LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. — A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to fly in a WWII warbird came to Lancaster Airport's Community Days event this weekend.
The Capital Wing of the Commemorative Air Force organized rides in a World War Two Boeing PT-17 Stearman bi-plane at the event where attendees also got a chance to watch air shows and tour both new and old aircraft.
Other WWII warbirds at the event included a Douglas C-47 named Hairless Joe and a Douglas SBD Dauntless dive bomber.
Warbird pilots said events like these are a way to preserve WWII history.
"Everything has a history and the history of World War Two is something that we really really value," said Commemorative Airforce pilot Lee Fox. "We want to protect and preserve because you can see these airplanes in a museum, but until you actually experience what the boys in world war two did, it just defies description."
"It's really important to see the history, of course," said Capitol Wing Airforce Pilot Rob Kreig. "You can't talk about the history of the airplanes like this without talking about the people that flew it in very uncertain times."
Each day the Lancaster Airport also had an airshow with a Russian MIG-17 fighter jet and the Lima Lima Flight Team flying 6 Beech T-34 Mentors.
Whether it was for the air show or a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to ride in world war two warbird, organizers said they estimate that tens of thousands of people attended the event throughout the weekend.