Clouds delay 'oohs' and 'ahhs' at Air Expo

COLE COSGROVE; Staff writer

Mason Bortle stood atop a wooden staircase and gazed at the switches and gauges in the cockpit of an F-16 fighter jet.

“Awesome,” said the 7-year-old Tacoma boy, who attended the Air Expo on Saturday at Joint Base Lewis-McChord with his father, Zach.

“Not too comfy on the seat,” Mason pointed out.

“Go touch the bomb,” Zach urged him, after they had climbed down and stood near the plane’s wing.

The expo, which continues today, offered a hands-on experience with military aircraft parked on the ground. In the air, civilian and military planes drew “oohs” and “ahhs” as pilots demonstrated the planes’ capabilities.

Gates open at 8 a.m. today; flying had been scheduled to start at 11 a.m. but instead will begin at 12:30 p.m. because of expected low cloud cover. One base official estimated the first day’s crowd at 100,000.

On Saturday, a low cloud ceiling of about 1,000 feet delayed the start of the air show by an hour. That allowed people who were stuck in backups on Interstate 5 to filter through the lines for parking and the lines for gate entry.

About noon, southbound backups stretched 13 miles from Bridgeport Way to the Pierce-King county line, said the state Department of Transportation in a news release. Northbound backups were about a mile. On state Route 512, backups were about three miles.

After parking, people waited again at the entry checkpoint. At 1 p.m., six lines were 150 people deep as base police checked identification and bags and used metal-detecting wands.

Two hometown C-17s – the large planes that routinely fly over Pierce County – had their cargo ramps down to welcome visitors.

Just past them were rows of pointed-nose fighter jets – F-15s, F-16s and F-18s.

At the north end of the static displays sat an E-3 AWACS Sentry. The plane’s radar dome rotated all day.

In a south corner sat two F-22s, the newest generation of active U.S. fighters.

Bryan Belcher, 18, of Gresham, Ore., wore aviator sunglasses and checked out the F-22s with his dad, Scott.

“I’m going to be a mechanic, and hopefully I get to work on one of those,” Bryan said.

“I’ve been a fan of planes since I was 3 years old,” he said. “Every time I hear them fly over, I have to look up.”

He was among the 200 recruits ages 17-24 with the Delayed Entry Program who were sworn in during a ceremony Saturday morning. They all wore gray Air Force T-shirts as they stood on the flight line, raised their right hands and took an oath led by Col. Kevin Kilb, 62nd Airlift Wing commander. In the background, an A-10 warmed up. The group set a size record for the program. The previous record was 178 sworn in at one time.

Belcher said his job will be fighter crew chief, and if all goes well he’ll have his name written under the pilot’s name on the side of a jet.

“You’ll have your hands on them before too long,” his father told him.

Scot Lamb of Olympia and Lori Vandervate of Lacey were stuck in the traffic backup, but they said it was worth it. “This is my favorite air show,” Lamb said. “One, it’s free. Two, they let you touch the stuff.”

On a black MH-47G heavy assault helicopter, visitors were able to handle the four 7.62 mm guns; two of them can shoot 3,000 rounds per minute, when armed.

A tent contained gear used by combat controllers with the Air Force’s 22nd Special Tactics Squadron. Adults and children handled unloaded guns, and another table held communications equipment, a laser range finder, a satellite antennae and a rugged laptop computer. Nearby on the ground sat an MK-19 40 mm grenade launcher. Outside the tent: a black Zodiac boat, a Polaris ATV and two matte-black motorcycles.

“This isn’t even half of it,” said one of the combat controllers who manned the tent.

Families spread blankets and lawn chairs on the dead grass near the runway. Smart ones brought wagons to carry everything. Lines for hot dogs and burgers stretched 50 people long.

The air show started at noon with a bang. Two A-10s flew in low and fast, and an explosion represented the start of an airfield seizure demonstration. The show ended with a bang, too, as the Patriots Jet Team flew in formation and set off explosives. Between the first act and the last act, each plane seemed to get faster and louder than the one before. After morning clouds, the sky had turned a clear blue by the finale.

About 3:15 p.m., a black flying wing appeared – the B-2 stealth bomber, always a crowd pleaser. The B-2 won’t be back today, but a U-2 is scheduled to do a fly-by.

Ken Mickelson of Steilacoom and his 87-year-old friend Mary Reinsvold wore American flag T-shirts as they sat in chairs outside the entry gates. They avoided some of the lines and set up camp on the grass near the parking lot.

Others joined them.

