Soaring higher: Model airplane club flies to new heights at ‘field of dreams’

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) – Hard-core model airplane enthusiasts have constructed a brand-new home at Noise Park to maneuver their craft up into the clouds.

The Desert Eagles Model Airplane Club invites everyone to come enjoy their brand-new flying field this Saturday from 9 AM to 1 PM at 8433 West Arco Highway.

"People like airplanes. So it's just kind of natural to want to fly an airplane," said Desert Eagles Model Airplane Club President Stu Eddins. "Other people do it because they build airplane, and you can fly something that you build. It's actually a working model."

Club member Dave Leffler has been flying model airplanes since 1978.

"This one here will fly approximately 100 to 107 miles an hour, and slows down to probably 30 miles an hour or so to land," Leffler explained. "It is an aerobatic airplane, so you can do loops, rolls, snap rolls – all kinds of good stuff."

For 30 years, the club flew on a grassy airstrip south of town, but expansion at an adjacent gravel pit forced them to move to this new location.

"We've got a brand new runway that's just absolutely gorgeous," Eddins said. "At the grand opening of this runway Saturday coming up, we're going to have free hot dogs, plenty of flyin'."

Participants will be able to fly with a buddy box – where an experienced pilot can assist a beginner flying the airplane, and take over if the flight undergoes turbulence.

One lucky winner who participates in the buddy box flights will receive a free airplane – ready-to-fly.

The 400-foot by 70-foot runway is built of artificial turf – loaded with bits of rubber to weigh it down.

A team of six men spent two months constructing the field this summer.

Airplanes at the runway can soar up to 700 feet high.

"We can fly a lot of airplanes here that we didn't used to be able to fly on our natural grass turf," Eddins explained. "They roll better. They taxi better. It's easier landing."

The club is affiliated with the Academy of Model Aeronautics, and the new runway is a Federal Aviation Administration Recognized Identification Area, meaning model airplanes flying there do not need to be tagged with a radio Remote ID.

The club has more than 50 members on the books who fly at the field and stop by in the mornings.

"We're out here pretty much every morning that the weather is nice. There's somebody here," Eddins said. "If the gates are open and somebody's here, you [can] feel free to come out and inspect. Visitors are welcome."

Come join the festivities Saturday, grab a hot dog, a piece of cake and learn how to fly a model airplane at the grand opening.