VIRGINIA BEACH, Va.: Hundreds of Virginia residents saw a joint airpower demonstration firsthand during Hampton Roads Air Force Week April 22 along the coastline of Virginia Beach.
The event included a simulated rescue where a special forces team called in airstrikes then ran into the Atlantic Ocean to be rescued by Airmen flying in an HH-60G Pave Hawk.
F-22 Raptors, F-15 Eagles, an HC-130 Hercules and Navy F-18 Hornets provided air support for the rescue, dispensed flairs and maneuvered over the ocean as more than 500 Hampton Roads-area people watched how the American military conduct a combat rescue operation.
“What’s unique about today is we had the opportunity to see the joint forces in action demonstrating what not only the Air Force, but also the Navy, Marines, Coast Guard and the Army bring to today’s fight,” said Gen. William M. Fraser III, the Air Force vice chief of staff. “Today’s fight is a complicated fight. The capabilities of all the services allow us to enjoy the freedoms that we do on a day-to-day basis.”
Men women and children of all ages gathered along the beach to witness the joint exhibition.
“It was pretty cool,” said 13-year-old Michael Abbrazzese as he and his family came to watch the air demonstration. “I have a lot more respect for aircraft. It was pretty amazing.”
After watching the performance, Michael said he may join the Air Force when he gets older.
In addition to the airpower demonstration, many people had the chance to talk to and meet some of today’s Airmen. On hand were Air Force recruiters, explosive ordnance disposal members, F-22 maintainers and survival, evasion, resistance and escape specialists. These SERE personnel train the men and women going into harm’s way to have the best chance possible to get home safely.
“When I tell people what I do, who I associate with, most of the time they don’t believe me,” said Tech. Sgt. James Goyet, a SERE specialist from the 1st Operations Support Squadron from Langley Air Force Base, Va. “They think that what I do is something the
Army or the Marines would do, but definitely not the Air Force.”
Sergeant Goyet said he hopes the audience will leave knowing that not everyone in the Air Force flies jets, but that there are a whole lot of other jobs that are just as fun and unique as the guys flying the jets.
“I’d like to thank all the people from the Hampton Roads area for the continued support of our military members across all services,” General Fraser said. “As the men and women are overseas at deployed locations defending our freedoms, you here in these communities allow the families to do the things they need to do to support all our services’ members on a day-to-day basis so they can stay focused on their duties overseas.”
