DARKE COUNTY, Ohio — Clear skies and mild weather drew a large crowd to Darke County Airport for its sixth annual Fly-In and Cruise-In on Saturday.
Aircraft and classic vehicles filled the airport grounds throughout the event. A CareFlight medical helicopter and a large aircraft from the Champaign Aviation Museum in Urbana were among the featured attractions.
“We had an absolutely great turnout and great weather,” Darke County Airport Manager Scott Naas said. “We couldn’t ask for anything better.”
Naas said organizing the annual event requires nearly a year of preparation.
“It’s a year’s worth of planning,” he said. “It can be a little stressful.”
Other fly-ins held in the region Saturday affected the number of airplanes arriving at any one time, but Naas hoped aircraft would continue rotating through the airport during the event.
“Any plane is a good plane,” he said.
Planning for the seventh annual event will begin within the next several weeks. Naas said the 2027 Fly-In and Cruise-In is expected to be held later in the year, likely during the first weekend in October.
Darke County Commissioner Matt Aultman also praised the turnout and the airport’s continued growth.
“You can’t beat the weather,” Aultman said. “It’s nice and clear, the crowd is huge, and the turnout has been great for all the airplanes that showed up.”
Aultman credited the Friends of the Darke County Airport, local families, businesses, and Naas for supporting the airport and helping the event grow each year.
“We have a great support group now with the Friends of the Airport,” Aultman said. “The Poeppelmans, Jacob Eiting and his family, and others who are part of that group have been so supportive.”
The event also gave visitors an opportunity to see the airport’s new community hangar and other improvements. The airport removed the former terminal and now features a new terminal and two recently constructed hangars.
Aultman said the community hangar could also host future educational events involving children, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and other organizations.
He said the airport’s redevelopment began gaining momentum in 2018 following discussions with the Federal Aviation Administration. Former commissioners Mike Rhoades and Mike Stegall helped advance the early plans, with commissioners Marshall Combs and Aaron Flatter continuing that work.
“They say if you build it, they will come, and that’s what we’re doing,” Aultman said.
The improvements have contributed to increased airport traffic and fuel sales. Aultman said five or six airplanes flew into the airport during Eldora Speedway’s World 100 weekend, while several additional aircraft stopped to purchase fuel.
“We’ve quadrupled our fuel sales in the last four years,” Aultman said. “That shows the usage of the airport is way up.”
Although Midmark Corp. was historically the airport’s largest user, Aultman said the facility now serves a wide variety of visitors and businesses.
Insurance companies fly employees into the county for actuarial work, businesses receive parts through the airport, and visitors use the facility while attending events at Eldora Speedway. Some pilots fly into Darke County to eat at local restaurants, sightsee, or use the airport’s improved runway.
Military aircraft and flight schools also use the airport because of its runway and other amenities, Aultman said.
The airport provides a courtesy car for visiting pilots and makes additional vehicles available during busy weekends. Aultman said one pilot regularly flies from southern Ohio, uses the courtesy car to buy tractor parts from a Darke County business, then returns home.
Such visits help generate revenue for the county, he said.
“If they’re coming from Clinton County to shop in Darke County, the sales tax stays here,” Aultman said. “The food purchases and all that other activity stay here. The more, the merrier. Come to Darke County, and we’ll take care of you.”
