LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va: Airpower took center stage during the first day of Airpower over Hampton Roads, a three-day airshow culmination of Air Force Week April 24 here.
Thousands of people from the surrounding Hampton Roads area came to the first day of airshows to witness static displays and aerial demonstrations by several aircraft to include an F-15 Eagle, Navy F-18 Hornet and an F-22 Raptor.
The Langley AFB flightline featured more than 50 static displays, some of them with crewmembers, pilots and Airmen on hand to describe their capabilities and their use in the war effort.
After dazzling the crowd with various maneuvers in F-16 Fighting Falcons as part of their welcome show, Thunderbirds pilots and staff members met with area special needs children to sign autographs and to talk with them.
“We are excited to be at Langley Air Force Base and Hampton Roads representing all the men and women of the Air Force, and I’m thrilled to be here,” said Capt. Sean Gustafson, a pilot who flies the No. 4 F-16 for the Thunderbirds.
“Working with the special needs children is one of the best parts of the event; just to see the smiles on their faces and to make a difference,” Captain Gustafson said. “It’s a great opportunity to represent the Air Force. Their eyes light up. Their faces light up. It’s a blast.”
“The airshow is incredible,” said Helene Flick, an area Special Olympics coordinator. “Just for us being invited to the airshow is a very wonderful gesture. All the comments I’ve heard today from the children have been incredible. I heard, ‘awesome and it’s the best thing that has happened to me.'”
Ms. Flick said the Special Olympics athletes will be talking about this forever.
Recruiting demonstrations, the Air Force monster truck and motorcycle and the Kentucky Headhunters band were on hand for the crowd of thousands to see.
Although the airshow was the culmination event for Hampton Roads Air Force Week, it was the beginning of the Air Force experience for some.
“This is my first airshow,” said Ebony Thompson, a 28-year-old speech pathologist originally from Colombia, S.C., and now living in the Hampton Roads area. “I heard about the airshow on the radio and then I saw them flying overhead all day. I had to check it out for myself.”
Ms. Thompson said her favorite part of the airshow was the F-22 demonstration, as the pilot maneuvered the Air Force’s newest and most advanced fighter and showcased high- and low-speed passes as well as various other aerial maneuvers.
“The F-22 was awesome,” she said. “It was like it was floating and wasn’t even moving in the air.”
The day concluded with nighttime aerial flights and fireworks over the base flightline.
