A festival celebrating the history and science of aviation is taking place this weekend at Dallas Executive Airport. The Commemorative Air Force is hosting "Aviation Discovery Fest" this weekend instead of the "Wings Over Dallas" airshow.
Two planes collided while flying during last year's airshow. Six people died, and the National Transportation Safety Board is still investigating the cause of the crash.
This year, Aviation Discovery Fest has planes on display and educational stations set up at the airport.
"I'm making a paper rocket," one boy said. "It's really fun."
"We learned about weight and balance distribution," his mom said. "We learned about force when you shoot the rocket. It's really nice to come in here and, literally, from one table to the next, they have hands-on experience with all the things associated with air and aviation."
She said each station gave the next step on how rockets are built and the principles that allow rockets and airplanes to fly.
"But I think, so far, the neatest part was the tank ride we had outside," she said.
She said the event gave her son hands-on experience. He hopes to become a Naval aviator.
Brenda Townsend, director of education at the Henry B. Tippee National Aviation Education Center, said those experiences can help develop a life-long love of science and problem solving.
"Just to see the light bulbs come on, the smiles on the faces, makes all the hard work worth it," Townsend said. "They think they're having fun, but they're actually learning stuff on the side."
Townsend said the education center has different programs for different age levels that continue year round. For kids in pre-K through second grade, up to 250 students learn about different types of pilots and ground workers. She shared that they also learn the process of boarding an airplane and have to find luggage.
"The sneaky teacher in me, the luggage tag is actually a math problem where they have to identify the number, the color and the shape to match the number on their claim ticket," Townsend said.
Townsend says grades four through seven have a weeklong summer camp, and "Homefront Experience" can appeal to fourth grade through adults.
She said Homefront Experience recreates the homefront during World War II and can be used by school groups but also for professional development and team-building for adults. She said they can learn about the work behind iconic images like "Rosie the Riveter."
"Participants get to rivet," Townsend said. "They learn what those tools feel like. They were heavy. Imagine using them all the time, all day long."
Teachers attending with their classes Friday said the events gave kids a chance to work together and solve problems on their own.
"They can just take away a love of exploration and aviation," said Carly Hackney, a teacher at Good Shepherd Episcopal School. "With the gliders, they threw the fat end first, turned it around, threw it up or threw it down. It really was empowerment and them taking ownership in their own learning."
David Ballard, a seventh grade math teacher at Trinity Basin Prep who had previously retired from Lockheed Martin, said he often uses examples from his career in his own lessons. He said events like this weekend can spark a long-term interest in science.
"I asked them if they'd be interested in this," Ballard said. "They said 'Yeah, sure, I guess,' but several of my students, my female students, said, 'This was really cool. I wish we had more time.' I was impressed by that. They enjoyed it here a lot."
He said he talks to his students often about careers they can achieve with an interest in math.
"They've really learned a lot here about how an airplane actually works, about what lift is," Ballard said. "I think in the next few weeks, I can use real-life scenarios in math based on that."
The Commemorative Air Force said some planes may still be flying this weekend, they just will not have coordinated shows with performances. Among planes on display are a B-29 Superfortress, C-45 Expeditor and P-40 Warhawk.
At the "Aviation Discovery Zone," kids could hear from World War II veterans and learn about different careers in addition to learning about the science behind air travel.
"For my girls, they might not have wanted to make the gliders or helicopters," Good Shepherd's Hackney said. "But once they did, they wanted to keep testing them over and over again. They're using the language the volunteers have been using as well."
Information and tickets for Aviation Discovery Fest are available here. The festival runs through Sunday.
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