Flying Circus Airshow

Barnstorming, parachuting, individual and formation stunts, wing-walking, and a host of other eye-popping aerobatic feats of derring-do await visitors to the longest continuously running airshow in Virginia.

Located in the rural hamlet of Bealeton, the airshow features a wealth of antique biplanes, including Stearmans, WACOs, Fleets, Cubs, and Champs to name a few.

The Flying Circus, which takes its name from the German fighter unit commanded by Baron Manfred von Richthofen (the infamous Red Baron), was started back in 1971 by pilots Charlie Kulp, Ken Hyde, and Stan Parris, who started the show over 50 years ago with a 17-member board in the pasture that has seen thousands upon thousands of flights over the past half-century.

The airshow was originally inspired by Cole Palen’s Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome in the Catskills region of New York, a one man operation known for its slick, fancy aerobatics.

The show has featured many pilots over the years, performing midair magic while accompanying skits play out on the ground below.

Nowadays, local aviation luminaries Scott Francis, Beth Sommer, Joe Bender, and Chuck Tippett are among the names one may hear over the loudspeaker as the planes take flight and complete their jaw-dropping sorties high above the crowds below.

The operation is a labor of love for the whole crew who work there and they go out of their way to take visitors back to the days of the early 20th century where small but nimble open cockpit planes lit up the sky.