“Mary was tired of walking,” said Mickel- son, who held a black Scottish terrier, Duffy, on his lap.

“It’s supposed to be an air show, right?” he said. “What are you going to see over there that you can’t see here?”

Cole Cosgrove: 253-597-8267 cole.cosgrove@thenewstribune.com

Joint Base Lewis-McChord Air Expo

Where: McChord Field.

When: 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

Flying demonstrations: Beginning at 12:30 p.m..

Admission: Free and open to public.

Main Gate access: Exit 125 off Interstate 5.

Barnes Gate access: From Pacific Avenue South, turn west onto Military Road and follow it to the Barnes Gate.

Free parking: Directions will be given upon arrival at a gate.

Free bus service: Pierce Transit buses will run every 15 minutes starting at 7:30 a.m. from two sites: in the parking lot behind the Barnes & Noble and Target stores at Lakewood Towne Center, and the Lakewood Sounder Station, 11424 Pacific Highway S.W. All bus service, including return bus service, will stop running about 3 p.m. each day for the Patriots Jet Team aerial demonstration. Return bus service will resume upon the conclusion of the demonstration and run until about 5 p.m. In 2008, about 7,000 people rode buses to and from the show.

Bus information: 253-581-8000.

Expo information: 253-982-EXPO.

Expected crowd: About 300,000 for weekend.

Restrictions: No people convicted of felonies or with warrants; no weapons (even if you have a concealed-weapons permit). Bring ID if you’re age 16 or older.

Website: www.lewis mcchordairexpo.com.

Schedule of events

Today, flying demonstations will take place in this order, beginning at 12:30 p.m.:

 • Airfield Assault Demonstration (C-17s, UH-1, A-10, AH-1S Cobra).

 • Jacquie B’s Pitts S-1T biplane.

 • Kent Pietsch’s Interstate Cadet acrobatic plane.

 • MiG Fury.

 • Air Combat Command Demonstration (A-10).

 • U.S. Heritage Flight (F-16, F-4, A-10, F-86 Saber).

 • P-51 Mustang Tuskegee Airmen Demonstration.

 • Smoke-n-Thunder Jet Car.

 • T-33 Ace Maker.

 • AH-1S Cobra.

 • 62nd Airlift Wing C-17 Tactical Demonstration.

 • F/A-18 Super Hornet Demonstration.

 • Legacy Flight (F/A-18F and FJ-4B Fury).

 • Extra 300S.

 • Patriots Jet Team.

Some Aircraft worth seeing

C-17 Globemaster III

Noteworthy: The C-17 entered service in 1995. Pierce County residents will recognize the monstrous jets because they are the workhorses at Joint Base Lewis-McChord. C-17s are supporting military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Mission: Rapid strategic delivery of troops and all types of cargo.

Crew: Three (two pilots, one loadmaster).

Cost: $202.3 million (in 1998 dollars).

Length: 174 feet.

Wingspan: 169 feet, 10 inches.

Speed: 517 mph.

Range: Global with in-flight refueling.

F/A-18F Super Hornet

Noteworthy: The Super Hornet entered service with the Navy in 1999 and replaced the F-14 Tomcat as its primary fighter aircraft in 2006.

Mission: Multi-role tactical aircraft that can engage in air-to-air combat and air-to-ground strikes.

Crew: Pilot.

Cost: $60.3 million (in 2010 dollars).

Length: 60.3 feet.

Wingspan: 44 feet.

Speed: Mach 1.8+ (more than 1,370 mph).

Range: 1,275 nautical miles.

L-39 jet

Noteworthy: The Patriots Jet Team performs a maneuver called the “tail slide” in which the L-39 climbs vertically, runs out of air speed and falls back to earth through its exhaust. The Patriots also fly as low as 10 feet above the ground during parts of their performances.

Mission: One of the only civilian-owned jet teams in the country, the team performs at air shows and sporting events in four L-39 jets.

Crew: One pilot.

Length: 41 feet.

Wingspan: 31 feet.

Speed: 560 mph.

Range: 1,000 miles.

A FIRSTHAND ACCOUNT ON THE WEB

What does it feel like to fly in tight diamond formation, do a barrel roll, and avoid blacking out at 5 G’s of pressure? Staff writer Doug Pacey, who normally covers prep sports, had a chance to go up in an L-39 jet with the Patriots Jet Team on Thursday in advance of the McChord Air Expo. The Patriots are the headliners at the show today and Sunday. For a first-person account of Pacey’s experience, go to our military blog at blog.thenewstribune.com/military.