McChord AFB Air Expo 2008 - Saturday and Sunday

The airshow proved to be another world class event. The organizers put on a fantastic airshow featuring a wide diversity of acts and everything semed to flow very smoothly.

Here are some pics from the actual airshow:

Team McChord. McChord AFB is home to two squadrons of C-17 Globemaster III's

This C-17 just emerges from the low clouds on Saturdays airshow

The B-2 Spirit only flew by on Saturday

Tora! Tora! Tora! taxis out to the runway to begin their 20 minute show.

The sky was full of these amazing warbirds, smoke, and giant fireballs as the airplanes simulated the attack on Pearl Harbor.

The F-18F Super Hornet pulls sharply into the vertical

Rhino high speed pass.

The F-15 creating some beautiful vapor as it climbs into the moist air.

F-15C Eagle

The Thunderbirds Diamond climbs high into the sky.

Knife Edge Pass

Thunderbird Six in full afterburner.

Enjoy!

Practice and Arrival: Friday, July 18th

One of the things I love most about airshows is the arrival and practice day. This is when you get a chance to see some more rare aircraft that will be on static display. Also the teams practice earlier in the week and provides many more opportunities to get great photographs.
Friday was no exception.

This is how my day began:

KC-10 Extender on very short final.

This C-5A Galaxy seemed to just stop in mid air. As the jet was overhead it was so close all I could see through the viewfinder were individual tires. At 50mm!! It felt like a hurricane after she passed over.


Eagle West turning sharply overhead.

This is where I was for landing. As you can see, I'm just a few hundred feet from where the jets were touching down. Try to imagine that C-5 Galaxy where this F-15 is.


Thunderbird number one coming in to land.

The F/A-18F Super Hornet doing the high speed pass.


This was one of two F/A-22 Raptors that flew in for the static display.

HH-65 Dolphin

P-51D Mustang

C-130J Herculese

A-10A Thunderbolt II, Warthog

C-12

T-38 Tallon

RC-135 Rivet Joint

F-16C Fighting Falcon

McChord AFB Air Expo 2008

If you've read previous posts, you know I was waiting a long time for this show. Unfortunately, at the last minute many changes were made to the show, some major. For example, the MiG Fury Fighters team that flys a MiG-15 and MiG-17 against a FJ-4 Fury canceled a week before the event due to fuel costs. Later all of the other warbird jets backed out as well. For a show that was going to be mainly a jet warbird show, it ended up not having ANY jet warbirds. :( Bummer. But maybe in 2010 it'll work out.

Also, the event brought in record crowds! On Saturday the record was broken as 150,000 people attended the airshow. The next day 227,000 people showed up!

The linuep included the US Navy F/A-18F Super Hornet demo, USAF F-15 Demo, USAF Thunderbirds, a B-2 Sprit flyby on Saturday, Tora! Tora! Tora!, Bud and Ross Granley, Tim Webber (I love your flying, but do you honestly have to sing about being high?), Air Force Reserve Jet Car, MiG-17 from Classic Aviation in Oregon, the C-17 single ship demo, Wings of Blue jump team, and the McChord Airfield assault with three C-17's.

Great show, everyone! There were no awkward pauses, except for the usual 45 minutes it takes the Thunderbirds to taxi out to the runway, twiddle their thumbs, then take off. But that's just how the Thunderbirds roll.

The next posts will feature photos from Fridays practice and arrival day, and the show on Saturday and Sunday, July 19th and 20th.

Airshow pictures posted!

Well, I got all of the pictures processed and updated to my web gallery now! To view the pictures I have available for purchae, click here. I have pictures of Sean D. Tucker and Team Oracle, Renny Price, Classic Jets MiG-17, Red Bull MiG-17, Jet Provost, F-15 Eagle, and many more!