​OBX Airplanes: The #1 Outdoor Activity in Manteo on Trip Advisor

OBX Airplanes is happy to be ranked as the number one outdoor activity in Manteo according to Trip Advisor! We take pride in providing our customers with a fun, exciting and memorable flying experience. If you’ve ever thought of flying (whether you’re interested in a scenic air tour or thrilling biplane ride over the Outer Banks, or you want to take flight lessons with one of our experienced instructors) we encourage you to check out our page on Trip Advisor to see what other happy customers have to say.

​OBX Airplanes has a 5-star rating with over four hundred reviews. To give you an idea of what people thought of their flights with OBX Airplanes, here are some excerpts from our most recent Trip Advisor reviews:

“Affordable, fun, and exciting way to see the sights in Outer Banks
I went on the 30-40 minute Inlet tour with my brother and nephew last week when we were in Outer Banks. The pilot was very professional, friendly and accommodating. He dropped down to  a lower altitude when we got near the beach house we were renting so we could see our family who was out on the beach waving to us. He was also very knowledgeable about the area, and it was amazing seeing all of the sights from the air. The price was very fair since it & for up to 3 people. We all had a great time and would definitely do it again!”

“Bucket List Experience
A fabulous 30 minute adventure in an open air cockpit! The pilot was good natured and extremely pleasant. Time was made available for any who wanted to take pictures.”

“Excellent!
Great views and a phenomenal pilot. We had a great time up in the air and would definitely fly again”

“Wow! Easy and fun!
It was a spur of the moment decision- but worked out great. We saw the ad on a billboard driving to the OBX. It only took a few minutes and we were set! Our pilot, Luke, was awesome. He offered insight to becoming a pilot to our kids. An economical and fun adventure- well worth it!”

“Top Notch
I’m currently taking flight school at OBX and I’m having a great time. My instructor is very knowledgeable and very patient. I absolutely recommend OBX Airplanes!!!”

“Wonderful Experience
We did the 20 minute flight with the family. The pilot was very friendly and knowledgeable. It was very neat to see Nags Head and the ocean from the air. We will definitely do it again with a longer flight next time we are in the area.”

“Spectacular
As a very experienced student pilot, while vacationing with family at the Outer Banks, my wife and I inquired about renting a Cessna 172 and instructor for a couple hours to mix sightseeing with training. We were introduce[d] to John at OBX and had the most wonderful adventure of flying and sightseeing from Dare, to First Flight, to Hatteras, to Ocracoke and back. John couldn't have been more gracious and encouraging, while exhibiting is wealth of local history on our journey. What a magical sunset adventure, and unforgettable day. Perfect weather, good company, and my wife took many wonderful stills and videos that we can enjoy over and over
again. Thank You OBX, and staff, and John for helping us make our dreams come true! Jim and Nan.”

If these glowing reviews aren’t enough to convince you to come fly with us, there are literally hundreds more 5-star reviews of OBX Airplanes that you can read on Trip Advisor. Come fly with us and we’re sure to get one more!

Spring has arrived on the Outer Banks! The air and ocean are warming, and masses of vacationers are coming to visit our beautiful beaches. Now on any nice day, the beach access parking lots will be full, and thousands of people will be enjoying the sun, sand and water along the OBX coast. When they aren’t on the beach, these visitors will be dining and drinking at local Outer Banks restaurants and bars, shopping at local Outer Banks shops, and booking tours and activities with local Outer Banks companies.

Banner Towing: Reach Future Customers on the Beach

To attract the attention of vacationers, local businesses spend a substantial amount of money on various advertising and marketing methods: online ads, magazine ads, rack cards, billboards, radio advertisements. However, there is another approach to reaching future customers while they are actually sitting on the sand or floating in the ocean: aerial banner towing. OBX Airplanes offers commercial banner towing services at rates at least 25% lower than nationwide towing companies. We use crisp, highly visible lettering to ensure that your message is seen by the many people on the beach and in the ocean. Aerial banner towing may be a slightly outside-the-box approach to advertising, but when you consider the vast number of people that will be exposed to your message, the efficacy of the method is clear.

Looking for Exciting Activities on the Outer Banks? Take to the Sky with OBX Airplanes!
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While people love soaking up the sun on the beach and swimming in the ocean when they visit the Outer Banks, there are many other exciting activities to be enjoyed on your vacation. Most people will think of water activities like sailing, kayaking, paddle boarding, and surfing, but OBX Airplanes has another suggestion: take to the sky above the Outer Banks on an air tour or biplane ride!

Our air tours and biplane rides are the most exciting and memorable OBX adventure you can have while on your vacation. Our pilots are skilled, experienced, friendly and knowledgeable. Our air tours and biplane rides are an affordable activity for the whole family. You can take off in one of our Cessna airplanes for only $15 dollars a person!

