Classic Photos of Grand Junction Airshows You Need to See

We have several months to wait before Grand Junction, Colorado's next airshow rolls around. In the meantime, check out these classic Robert Grant photos of past airshows.

If you love the Blue Angels, skydivers, jumbo aircraft, and stunt pilots, you'll enjoy the images in the gallery below. Look closely, you may see someone you recognize.

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Grand Junction Colorado Air Shows

Airshows have been a Western Colorado fixture for as long as I can remember. Looking back, I seem to recall the shows falling somewhere in mid to late summer. In other words, countless families walk around in 103-degree heat with horrifying sunburns as they enjoy aircraft of every kind.

Robert Grant Photos

These photos were discovered barely 24 hours ago. They haven't seen the light of day in at least four decades.

Regrettably, not one bit of information was provided on the prints. The prints featured here are those that didn't make the cut. For one reason or another, they found their way to Bob Grant's personal file cabinet in his garage. When Bob passed away in 2000, they found their way to his son-in-law. When he died in 2019, they came to me.

Look closely at the photos, and you'll see indications as to why these prints were discarded in favor of another attempt. That might include a small blemish, or the dodging was a bit off.

Robert Grant's Dark Room

I spent countless hours with Bob in his dark room. That would have been back in the 1970s and early 80s. At that time, photography was an entirely different ball game. You could get paper cuts on your ankles from all the discarded prints littering the ground. Eventually, a print would be just right, and that's what would make the newspaper or the calendar. These photos represent those that were good enough to save, but not quite good enough to print.

The Future Of These Prints

This is the fourth Robert Grant gallery I've posted in a week. Later today I'll be taking this collection of photos (which includes far more than are included here) to Grand Junction's Museum of the West.

The museum is currently digitizing and cataloging Bob's photos in preparation for an exhibit to open in 2024.

Classic Photos of Grand Junction Colorado Air Shows

The annual airshow at the Grand Junction Regional Airport has become something of a Western Colorado fixture. Travel back in time roughly 40 years with these classic Robert Grant photos.