DeKalb County to celebrate D-Day 80th anniversary with Air Show, open house May 11

DECATUR, GA- DeKalb-Peachtree Airport (PDK) will host Good Neighbor Day Air Show and Open House on May 11 to commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-Day, which occurred on June 6, 1944 during World War II.  On that date, Allied forces invaded northern France by means of beach landings in Normandy.

Antique airplanes, military aircraft, and DeKalb County fire trucks and ambulances will be on display during the open house from noon until 5 p.m. at PDK, 2000 Airport Road, Atlanta. Gates will open at 10 a.m.

“We are excited to bring back our annual Good Neighbor Day, which is the longest-running air show in the region,” said Hunter Hines, PDK’s interim director. “We look forward to hosting families and aviation enthusiasts.”

DeKalb-Peachtree Airport has a rich military history. A century ago, the present-day airport’s grounds were occupied by Camp Gordon, a U.S. Army training base during World War I. In 1940, the U.S. Navy acquired a small tract of this land and formally commissioned it as a Naval Reserve airfield by March of the following year. By the end of 1942, the base had grown so large that it became a fully-fledged Naval Air Station. During the war years, the Navy continued to expand the grounds.

The U.S. Navy built a permanent Naval Air Station adjoining Dobbins Air Force Base near Marietta, Georgia. The Navy returned the former air station in Chamblee to DeKalb County.

There is no admission charge for the Air Show and Open House. Parking is $20 per vehicle. Cars may enter from Clairmont Road and, until 1:30 p.m., from Dresden Drive as well.