Admission runs $5 per person or a maximum of $20 per family, though on-site parking at $20 per vehicle covers everyone riding along. Aircraft appearances will depend on weather, maintenance and operational considerations.
Scout Troop 177 will kick off the morning with a pancake breakfast from 9 to 11 a.m., and food trucks and other vendors will stay open onsite from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Aircraft on the ground are expected to include the B-25 Mitchell bomber Champaign Gal, a P-51 Mustang, a TBM Avenger, a Canadian Harvard trainer, a Piper M700 Fury, an Ohio State Highway Patrol helicopter and a CH-47 Chinook, according to the article's rundown.
A Century-Old Airfield With Deep Roots
The airport hosting this year's expo is part of Kent State University's aviation training operation.
That legacy is visible in the airport's newer buildings, too. Kent State unveiled its 17,800-square-foot FedEx Aeronautics Academic Center right on the airfield in September 2019, built with $6.5 million in gifts from FedEx Corporation to house classrooms, flight simulators and debriefing rooms, according to Kent State University. During the expo, the university will offer hourly public tours of the center, letting visitors see the training space up close.
The airport's infrastructure will be part of the setting for this year's expo.
Warbirds and a Tin Goose Bring Their Own Histories
The visiting aircraft carry stories that stretch well beyond Northeast Ohio. The B-25J Mitchell bomber Champaign Gal was built in 1944, served 13 years with the U.S. Army Air Forces, later flew as a commercial firefighting airtanker into the late 1980s, and was acquired by Urbana's Champaign Aviation Museum in 2008, per the Champaign Aviation Museum.
Also on hand will be the Liberty Aviation Museum's 1928 Ford Tri-Motor 5-AT, which participated in the nation's first transcontinental air-and-rail passenger service in July 1929 with aviator Amelia Earhart aboard, before Port Clinton's Liberty Aviation Museum acquired it in 2013, according to the Liberty Aviation Museum. Rides on the vintage Tri-Motor cost $100 for adults and $75 for passengers 18 and under, per Cleveland.com's rundown. Airplane rides more broadly are offered on a first-come, first-served basis, running $80 for one person, $110 for two, or $135 for three, with co-pilot seats priced at $200 regardless of age; children 5 and under fly free with an adult, and those under 2 fly free on an adult's lap.
Drones, Robots and a Zero-Emissions Vehicle
A mobile command and control center on display will demonstrate cellular command and control, intelligent flight logic and collision-avoidance systems supporting beyond-visual-line-of-sight drone operations, reflecting Kent State's interest in advanced air mobility.
Engineering demonstrations and STEM exhibits will include a Yimo robot dog, Fanuc industrial robots, virtual reality stations, 3D printing and Kent State's own zero-emissions vehicle, which runs on fuel cell, solar and battery technologies. The MAPS Air Museum will also participate, featuring an A-4 Skyhawk cockpit, a Lycoming aircraft engine and an F-86D Sabre Dog cockpit for visitors to explore. Flight simulator experiences will be available for $20 per 15-minute session.
A charitable element rounds out the day: Props-4-Paws will be accepting monetary donations along with pet food and pet supplies, with merchandise sales benefiting local animal shelters.
Feeding a Regional Pilot and Controller Shortage
Kent State's College of Aeronautics and Engineering operates the largest academic flight fleet in Ohio, with 34 aircraft supporting a program whose enrollment has grown 55 percent since 2010, aimed at addressing commercial pilot shortages, according to Kent State University. The university continues to offer aeronautics education, including Professional Pilot and Air Traffic and Airspace Management.
Kent State also offers air-traffic-control education. The university's aviation students and alumni are part of the region's aviation community.
