Air Show Offs

Last weekend, at the 2017 Joint Base Andrews Air Show, the airshow was used as one of the final, year-long celebration of the Air Force's 70th anniversary. The airshow's main headliner was the US Air Force Thunderbird Aerial Demonstration Team. The Thunderbirds, which are based at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, have been performing precision, formation aerobatic demonstrations in the F-16 Fighting Falcon, since 1983. While the Thunderbird aircraft may look highly modified, the biggest changes are the paint scheme and the addition of a smoke system. If required, these aircraft are capable of returning to the operational fleet for combat missions very quickly.

While the primary air show was on Saturday and Sunday I was fortunate and got to watch a "Department of Defense only" practice show on Friday, avoided the crowds.

While not a tactical formation, this beautiful echelon formation showcases precision maneuvering and is used on a daily basis by all US Air Force fighter/attack aircraft whenever they return to a visual overhead pattern to land. with just a tad bit more spacing :)

Fingertip flying is another non-tactical formation that is regularly flown to allow air traffic control to treat the flight as a single entity, facilitating the launch and recovery of more aircraft in a given timeframe. However, normal fighter/attack aircraft don't assume this formation on takeoff. :) Notice that while the landing gear is up, the landing gear doors are still open - showing this picture was captured immediately after takeoff!

This is a beautiful picture of the "Reflection Pass", a Thunderbird only variation on a two-ship fingertip formation. It is interesting to note that Thunderbird 5 flies upside down so much that his aircraft number is painted upside down. In case you're wondering, Thunderbird 5 is the lead in this formation. That way he can concentrate on flying upside down without worrying about the formation (Thunderbird 6 flies formation off of Thunderbird 5).

This formation is often confused with the "Calypso Pass" in which the same basic formation is flown with the aircraft being "back to back" instead of "belly to belly".

If you take the opportunity to meet the team, you'll be able to spot the Thunderbird 5 pilot by the upside down 5 on his flight suit :).

One more pass in the famous Diamond Formation!

While most of their show is composed of a four-ship formation and the two solo's, who often join together as a two-ship formation towards the end of the show then the entire team joins together into a single six-ship diamond formation. This is a picture of the team joining up for the diamond formation.

I must go up to the skies again, to the peace of silent flight....

Oh...and the aerobatics! So gracefull! Here is Matt Chapman flying his routine in the Emery-Riddle Aeronautical University Extra 330XL :)

Made famous during WWII by General Jimmie Doolittle's raid on Tokyo, "Panchito" is a wonderfully restored B-25. Here, Panchito is captured taxing by for its flying demonstration.

Panchito is proudly owned and operated by the Deleware Aviation Museum. As a source of funding, and a way of keeping this aircraft and the memory of WWII alive, there are many different opportunities available to actually fly in this aircraft. These opportunities vary from "Warbird Rides" for anyone ($425 for about 30 minutes) to complete FAA Certified "Pilot In Command" type rating for experienced pilots ($48,174 with ground instruction and 18 hours of flying).

If you are wondering about the green paint in front of the windshield and on the inside of the engine's (you can see this in the reflections), it is to avoid blinding the aircrew as they look out the windows!

Here is Ponchito taxiing back after its flight demo. Notice all the smoke in the background from the pyrotechnics which simulated multiple "bomb passes"!

While the flying performances are normally considered "the main event" at airshows, the bulk of the show is the huge array of static displays that allow you an up-close view of many aircraft and the opportunity to talk with crew members of many of the static display aircraft. This year's air show featured 39 different types of aircraft in the static display...way too many to cover in this short blog.

While this year's airshow didn't include a B-52, I had to include these two pictures to show its immense size. The wings are so long, they need outrigger wheels towards the wingtips to keep them from dragging on the ground when the wings are full of fuel. Another interesting "historical" tidbit can be remembered by observing the size of the tail section of the fuselage. When the B-52 was originally built, there was a tail gunner back there to defend against enemy fighters coming in, to shoot the aircraft down. The tail gunner has since been replaced by electronics (notice the radomes on the tail) to defend against radar guided missiles.

Most of the B-52's right wing, showing its two, two engine wing pods and the wing tip-wheel.

P.R.E.C.I.S.I.O.N.

´¨)
¸.· ´¸.·´ ) ¸.·*¨)
(¸.·´ (¸. Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
of sun-split clouds, — and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of—wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov’ring there,
I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air....
Up, up the long, delirious, burning blue
I’ve topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace
Where never lark nor even eagle flew—
And, while with silent lifting mind I’ve trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand, and touched the face of God - John Gillespie Magee