AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2019 - 52

F R E D E R I C K
MARYLAND

BIRTHDAY PARTIES ARE THE BEST.

WE'RE CELEBRATING AOPA'S
EIGHTIETH WITH A WEEKEND YOU WON'T WANT TO MISS.
THE KICKOFF FLY-IN OF THE SEASON takes place at the headquarters of your association. AOPA is situated on the ramp
at Frederick Municipal Airport (FDK) in Maryland, just
a short drive from the nation's capital, historic Civil War
battlefields, wine country, and the famous Chesapeake Bay
and Baltimore Harbor. There's a lot happening at Frederick
Friday, May 10, and Saturday, May 11, so we're suggesting
you make a weekend out of our birthday. There's so much
to keep you busy that you'll discover why the DMV (that's
District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia) is one of the
most-visited destinations in the country.
Let's start with Frederick. AOPA began as a big idea outside Philadelphia (also just a little more than an hour away
and an easy GA flight) but eventually settled on Frederick
as its base. Frederick is located within close proximity to
the nation's capital (protecting GA rights is a number one
priority for your association), and the airport in Maryland's
second-largest city has a mix of aircraft from gyrocopters to
jets. Frederick also is where the author of The Star-Spangled
Banner, Francis Scott Key, is buried. Its historic downtown
is vibrant, and the restaurants are epic-Bryan Voltaggio of
Top Chef fame has two restaurants in his hometown.
For the fly-in, we're going all out with educational seminars, workshops, parties, meet and greets, displays, and
tours. Free seminars and paid ground school workshops
will be offered both Friday and Saturday; come for one day
or mix it up with two. AOPA President Mark Baker and all
senior staff will be on hand to welcome you to headquarters; a Pilot Town Hall will be presented both mornings.
Tour AOPA headquarters, including the newly created

52 | AOPA PILOT April 2019

COURTESY OF VISIT FREDERICK

FREDERICK IS LOCATED WITHIN
CLOSE PROXIMITY TO THE NATION'S
CAPITAL (PROTECTING GA RIGHTS IS
A NUMBER ONE PRIORITY FOR YOUR
ASSOCIATION), AND THE AIRPORT
IN MARYLAND'S SECOND-LARGEST
CITY HAS A MIX OF AIRCRAFT FROM
GYROCOPTERS TO JETS.

association museum. There will be events up and down the
airport grounds, with aircraft, food trucks, displays, exhibitors, a short takeoff and landing (STOL) invitational, a night
drone show, Flightline Cookout, C-47 flyover, World War
II reenactment parachute jumps, and so much more on
the field.
If you'd like to spend the weekend in the area after the
Frederick fly-in, drive down to Joint Base Andrews for the
nation's capital airshow. Enterprise, Hertz, and others will
be ready to assist.
Please fly in if you can. A 5,200-foot runway and wellmaintained taxiways are open and available all weekend
(Runway 30/12 is closed for the event), and beginning
Thursday, AOPA employees and volunteers will be available
to help get your aircraft parked. You can even camp with your
aircraft if you'd like. Notams and airport information will be
available on the website (www.aopa.org/fly-ins/fdk).
Grab a burger and a beer and watch the STOL invitational Friday night, then enjoy dinner in town Saturday
night. "We really enjoy each event we've hosted for the past
five years and look forward to creating new experiences to
commemorate such a monumental milestone," said Chris
Eads, AOPA senior director of outreach and events. "And we
look forward to all our members, along with the next generation of pilots, joining us during this exciting time. This will
be another fly-in season to remember."

http://www.aopa.org/fly-ins/fdk

AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2019