Possibility of air show returning to Nautical City Festival
by Richard Lamb–Advance Editor
The return of a popular attraction may be coming back to the Nautical City Festival (NCF). An air show by Team RV entertained crowds for the 2012 festival, that was also the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Calcite plant, and another similar attraction is being explored.
Karen Spens, chairwoman of the NCF, said sponsorship is being sought to bring an air show back to the festival.
“It is about a $35,000 event so we would like to get at least half of that covered by sponsorship. We are reaching out to not our small businesses here but more like corporate sponsors. That is our quest for January and February. We should know by the end of February if we can do it for 2026. If not, we will push it to 2027,” Spens said.
The company sought for the event is KC Flight Formation Teams (KCFFT), an organization that has operated since 2009, performing shows all over the United States. They fly RV airplanes, many constructed by the pilots from a kit from Van’s Aircraft. Richard VanGrunsven, founder of the aircraft company and designer of the line of airplanes, designed the RVs for total performance, giving the aircraft excellent handling qualities, visibility and fuel efficiency. The pilots own and operate their own aircraft.
Team RV, the company that performed at the 2012 NCF, also used RV aircraft from Van’s Aircraft.
KCFFT has eight to 10 airplanes they would bring for possibly two shows on festival Friday and again on festival Saturday with the backup date of festival Sunday, if needed. Rogers City provides an excellent location for an airshow, Spens has been told. The pilots did their maneuvers over Lake Huron and spectators had a great view from the shoreline.
“You have to provide an air box to help get people out of the way. We would look at the same location as last time,” Spens said.
The festival is looking for an air boss, to coordinate the event and sponsorship to pay for the event.
“Our hesitation now is our lack of time and gathering sponsorships. Since it is a large ticket item we might need more time to acquire the sponsorships that we need. We are still pushing for 2026,” Spens said. “We are really trying to offer different and bigger events to add to the festival and bring people in from out of town. An air show is a big deal.”
The NCF committee is working on some new ideas that are not finalized yet, and returning many favorites.
Another new event may be a wrestling event in the big tent. The NCF committee voted to pursue a deal with a live wrestling show.
“We are looking at bringing in a live wrestling event for something different. We are looking at Saturday, during the day, and inside the tent or potentially outside the tent,” Spens said. “The company is called Pure Pro Wrestling out of Flint.”
The company would bring in the stage for three different shows during the day and take it down for the evening activities.
The bands are set for the 2026 festival. Thursday is Waylon Hanel, a 23-year-old from Millington who describes his music as incorporating a mixture of outlaw country, blues and southern rock.
Friday the featured band is Jedi Mind Trip and the NCF committee has a contract to bring them back for the next three years.
Saturday’s band is the band Knee Deep, a classic rock band out of Traverse City. It will be the band’s first appearance at the NCF.
Sunday is the return of polka sounds with “Pan” Franek Zosia and the Polkatowners.
“We are excited to bring them back. We had a lot of requests to bring back polkas to the community,” Spens said.
She also said the committee has heard the requests to bring back a dance floor. Spens said the committee is exploring an option to rent a dance floor from the tent company.
The Taste of Rogers City went over so well at last year’s festival, the committee will bring it back on a larger scale. Trivia and teen night went over well and will make a return to the festival.
This year’s festival is planned for Aug. 11-16.
