Wings Over Wayne schedule released
By Sam Atkins
Published in News on October 27, 2004 2:03 PM
A full day of aircraft performances is on tap for this year's Wings Over Wayne at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base.
The event will be Nov. 7 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The base is expecting between 60,000 and 75,000 people to attend. It is free and open to the public.
The Thunderbirds, a precision flying team, will be making their only appearance in North Carolina this year at Wings Over Wayne. The pilots perform a combination of solo and formation flying routines.
The air show is the culmination of Military Appreciation Week, which will be the week of Nov. 1-7. There will also be a variety of civilian aerial performances, military aerial acts, and military and civilian displays of planes.
Civilian aerial performances include the Team Oracle Challenger, the Red Baron Pizza Squadron, the Yak Attack Demonstration Team, the Flying Farmer and a MiG-17 Fresco demonstration.
Other military aerial acts include the A-10 Thunderbolt II East Coast Demo Team, the F-15 East Coast Demo Team and a KC-135R Stratotanker demonstration.
Also returning this year is the combined arms demonstration. In it, the 4th Fighter Wing leads a force of jets, helicopters, paratroopers and massive explosions to exhibit real-world battle tactics to attack and secure an enemy airfield.
Another aerial performance scheduled is a 20-minute heritage fly-by of several vintage aircraft used in conflicts from World War II through Vietnam.
This year's air show will offer more than just aerial entertainment. The Dodge Jet-Truck will show off its power as it rips down the runway at 350 mph. Back by popular demand is local racer Stephen Rhodes, who will drive the WP Rose Supply race car in a rematch sprint with an F-15E from last year's show.
Several military and civilian static displays will be set up throughout the show area, including home-based F-15Es and KC-135Rs, a B-52 Stratofortress, a B-1B Lancer, a C-5 Galaxy, an E-2C Hawkeye, an OV-1D Mohawk and a North Carolina State Trooper helicopter.
The Red Baron Pizza Squadron will provide entertainment for the entire family, including pedal bi-planes for toddlers, flight simulation through virtual-reality goggles for teens, and the 3-D Flying Adventure theater for everyone.
Hugh Oldham will narrate the program. Oldham, a former military and civilian aviator, has narrated air shows since 1968. He, along with his wife and sound technician, Jane, live in Anderson, S.C.
Visitors are welcome to bring blankets, lawn chairs, binoculars and cameras. For safety purposes, coolers, pets and backpacks will not be permitted through the gates. All vehicles and bags are subject to search. Motorcycle riders are required to wear helmets while on base.
Parking is free during the event and military ID card holders will come through Slocumb Gate. Pass-holding distinguished visitors, handicapped and media will come through the Oak Forest Gate. The general public will come through the Berkeley Gate. Buses will be available to transport those parking on base to the airshow site. When parking on base fills up, people will be sent to Greenwood Middle School or Meadow Lane Elementary and there will be a shuttle to transport those people to the airshow.
The detailed schedule is as follows and the times and performers are subject to change:
*9 a.m. -- RC Planes
*9:15 a.m. -- Maj. Jim "Penny" Varden's Pitts S-2C
*930 a.m. -- Roger Marshall's YAK 55
*9:40 a.m. -- Rob Holland's Pitts S-2C
*9:50 a.m. -- YAK Attack Demo Team
*10 a.m. -- The A-10 "Thunderbolt" Demo Team
*10:30 a.m. -- Vintage War Birds Pass and Review
*10:45 a.m. -- Dodge RAMJET truck
*11 a.m. -- GEICO Skytypers *11:15 a.m. -- Wings of Blue Low show/Flag drop
*11:30 a.m. -- Team Oracle/Sean Tucker's "Tucker Tease"
*11:45 a.m. -- Wings of Blue High show
*Noon -- C-17 "Globemaster III" Demo
*12:15 p.m. -- Red Baron Pizza Squadron
*12:30 p.m. -- F-15C Demo
*12:45 p.m. -- "Heritage Flight" with Lee Lauderback's P-51, F-15 and A-10
*1 p.m. -- F-4 vs. MiG-17
*1:15 p.m. -- F-15E Strike Eagle vs. NASCAR
*1:30 p.m. -- 4th Fighter Wing Historical Formation: F-15E Strike Eagle and Spitfire
*1:40 p.m. -- Seymour Johnson Formation: F-15E Strike Eagle and KC-135 Stratotanker
*1:50 p.m. -- Sean Tucker's Team Oracle Challenger vs. Dodge RAMJET truck
*1:55 p.m. -- Sean Tucker's Team Oracle Challenger
*2:00 p.m. -- Combined Armed Demo with F-15Es, A-10s and paratroopers
*2:30 p.m. -- U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds
For more information, visit Seymour Johnson's air show Web site at www.seymourjohnson.af.mil/airshow .