Soldiers do their part at air expo

By Capt. Michael Greenberger, I Corps

Soldiers from Fort Lewis joined hundreds of service members at the 2008 Air Expo on McChord Air Force Base last weekend and provided static displays and good examples to the viewing public.

Standing in the hot Washington sun all day in full battle-rattle, troops fielded questions about their weapons, uniforms and gear while children and adults climbed all over their combat vehicles.

Local recruiting stations took advantage of the event, coming out in full force to spread the word about their branches of service. The static displays set up by units from Fort Lewis were most appreciated by local recruiters.

“These displays are great for interacting with the public,” said Sgt. Tawan Parsons, of the Puyallup Recruiting Station. “They draw the people to us and if we didn’t have them out here our job would be a lot more difficult.”

Among the displays were several Stryker vehicles from the 1st Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment; a High Mobility Rocket System from the 5th Battalion, 3rd Field Artillery; and an Avenger Air Defense Missile System from the 5th Battalion, 5th Air Defense Artillery.

Not held since 2005, because of the war on terrorism, the Air Expo took place Saturday and Sunday and volunteers and service members from all branches came together to assist the McChord community in opening its gates to the public. In addition to the troops sent from Fort Lewis, dozens of aircraft from all over the country poured onto the tarmac at the air base for the event.

Thousands of people swarmed all over the airfield moving from aircraft to aircraft, marveling at the ingenuity and technological wonders of modern aviation.

Among the most visited were the combat jets including F-16 Fighting Falcons, A-10 Warthogs, F-15 Eagles and the Air Force’s newest combat aircraft – the F-22 Raptor.

Scores of people filed into the immense loading ramps of aircraft like the C-17 Globemaster, C-130 Hercules, and C-5 Galaxy while nostalgia buffs got to visit some of the older aircraft gleaming in the morning light, like the F-86 Sabre and the A-26 Invader.

As the day wore on, these aircraft became shelters as people took to the shade provided by their huge wings. Overhead, parachutes floated from the sky as cadets from the U.S. Air Force Academy “Wings of Blue” team leapt from the back of a C-17. Gracefully spiraling to the Earth, the cadets demonstrated how they control their bodies while floating through the air.

Throughout the day, aircraft twisted and turned, smoked and soared through the sky. An F-15C Eagle from the F-15 West Coast Demo Team, piloted by Capt. Sam “Nuke” Joplin rocked the crowd and got their blood pumping with high-speed flybys, dramatic vertical climbs, and precise four-point rolls. After wowing the crowd, Joplin joined a P-51 Mustang for a heritage flight, which is performed at many air shows to pay homage to aircraft and pilots of the past, present and future.

Pilots flying a reenactment of the attack on Pearl Harbor drew attention with their chaotic performance, while the announcer’s heart-wrenching account of the historical event brought the audience to silence. Watching Japanese Zeros and torpedo planes circling the air amidst fiery explosions gave many pause, as they remembered those who had fallen in battle and paid the ultimate price for freedom.

Shortly afterward, and also a crowd favorite, Tim Weber’s Geico Extra 300 stunt plane tore and lurched through the sky at breakneck speed in an aerobatic attack of speed and excitement. Weber spread his message of “following your dreams” by leading the way ahead of a trail of smoke and applause.

The time fast approached for the undisputed stars of the show to take to the sky – the U.S. Air Force Air Demonstration Squadron, the Thunderbirds.

As music blared from loudspeakers, the powerful jet-engines of the Thunderbird’s F-16 Fighting Falcons reverberated across the crowd, bringing silence to the mass of cheering spectators.

Excitement gripped the hearts of both the young and old as the red, white and blue jets screamed down the runway and into the sky to perform for the audience.

Demonstrating both the tactical capabilities of their aircraft and the precision with which they fly, the Thunderbirds left smoke trails in the sky while passing within inches of each other at mach speeds and leaving the crowd gasping while breaking the sound barrier with high-speed passes.

After performing an aerial salute to service members far and wide, the T-Birds landed their aircraft and met waiting spectators to sign autographs.

Altogether, the Air Expo was a complete success. In the words of one child after getting his hat signed by Lt. Col. Greg Thomas, commander and leader of the Thunderbirds, “Awesome! I love the Thunderbirds!”