Mansfield Airport To Host Inaugural Fly-In Celebration

The Mansfield Airport, which is also loving known to locals by its alphanumeric FAA identifier of 8W3, is hosting its inaugural Fly-In Celebration this weekend.

The event coincides with the airport's 75th anniversary, but it's first year could also be its last, since the Chelan-Douglas Regional Port Authority no longer wants to pay for the cost of running the facility, and has listed the 23-acre property as surplus..

The event is free for everyone and will feature aircraft rides for kids, games and activities, and a special menu for pilots at the adjacent Golden Grain Café, which will also be serving up plenty of good eats for those who don't yet have their wings.

Mansfield's Pioneer Hall will be used for hosting any overflow crowds at the event, which will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturday, April 26.

Although the Port has listed 8W3 for sale at a current listing price of $313,200, it has included a purchaser stipulation that the property must be maintained and utilized as a public airport for at least a decade after it is sold.

The airport's lone 2,500-foot runway has been serving pilots in the rural Douglas County town since 1942, and Fly-In organizers are hopeful the event will properly showcase the importance of the facility's need to continue being a resource for the region well into the future.

Many locals have protested the Port's move to sell the airport into potential private ownership, arguing it puts the community of just over 300 residents at risk for unwanted development and the possible softening of its current economic position.