The air up there

It’s a bird, it’s a plane -- it’s really a plane.

The skies of Beatrice were filled with the sight of Quickies and Dragonflies, canard airplanes, this weekend as members of the Quickie Builders’ Association flew into Beatrice for their 18th annual fly-in.

The Beatrice Municipal Airport runways were busy Friday afternoon and Saturday morning, as 30 members of the QBA and about 20 Dragonflies and Quickies, flew in from all over the United States, including Florida, South Carolina, Texas, Oklahoma, California, Montana, Iowa and Nebraska; to Beatrice for their annual fly-in, said QBA member and Fly-in organizer Doug Humble of Omaha.

The Quickie Builders' Association was formed in 1982 to bring builders of the aircraft together to share tips and information through the association newsletter QuickTalk. For the past 18 years they have come together for weekend for a fly-in, Humble said.

All of the members have built or are in the process of building tandem wing airplanes, Quickies and Dragonflies, and participate in the fly-in to share stories about the building process and flying the planes, Humble said.

“We all get together because we have similar airplanes,” he said. “That’s what the fly-ins are for, seeing everybody and hoping that there’s people continuing to build them.”

“We consider ourselves family.”

In from Oakland, Calif., flying commercial because his Quickie is not quite finished, Alan Thayer has looked forward to the fly-in for the opportunity to catch up with old friends and find out what others have built or are building, he said.

“It’s just like you pick up right where you left off,” he said. “You hang around these guys long enough you learn a lot.”

“It helps you become a better builder and pilot.”

This is the first year Beatrice was chosen as the host site for the fly-in, due to its central location, airport and accessibility to hotels, stores and restaurants.