Today was one of those clear blue Washington days that you live for. It’s a day that makes all the rain and clouds worth it.
Working on an Air Force Base has its draw backs. Sometimes they close the gates on you when you are going home or coming to work because security might be practicing some response. But some days, like today, it makes it all worth it.
This weekend is the McChord AFB Air Show. I never tire of watching the jets as they go through their various maneuvers. Nothing in this world compares to a supersonic jet being put through its paces by men and women who are the best in the world at what they do.
An F/A-18 dove and turned and rolled across the brightest, bluest sky, swooping down and straight back up to its zenith, slowly tumbling back down again. Barrel rolls and loops were all done perfectly, seemingly without effort or plan. The pilot’s timing and execution were essays in perfection. While it seemed effortless and spontaneous, the g-forces and stresses plied against man and machine were immense. Only the best trained, physically and professionally, can fly like that.
The Navy F/A-18 was followed by an incredible precision team. Two dissimilar aircraft synced so perfectly as to defy logic, physics and believability. This unlikely duo performed an air ballet that could have been set to music. An F-15 Strike Eagle paired up with a P-51 Mustang for a demonstration of astonishing precision flight. The P-51 flew much of the routine just forward of the F-15’s right wing, a mere few feet away. They dove and turned and climbed together so precisely, it was as if they were connected by a steel bar.
Next came the USAF Thunderbirds. The T-birds with their F-16’s are masters of the aerial demonstration art. People argue over who is the better, the Navy’s Blue Angels or the Air Force’s Thunderbirds. Speaking as a 20 year veteran of the USAF, I think there isn’t much difference. Both are the best of the best. They fly different airplanes with different characteristics and capabilities. But today was the T-birds’ day. Their flawlessly choreographed maneuvers are even set to music and narration. If their performance could be described with a word, awesome comes as close as any.
I love to watch the different aircraft be put through their different paces by their masterful pilots. Oddly, I don’t particularly like flying and no, I’m not a pilot. I have a minor sight defect that would disqualify me as a pilot. But like I said in the beginning, I never tire of watching the talented men and women who can coax their machines into doing amazing feats of aerobatics that seem to defy the laws of physics.
Minds of men fashioned a crate of thunder,
Sent it high into the blue;
Hands of men blasted the world asunder;
How they lived God only knew!
Souls of men dreaming of skies to conquer
Gave us wings, ever to soar!
With scouts before and bombers galore, hey!
Nothing'll stop the U.S. Air Force!
By Robert Crawford
VW
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