• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
General Aviation News

General Aviation News

Because flying is cool

  • Pictures of the Day
    • Submit Picture of the Day
  • Stories
    • News
    • Features
    • Opinion
    • Products
    • NTSB Accidents
    • ASRS Reports
  • Comments
  • Classifieds
    • Place Classified Ad
  • Events
  • Digital Archives
  • Subscribe
  • Show Search
Hide Search

Rocky Mountain Airshow breaks attendance records

By Janice Wood · October 14, 2012 ·

DENVER — The Rocky Mountain Airshow broke all previous attendance records this year with attendance of 60,000 this year.

Featuring astounding aerial performances, the show, held the weekend of Aug. 24-26, added hot air balloons and expanded the Adventure Zone/Space Pavilion with aviation-focused STEM programs, along with hosting the 33rd annual Rocky Mountain Regional Fly-In.

“We were thrilled to bring the most sought after aerobatic performers to Denver this year,” stated Jim Cimiluca, Event Chairman. “Kirby Chambliss, five-time U.S. National Aerobatic Champion and two time Red Bull Air Race World Champion, was incredible. We were very proud to be selected by a very exclusive team as one of only 20 events worldwide to host the USAF F-22 Raptor.”

The all new Rocky Mountain BalloonFest brought hot air balloons back to Denver with a Friday night glow and morning sunrise launches and featured the first appearance of the Planet Earth balloon.

Airdhow performers appearing throughout the weekend included: USAFA Wings of Blue Parachute Demo, Rocky Mountain Renegades, Dan Buchanan, USAFA Glider Demo, Gary Rower, Melissa & Rex Pemberton, Red Stars, Don Nelson/Matt Tanner, Mark Johnson/Roy Halladay, Pyro the Jet Truck, Kent Pietsch, Trojan Phlyers, Kirby Chambliss, F-22 Raptor and the Raptor in Heritage Flight with a P51 Mustang.

The show is organized by Colorado Sport Aviation, a Colorado-based 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation dedicated to serve and promote recreational aviation through the hosting of an annual airshow and regional fly-in. This year, the organization Colorado  continued its tradition of presenting scholarships and giving back to the community by contributing more than $100,000 this year, 2012. This brings the total scholarship and contribution amount to more than $300,000 over the past four years since relocating the airshow to its current location in Broomfield, Colo., organizers say.

For more information: CoSportAviation.org

About Janice Wood

Janice Wood is editor of General Aviation News.

Share this story

  • Share on Twitter Share on Twitter
  • Share on Facebook Share on Facebook
  • Share on LinkedIn Share on LinkedIn
  • Share on Reddit Share on Reddit
  • Share via Email Share via Email

Become better informed pilot.

Join 110,000 readers each month and get the latest news and entertainment from the world of general aviation direct to your inbox, daily.

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Curious to know what fellow pilots think on random stories on the General Aviation News website? Click on our Recent Comments page to find out. Read our Comment Policy here.

© 2025 Flyer Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy.

  • About
  • Advertise
  • Comment Policy
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Writer’s Guidelines
  • Photographer’s Guidelines