St. Louis Regional Airport Hosts Saturday Pancake Breakfast Fly-In to Celebrate Air Race Classic Weekend

By Carmelo Turdo

The 2026 Air Race Classic is set to begin with an early morning launch from St. Louis Regional Airport on Tuesday, June 23, after nearly a week of arrivals and welcoming activities. Forty-five teams will fly the course covering 2400nm and 11 locations throughout the Midwest and southeastern states, terminating on Friday at Mount Vernon Outland Airport. The Aero Experience was on site Friday and Saturday for more arrivals and the youth STEM event featured in our previous post. 

We continue our pre-start coverage of the 2026 Air Race Classic with a look at the Saturday morning pancake breakfast fly-in, sponsored by EAA Chapter 864 and a host of exhibitors. Along with a survey of the fly-in aircraft, we include the departures of the WWII Stearman trainer and a pair of more modern aerobatic types, an Extra 300LT and a Christen Eagle II.    

The Aero Experience thanks everyone who contributed to this weekend's fly-in and other activities in support of the 2026 Air Race Classic at St. Louis Regional Airport. We wish all teams a fun race and safe arrival in Mount Vernon.