Roaring military jets and tumbling sport planes won’t be the only aircraft at the upcoming Vectren Dayton Air Show: local enthusiasts will display as many as 15 general aviation aircraft — some built by the pilots themselves.

Visitors to the July 28-29 air show at Dayton International Airport will have a chance to look at rare or custom-built airplanes, talk to the pilots and owners, and learn about the Dayton area’s thriving grassroots aviation community.

Just a few examples of the airplanes registered for display: a homebuilt, fiberglass-structure Velocity; a rare prototype of the 1936 Taylorcraft A, and an AMD Zodiac 601XLi, a factory-built two-seater that represents the new Light Sport Aircraft category.

The display’s participants come from 10 southwestern Ohio chapters of the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA), collaborating as the Greater Dayton EAA. The display is sponsored by local EAA chapters and the Aviation Heritage Foundation Inc., representing the National Aviation Heritage Area.

“The display is intended to show the public the range of aircraft in today’s general aviation fleet. We wish to show the variety of amateur built aircraft in the area and to attract new members to our local chapters,” said Robert “Bob” Luken, president of EAA Chapter 284 in Waynesville and one of the display’s organizers.

People who build their own airplanes are known as amateur builders or homebuilders. The Federal Aviation Administration licenses amateur-built aircraft as experimental.

Airplane inventors Wilbur and Orville Wright built their first flyers in the back of their Dayton bicycle shop. Many amateur aircraft enthusiasts also consider them the first aircraft homebuilders, Luken said.

Today, the EAA supports aircraft homebuilding, vintage restoration and sport aviation through more than 1,000 chapters worldwide. (Two major EAA divisions are the International Aerobatics Club and the Vintage Aircraft Association. IAC Chapter 34, Waynesville, and VAA Chapter 36, Troy, are among the 10 EAA chapters taking part in the air show display.)

“We in the Dayton community are proud of our rich aviation heritage. The Vectren Dayton Air Show is pleased to partner with our local EAA chapters as we celebrate our legacy as the Birthplace of Aviation,“ said Michael Emoff, chairman of the United States Air and Trade Show Board of Trustees.

Headlining the 2007 Vectren Dayton Air Show will be the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds hosted by Goodrich and the Brazilian Air Force Demonstration Squadron (the "Smoke Squadron") hosted by NCR. The air show will be an official Air Force 60th Anniversary event.

For air show updates and ticket info, visit the show’s web site at www.daytonairshow.com.