PHOTO GALLERY: Flight enthusiasts bring replica WWII planes to Veterans Airshow

May 25, 2012 | 6:56 p.m. CDT

The 24th Annual Salute to Veterans Airshow will begin Saturday with aerobatics and displays from the Dawn Patrol, a Kansas City group that makes and flies their own World War I replica planes. The squadron has been involved with the Veterans Airshow for almost 20 years.

Dick Starks rolls his replica 1916 Nieuport 11 into a hanger for reassembly on Friday at the Columbia Regional Airport. He and his wife, Sharon, are both members of the Dawn Patrol, a Kansas City group that makes and flies replica World War I planes. | Carrie Durkee

The 1915 Morane Parasol waits for reassembly by its pilot Sharon Starks on Friday at Columbia Regional Airport. The Morane Parasol replica was flown in the 2009 movie "Amelia." | Carrie Durkee

The front of Dick Starks's replica 1916 Nieuport 11 is adorned with the logo of The Dawn Patrol on Friday at the Columbia Regional Airport. The planes, made from an aluminum frame and cloth, are replicas of what was flown during World War I with a few material updates. | Carrie Durkee

Jack Mumaw points to the sky as an F-22 Raptor flies by in preparation for the 2012 Salute to Veterans Memorial Day Weekend Airshow on Friday at the Columbia Regional Airport. Mumaw, who served 34 years in the Navy, is an honored guest this weekend at the airshow. | Carrie Durkee

Pilot Lt. Col. Michael Kennedy practices aerobatics after the airshow in his WWII-era Vultee BT-13 on Friday at the Columbia Regional Airport. During his practice, he performed stalls, barrel roles, and other low-flying manuveers. | Carrie Durkee

Bill Cherwin of the Lima Lima Flight Team speaks with veterans after he and his team performed aerial tricks in T-234 planes on Friday at the Columbia Regional Airport. The six pilots on the team have been together 25 years and consider their group a "serendipitous gathering" of men who love to fly. | Carrie Durkee