Volunteers needed for fly-in!
Photo courtesy of T-O Engineers The Shoshone County Airport in Smelterville looking west.
Come volunteer your time and keep your eyes to the sky’s this coming memorial day weekend!
On May 27-28 there is a scheduled fly-in/drive-in event at Shoshone County Airport.
The event was the brainchild of airport director Richard Abers who has been working behind the scenes, as well as in the public eye, to make the airport a business and tourism hub for the Silver Valley.
Despite this first-of-its-kind event, the fly-in has not yet been able to get the necessary amount of volunteers to help.
“I’m not sure I can open the doors if we aren’t staffed enough,” Abers said.
The reasoning that proper staffing is so vital comes down to Federal Aviation Administration regulations on safety.
“We need to have people on the radio and watching the runways, especially with a large amount of people being around,” Abers said. “Otherwise it becomes dangerous for both pilots and spectators.”
Abers is looking to get around 30 volunteers for the two day event.
Volunteers would need to be able to work 2-3 hour shifts, helping with things like radio operations, and runway observation, trash and kitchen cleanup, greeting, food service, and general assistance.
The fly-in begins on Saturday morning with a breakfast and lunch at the airport, as well as drone demonstrations, and airplane rides.
The airport shuttle service will transport visitors to the various tourist attraction throughout Shoshone County.
Volunteers must be at least high school age, and high school students can use the event for community service hours if they need them.
The last volunteer meeting will be Thursday, May 18 at 5:30 p.m. at the airport.
“I think this airport could be a solution to some of the financial struggles here in the county,” Abers said. “I think this event could really be what puts us on the map.”