Pleasant summer weather Saturday lured thousands of people to the Penn Township Volunteer Fire Department's 18th annual Mega Cruise at Pittsburgh-Butler Regional Airport.

Bill Glace, department chief, said the cruise isn't the department's biggest fundraiser, but the money it raises will go toward the cost of replacing the 20-year-old rescue truck as well as other equipment and training for the department.

Firefighter Kent Shoemaker, who is in charge of the department's fundraising, said 400 show vehicles arrived before the cruise began at 2 p.m. and the count was 600 by 3 p.m.

Saturday's sunshine and moderate temperatures after a recent heat wave helped bring the huge crowd of show cars and visitors.

“If you could describe a perfect day, today is it,” Shoemaker said.

Butler's Stone House chapter of the Antique Automobile Club of America brought the city's 1940 Bantam and 1909 Huselton and the club's 1922 Standard, which were all built in Butler. The vehicles turned out to be a big draw for visitors at the event.

“A lot of people have been stopping by,” said John Pro, club president. “A lot still don't know they were built in Butler.”

Three classic Mopars parked side-by-side in the lawn adjacent to the taxiway also drew some attention.

One of them was a restored green 1968 Plymouth Roadrunner owned by Jim Claypoole of Petrolia. Next to his ride was a restored red 1971 Dodge Demon owned by Greg Thorhauer of Karns City. And on the other side was an unrestored, original white 1968 Plymouth GTX Hemi owned by Bob Miller of Karns City.

They said this was the second year they drove their classics to the cruise.

Gregg Berry of Chicora brought a 1901 Riker Phaeton handed down from his great grandmother and grandfather, who swapped the car's original electric motor with a gasoline-burning engine sometime between 1903 and 1917.

“Granddad was a machinist in Pittsburg. The car was in an accident with a trolley car in Pittsburg. My granddad brought it to his machine shop in Petrolia,” Berry said.