There was a surge in air traffic over Shuswap Lake following the Labour Day weekend as aircraft of smaller scale took to the sky.
During Sept. 8 to 13, the Shuswap Lake Aero Modelers (SLAM) once again hosted its Fall Classic event from the shores of Sandy Point.
SLAM secretary treasurer Dennis Miller said the event saw about 50 participants – down from previous year but more than expected given the restrictions around COVID-19. There were around 100 model aircraft at the event with some wingspans reaching up to 12 feet.
“The quality of the models was really a plus, even though there were only 50 people… we didn’t just have these little kits some people fly, including me,” said Miller. “Some represented, I don’t know, hundreds, thousands of hours of work to get them to where they were. It was really nice to see that.”
Among the model aircraft that could be spotted flying over lake the throughout the week, said Miller, were a de Havilland Beaver, a couple of de Havilland Twin Otter and a large, four engine Short Empire Flying Boat.
Miller said SLAM has been around for about 25 years. With the pandemic, the club had to cancel several of its annual events, which made this year’s Fall Classic all the more special for participants.
“People from outside were saying thank you for putting it on, they’ve been doing nothing except occasionally flying in a field and they had nowhere to go to do things differently…,” said Miller. “It was really a treat, there were so many of them so happy to get out of the house and do something.”
For more information about the Shuswap Lake Aero Modelers, visit slams.ca.
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