Book online or call us at 252-473-2442 to book your air tour or biplane ride today!

This week’s OBX Airplanes blog will continue our series on the Wright Brothers. In the past weeks, we have written about how Wilbur and Orville Wright came to be fascinated with flight and started to experiment with aviation. If you haven’t seen them already, look back at these blog posts for an interesting read. 

Kitty Hawk

The Wright brothers first came to Kitty Hawk in the fall of 1900 to test their prototype glider. The first tests were unmanned; the brothers flew the glider like a kite and tested their patented wing-warping technique with chords attached to the wings. 

The Wright brothers conducted the manned flights that year (and for the next three years) on a group of 100-foot-tall sand dunes known as the Kill Devil Hills. The few flights that Wilbur made in 1900 showed the brothers that their glider needed some improvements. The glider had less lift than they had expected, but they were optimistic on their return to Ohio because they hadn’t had any accidents and their forward elevator seemed to work.

The next year they returned with a new and improved glider but were once again disappointed by its lack of lift. Although they were disheartened at first, the Wright brothers redoubled their efforts when they returned to Ohio. 

After their disappointing 1901 glider tests in Kitty Hawk the wright brothers began their thorough testing of airfoils. They built their wind tunnel in the bicycle shop and tested over 200 airfoils. The data they collected from these experiments led them to employ a higher aspect ratio on the wings of their next glider. In other words, the wings were longer and narrower, and this provided a much better lift-to-drag ratio. Another Improvement in the design of the 1902 glider was the addition of a vertical tail rudder.

All the testing paid off. From the start, the 1902 glider demonstrated much better lift and was able to fly far greater distances. Between September 19 and October 24, 1902, the Wright brothers made nearly 1,000 glides. During this time, they developed a moveable vertical rudder to replace the glider’s fixed vertical rudder. Their first flight with the moveable rudder was on October 8th. Using the new three-axis control, the Wright brothers made hundreds of well controlled flights and became convinced that they were ready to add power to their glider. 

The Wright Brothers “Flying Machine”

The Wright Brothers applied for a patent to their new “Flying Machine” on March 23, 1902. They built it out of spruce and muslin and hand carved the propellers themselves. Their bicycle shop mechanic, Charlie Taylor, built the engine in only six weeks. 
On December 17, 1903 the Wright Brothers made history in Kitty Hawk by flying the world’s first successful airplane. With these flights, the Outer Banks became forever tied to the history of aviation.

OBX Airplanes Air Tours

OBX Airplanes encourages visiting the Wright Brothers National Memorial to more fully appreciate the Wright Brothers’ achievements. We also suggest flying over the monument with OBX Airplanes in one of our air tours or biplane rides!
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​Here you can see the difference between the 1901 and 1902 gliders. Note the improved aspect ratio and the addition of a vertical tail rudder on the 1902 glider (right).

April is the perfect month to take to the air over the Outer Banks! The sun is out, the air is warmer, the days are longer. An air tour is one of the best ways to take advantage of the beautiful weather on the coast of North Carolina. OBX Airplanes provides a variety of air tours that will fly you over the most iconic and beautiful locations on the Outer Banks. 

We offer flights in our Cessna aircraft for groups of up to three passengers. With its high wings and panoramic windows, the Cessna is a great plane from which to view the sights along our coastline. Fly over lighthouses, bridges, and piers. See Jockey’s Ridge State Park and the Wright Brothers National Memorial from the air. If the water is clear, we can show you shipwrecks that were lost to the ‘Graveyard of the Atlantic.’  

We will customize your air tour to meet your needs and interests. If you are a photographer looking to capture images of the most iconic sights on the Outer Banks, we can circle The Wright Brothers National Memorial and then fly down to the Cape to shoot the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. If you are looking for ideal lighting, we can take off in time for a sunrise or sunset air tour.

Biplane Rides: A True OBX Adventure

For the ultimate Outer Banks adventure, take to the sky in our beautiful red Waco Biplane! Our Waco YMF-5C is a true classic. It does exactly what the manufacturer set out to do: “to revive the Golden Era’s open cockpit flying experience.”
 
A biplane ride is our most thrilling air tour option. While all of our air tours are exciting, taking off in our Waco biplane will be the start of a real Outer Banks adventure. You will feel the sun on your face and the wind in your hair; you will smell the salt air. You will feel the power of the Jacobs R-755 Radial Engine as you soar over the Atlantic Ocean. 
 
It is Springtime on the Outer Banks and we are excited to welcome visitors back to our beaches. If you are looking for something unique and exciting to do this Spring break or Easter vacation let OBX Airplanes take you on an air tour or biplane ride. We promise, it will be an unforgettable experience!