EAA Chapter 864 Breakfast Fly-In Attracts a Variety of Aircraft, Raises Funds for Aviation Scholarships

By Carmelo Turdo

EAA Chapter 864 held their Breakfast Fly-In Saturday at St. Louis Regional Airport. The event attracted a variety of aircraft from around the area, from a 1920s design Pietenpol Air Camper to Beechcraft V-Tail Bonanzas, Cessnas, Pipers and even an experimental Dyke Delta that looked like a stingray in Thunderbird colors. Visitors of all ages, from crusty pilots to toddlers, exhibited a fascination of flight that transcends the generations and continues to feed the growth of general aviation in the St. Louis region. The weather was perfect, and the food was great too!

The Aero Experience coverage begins with a gathering of EAA Chapter 864 members greeting guests and providing a great breakfast on the patio outside of the Piston Aviation facility. The very reasonable proceeds will go to funding the chapter's aviation scholarships. EAA also provides significant scholarship opportunities, and we met two recipients during our visit. Kyra Gallagher of O'Fallon, IL, recently received the Ray Aviation Scholarship, along with chapter matching scholarship funds, for her flight training at Murray Air in Greenville, IL. Adam Elik, of Godfrey, IL, also received EAA Chapter 864 scholarship funds for his flight training. Events like this have already made a significant difference in their lives, so we encourage our Midwest Aviation community to support EAA chapter fly-ins and other fund-raising events.

Aircraft arrived throughout the morning hours, spreading a colorful palette across the apron. As mentioned above, the most unique aircraft of the day was the Dyke Delta flown in from the Springfield, IL area. Designed by John Dyke in the early 1960s as a plans-built, experimental aircraft, the Dyke Delta has a unique 1+3 seating configuration in a stingray-shaped airfoil fuselage. The original design contained folding wings and landing gear suitable for being towed behind a car. The construction process takes thousands of hours and involves making the tools and jigs necessary for completing the aircraft. About 50 have been built over the decades since the debut of the design at the 1966 EAA Fly-In, and it definitely makes an impression whenever it arrives at your airport.

Here we include a survey of the aircraft as they arrive and depart throughout the morning:

The Aero Experience thanks EAA Chapter 864, Piston Aviation and everyone who flew in and attended Saturday's event. The chapter meets every second Thursday at the airport's administration building.