Neither His Ankle Or His Airplane Will Be Ready To Fly

Air show performer Buck Roetman was to have been the headline act at an air show in Breckenridge, CO, held as part of the city's 4th of July celebration. Roetman and fellow performer Gary Rower were planning to set a record for the "highest airshow ever performed over land and water" during the festivities.

But an untimely accident in Idaho earlier this month left Roetman's ankle badly sprained, and his Christen Eagle in even worse condition. Roetman says neither one will be ready to fly by the Fourth of July.

According to a report appearing on SummitDaily.com, the air show will still feature flights by Scott McMillan in a Yak 52, then a display flown by Todd McLaughlin in a T-28.

Rower has become the headliner of the show. He told the site that the performance will still be a record. "Nobody's ever done a show this high into the High Country," he said.

The airplanes will operate out of nearby Leadville airport, the nearest place with enough runway for the Yak and the T-28 at that density altitude. Rower flies a Super Stearman which, according to his website, was completely reconstructed in 1973. The current airline captain and former Air Force F-16 instructor lists the Stearman's maximum altitude and speed as "classified." "The show must go on," he said, and the two are reportedly already making plans to fly together at Breckenridge next year.

FMI: www.gobreck.com/events/fourth-july