Sun 'n Fun Aerospace Expo Ticket Pre-Sales Soar to Record Highs Despite COVID

Apr. 3—LAKELAND — With the federal declaration that travel is low risk for the fully vaccinated, thousands of aviation fanatics across the country are preparing to fly in to Lakeland in the next two weeks.

Advanced ticket sales for the 47th annual Sun 'n Fun Aerospace Expo, which runs April 13-18, are 25% to 30% higher than the expo's best year, according to John "Lites" Leenhouts, president and CEO of Sun 'N Fun. The nonprofit organization is working to secure additional supplies and space to handle a possible record-breaking crowd.

"We never saw it coming," he said. "We didn't expect this to happen."

Leenhouts said he was expecting the event's turnout to be lower than normal because of the ongoing COVID pandemic. Instead, airplane enthusiasts and performers will be traveling in from as far away as New Hampshire, Nebraska and Washington state.

"It went the opposite direction," he said. "It's great news, but we didn't plan for it.

Last year, Sun 'n Fun directors tried to postpone the expo to May 2020 because of the pandemic. Two weeks later, the event was called off because of rising numbers of COVID cases, despite concerns over the long-term financial impact.

People who purchased advanced tickets in 2020 were given the option to seek a refund or rollover their tickets to this year's event. Roughly half chose to keep their tickets, Leenhouts said, and could add to the expected crowd.

"We don't really know if they are coming or not," he said.

If all the 2020 ticket holders show up at the gate, Leenhouts said it could easily increase the expo's attendance by a few thousand people, pushing attendance by an additional 10% to 15%.

Sun 'n Fun staff has placed orders with its vendors to increase the number of portable toilets, hand washing and hand sanitizer stations on site, according to Leenhouts. Lakeland Regional Health has provided approximately 10,000 disposable cloth face masks to be handed out to attendees who leave theirs at home.

The event's COVID policy, available online at flysnf.org/covid-19-policy, states all guests are strongly encouraged to wear face masks where social distancing cannot be maintained. Face coverings are required indoors, such as exhibit hangars, enclosed tents and guest shuttles.

Leenhouts said the organization has arranged to possibly rent private land to the west of the airport to provide for overflow campgrounds and overflow parking. Presales are also up in those categories, particularly for Saturday, April 17.

"We are prepared in case the crowds exceed our normal capacity," he said.

Lakeland Regional Health will staff a large, open-air medical tent on site to provide medical care for anyone who comes down sick after arriving. Rapid COVID testing will be available for guests if needed, Leenhouts said.

"We've ramped it up, just in case," he said.

Greg Gibson, Sun 'n Fun's chief marketing officer, previously told The Ledger he is not aware of a single COVID-19 case traced back to a December event despite having more than 7,500 attendees. There are no plans to limit attendance at expo.

Tickets can be purchased in advance online at flysnf.org. Daily tickets cost $45 for adults and $20 for children ages 7-17. Those 6 and younger are free. Weekly passes cost $170 per adult and $70 for children. Florida residents who purchase daily tickets for April 17 get free admission on April 18.

Sara-Megan Walsh can be reached at [email protected] or 863-802-7545. Follow on Twitter @SaraWalshFl.

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