The windy, the fiery, the quirky: A walk through 50 years of the Sun 'n Fun Expo

Sara-Megan Walsh, Lakeland Ledger
·2 min read

The Sun 'n Fun Aerospace Expo began in 1974 as a small fly-in pieced together by members of the local Experimental Aircraft Association chapter.

In the 50 years since, it's grown to a weeklong event, drawing tens of thousands of people each year, with crowd-pleasing airshows, fireworks, entertainment, warbirds and crowd-pleasing fun.

Pilots will begin arriving Monday for the 50th annual Sun 'n Fun, which officially begins Tuesday and runs through April 14.

Take a step back in time with these key events in Sun 'n Fun's history.

Team Aerostars perform in their Yak-52 aircraft during a daily air show at Sun 'n Fun in 2013.
Team Aerostars perform in their Yak-52 aircraft during a daily air show at Sun 'n Fun in 2013.

1974 —  Group of five individuals came together at the local Experimental Aircraft Association Chapter 454 with a shared vision of creating a Lakeland fly-in, including Sun 'n Fun pioneer Billy Henderson

1975 —  Henderson and his flying partners launched a three-day event in 1975 inspired by the annual EAA Fly-in held in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. There were 900 people who attended.

1985 — Henderson becomes Sun 'n Fun's first executive director.

1989 — Sun 'n Fun and the Experimental Aircraft Association sign an agreement stating both organizations are autonomous.

1999 — John Burton takes over as Sun 'n Fun's second president.

2003 — Lakeland Sun 'n Fun aviation complex named Florida's official "aviation museum and education center."

2005 — Sun 'n Fun and EAA further redefine their relationship, EAA logo removed from the fly-in's logo.

Twenty-four cars were damaged after a fire started under a 2005 Maserati at Sun 'N Fun in 2006. Dry conditions and long grass contributed to the fire. No one was injured.
Twenty-four cars were damaged after a fire started under a 2005 Maserati at Sun 'N Fun in 2006. Dry conditions and long grass contributed to the fire. No one was injured.

2006 — Catalytic converter of a 2005 Maserati sparked a parking lot fire damaging 23 cars, no one was hurt.

2011 — Tornado rips through Sun 'n Fun expo, flipping aircraft and injuring guests.

2011— U.S. Navy veteran John "Lites" Leenhouts named third president of Sun 'n Fun.

A tornado ripped through Sun 'n Fun in 2011, damaging several aircraft and injuring people.
A tornado ripped through Sun 'n Fun in 2011, damaging several aircraft and injuring people.

2013 — Boeing 727-200 donated by FedEx Express to Sun 'n Fun to become a training classroom.

2016 — New air traffic control tower opens at Lakeland Linder Regional Airport.

2018 — Severe weather grounds all flights the last day of Sun 'n Fun.

2019 — Sun 'n Fun International Fly-in and Expo is renamed to Sun 'n Fun Aerospace Expo starting in 2020.

2020 ― Sun 'n Fun expo first postpones to May, then cancels because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

2022 — Sun 'n Fun celebrates launch of new Elevate Aerospace & Logistics Incubator at airport.

Hans Georg Schmid of Switzerland prepares to take off on his trans-global flight at Sun 'n Fun in 2000.
Hans Georg Schmid of Switzerland prepares to take off on his trans-global flight at Sun 'n Fun in 2000.

2022 — Leenhouts retires as Sun 'n Fun CEO and president, names Gene Conrad as successor.

Sara-Megan Walsh can be reached at swalsh@theledger.com or 863-802-7545. Follow on X @SaraWalshFl.

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: The windy, the fiery, the quirky: 50 years of Sun 'n Fun