AVIATION NATION - LAS VEGAS, NV
Featuring the Air Force Thunderbirds, F-22
Raptor, F-117 Stealth, B-52, B-24, B-25s, B-17 and lots more.
2006 AIRSHOWS
MAXWELL
AFB Featuring an emergency landing by Wyatt Fuller in his F-86
AVIATION
NATION
The first CV-22 Demo and a Dutch Viper topped off by The Thunderbirds!
NYC
FLEET WEEK Parade of planes and ships up the Hudson River
WILLOW
GROVE JRB A close up view of the show with some nice fireworks
WINGS
OVER VT The Air Force Thunderbirds over Lake Champlain
NAS
OCEANA Celebrating the 60th Anniversary of the Blue Angels and a final show
by the F-14 Tomcats of VF-31
ST.
PETERSBURG AIRFEST
A Salute to the US Military at a beautiful location on Tampa Bay in
sunny Florida
NAS
JACKSONVILLE
A salute to the Blue Angels at the base where the demonstration team was
founded in 1946
Airshow
Reports and News
AVIATION NATION CELEBRATES 60 YEARS
OF THE U.S. AIR FORCE
November 10
Aviation
Nation at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas is always a great show. It
attracts some of the largest crowds of any airshow in the United States.
This year was special with performances highlighting aircraft from World
War I, World War II, the Korean and Vietnam conflicts, and the modern
era. The Air Force Thunderbirds, based at Nellis, put on a nice
performance for the home crowd but the star of the show was Major Max
Moga flying the F-22 Raptor doing maneuvers that are impossible on
virtually any other fixed wing aircraft.
ST. PETERSBURG AIRFEST - THE BIGGEST
LITTLE AIRSHOW
October 21
We
look forward to the St. Petersburg Airfest each year because it is lots
of fun for the whole family. You can drop the kids off at Camp Victory
and watch how they do in a simulated boot camp. There are a lot of hands
on exhibits that are fun for children and adults alike. When the flying
begins, it is up close and easy to see with Tampa Bay providing a
beautiful backdrop. If you missed the show this year, you may want to
plan your vacation to St. Petersburg around this show in 2008. Dave
Thompson and Rich Castle do a wonderful job each year.
BLUE ANGELS WOW BIG CROWD AT KANEOHE
BAY, HAWAII
October 14
The
Blue Angels made the long trip from San Francisco to Marine Corp Base
Hawaii in Kaneohe Bay with the help of a KC-10 from Travis AFB. A big
crowd estimated at 70,000 packed the base each day to watch the Blues,
Patty Wagstaff, Jill Long and others. The Marines put on a nice tactical
demo with pyro that the crowd loved. Tim Weber gave a wonderful show in his
Extra 300 and was nice enough to let Patty Wagstaff use his plane for
her show which included her patented inverted ribbon cut. Mahalo to
Airshow Director Bob Farrow for putting on a great show.
YANKEE LADY IS A STAR AT WINGS AND
WHEELS
September 16
The Yankee Air Force Museum's beautiful B-17G, Yankee
Lady, was the star of the Wings and Wheels Show at Teterboro Airport in
New Jersey on September 15th and 16th. The show is sponsored each year
by the Aviation Hall of Fame and Museum of New Jersey, which is based in
Teterboro. In addition to Yankee Lady, there was a DC-3 and C-54 on
display. Teterboro is rich in aviation history. Amelia Earhart practiced
at Teterboro before many of her record-setting flights. In the 1930s, it
was the busiest airport in the world. It remains busy today, with
private and commercial aircraft. Take a look at our video on YouTube, or
download it from the link below.
I
was introduced to Jim and Joanie LeRoy at the 2006 show in Willow Grove,
PA. For three days, I got to stand on the runway as a pole holder as Jim
flew only a few feet away performing his act. I was amazed by his skill.
At the end of the season, I worked with Jim again in St. Petersburg and
Jacksonville. Jim took a great deal of time with me to explain his
design for his plane, and how he performed his show. He was a very
intelligent man, but never spoke in a condescending manner. On the
contrary, he enjoyed sharing his knowledge with others. At Willow Grove,
a woman came over to the hot ramp on Saturday afternoon. She introduced
herself to me and said that she was a flight instructor in the Air Force
and asked if she could speak to Jim. I called him over and she said that
he was the most amazing pilot that she had ever seen. That opinion was
shared by thousands.
A memorial fund has been established for Jim's son,
Tommy. Donations should be sent to: The Jim LeRoy Jr. Memorial Fund,” in
care of Harris Bank, located at 110 E. Irving Park Road, Roselle, IL
60172 If you have any questions about the fund, you can contact Nancy
Little at 630-980-2700
A TOUGH START TO THE SEASON
May 18
It
is an unfortunate fact that when you push the edge of the envelope, as
airshow performers do, accidents can happen. On March 16th, Eilon Krugman-Kadi
was killed when his L-39 crashed at the TICO Show in Titusville, Florida.
On April 21, Lt. Cdr. Kevin J. Davis of the Blue Angels, pictured here,
lost his life during a show in Beaufort, South Carolina. On May 18th,
Captain Shawn McCaughey of the Canadian Snowbirds was killed when his
CT-114 Tutor crashed during a practice at Malmstrom AFB in Great Falls,
Montana.
Airshow Digest sends its sincere condolences to the families
of the pilots. We would like to assure the public that these incidents are
very rare. In all cases, spectators at the shows were never in danger. The
FAA has strict guidelines that pilots must follow that protect the safety
of people at airshows. .
It is human nature to wonder what happened to cause these
incidents. We will never speculate here. Professionals will examine all of
the evidence and issue a report in the future. For now, or thoughts and
prayers are with the families.
MACDILL AFB AIRSHOW
March 31 - April 1, 2007
Nearly half a million people headed to the south side of
Tampa for a great airshow at Mac Dill AFB featuring the Navy's Blue
Angels and the F-104 Starfighter from nearby Clearwater, Florida. Media
day was held on Thursday with a special show for dependents on Friday.
The big crowds came in on Saturday and Sunday. Tampa police and Mac Dill
security did a great job getting people on and off the base as quickly
as possible.
If
you are reading Airshow Digest, you must love airshows. Whether its the
fast-flying military jets, historic warbirds, or twisting acrobatics, you
can't get enough. If you have been to more than one airshow, you probably
have heard Rob Reider announcing. Rob is one of the best at what he does and has been
in the airshow industry for nearly thirty years. In that time, he has had
the opportunity to meet nearly every performer on the circuit.
Rob has started a new website called airshowcast.com
where he provides inside information about airshows and the performers you
love. You can download a podcast, or listen online at your computer. You
can also find a link at Rob's homepage at RobReider.com
TICO WARBIRD AIRSHOW
March 16-18, 2007
C-45 and BT-13 in formation over
Titusville. Kennedy Space Center is in the background
Lloyd Morris, the Commander of the Valiant Air Command,
and his crew did an excellent job with the 2007 Warbird Airshow.
Unfortunately, there was a tragedy on Friday when Eilon Krugman-Kadi was
killed when his L-39 crashed while performing a Cuban-8. Eilon was a true
gentleman and will be greatly missed by all who knew him. As the saying
goes, the show must go on, and it did on Saturday and Sunday with
beautiful weather both days. There was a very nice collection of static
aircraft and a bunch of warbirds in the air, from T-6 Texans to B-25
bombers.
