In the thick of things

Jul. 30—Great Bend's 2024 Airfest is slated for Sept. 20-22 at the Great Bend Municipal Airport, and promises to be "the best one yet," according to Airport Manager Martin Miller.

Ten of the nation's top-ranked performers are booked, as well as a growing group of warbirds, and musical entertainment by the Ladies for Liberty. With a single 2-hour daytime show on Friday and Sunday, Saturday's events will include daytime, twilight and night-time shows, as well as veterans recognition.

Miller's job as coordinator of the event is supplanted by the support of "just about every department" in the City of Great Bend, including Great Bend Community Coordinator Christina Hayes.

Hayes arrived in Great Bend in 2012, the year that the Airfest premiered in the community.

That first year, more than 100 aircraft flew in for display including World War II warbirds. The show had a Dwight D. Eisenhower impersonator, WWII ground battle re-enactments and a POW-MIA ceremony.

"I'd been doing small airshows before the Airfest came about," said Miller, who was hired as airport manager in 2002. "The Airfest as we know it started in 2012, when Christina Hayes came in as community coordinator. We had smaller events before that. It has grown into a very well established triannual event with her support."

Miller recalled some of the early challenges in preparing for that first show.

"As I remember, a first challenge was getting the really top-dog North American or international performers," he said. "The other was the fundraising. To this day, we're a small, fairly rural location for a huge airshow. The number of spectators on a little tract may be in the 10,000 range, whereas most airshows are between 50-100,000. So, with revenues and sponsorships, it's a break-even challenge.

"We have 3-4 top-shelf performers that return," he said. "The critiques from the performers over the years have been that they like an airshow this size, because they are able to interact with the spectators and the community. In big shows, they are parked a mile away from the airshow crowd. They really enjoy being in the middle of the spectator mix."

It's grown some since the first show.

In her recap to the Great Bend City Council on the fourth Airfest in 2021, Hayes reported an attendance of more than 9,000 spectators. The show included a night show for the first time, along with a patriotic celebration of local veterans on the final night of the show.

In the months leading up to the 2024 event, The Great Bend Tribune will be presenting vignettes on the top pilot performers along with conversations with the air bosses and other attractions recruited for the show. They begin with Miller, who has served as airport manager for the past 22 years.

A hometown aviator

Born and raised in Great Bend, Miller graduated from Great Bend High School in 1971 and was accepted into the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. He graduated in the class of 1975, receiving the Air Force Commendation Medal and Distinguished Graduate award.

He was trained as an Air Force pilot at Williams Air Force Base, Ariz., and as an A-10 fighter pilot at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz. He became an A-10 fighter weapons instructor at Nellis AFB in southern Nevada and served in that capacity until 1983.

After the Air Force, he came back to Great Bend to work in his father's oil & gas drilling business, which he continues today.

In 2002, he was hired as manager for the Great Bend Municipal Airport. "It was a good opportunity," he said. "So, I've been here 22 years, plus I'm still continuing my father's business."