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FROM THE LOGBOOK: I flew The United States Air Force THUNDERBIRDS
. . . And I have the pictures to prove it!
(c)Jim Trusty 2005
Yes, you read that right, but not in an F-16, not in an Air Show, not in formation, and certainly not as a member of this elite flying team. But I did take three of them for a ride in my trusty Cessna 210 on 05 May 2005 at 2210 Zulu in Smyrna, Tennessee (MQY). They were there to perform for our annual Air Show. The purpose of the flight was to conduct an aerial survey for the Commander and two solo pilots prior to the actual flight demonstration by this highly trained unit of pilots.
I would like to think that I was selected because of my piloting skills, but in reality it was probably because I am a high time ATP who owns a big four-place, high wing airplane that is fully insured. Of course, being a flight instructor who isn’t used to getting paid probably helped a lot, too.
It was a privilege for me to be selected and an honor to be asked by the Thunderbirds to fly three of their pilots, the Commander/Leader, the Lead Solo, and the Opposing Solo. The purpose of the flight was to make them familiar with all the landmarks and checkpoints they need to make their performance absolutely perfect. To them it was an exercise in safety, but to me it was a test to do something exactly right in front of some great pilots. Evidently, we both won.
It was thrilling for me and they didn’t appear to be too scared as we zoomed around a prescribed route at over 150 MPH and at times just 100 feet above the trees. It was exciting to listen to their preparations for the upcoming show as I worked the radio and the tower so that we could keep all the other traffic away from us. It was also great to have an air show once again after closing it down for a few years because of 9/11 and the high cost of insurance.
Now I want to give you some information about these top notch professionals who travel around the world representing our country with great honor. They may be coming your way next so you can be forewarned what to expect, who they are, when they began, why, how, where, and the aircraft. Whatever you do, don’t miss a chance to watch them perform their routines. The majority of the following information came from WEB searches. I’ll furnish a short list of contacts at the end of this article, but you can find a lot more simply by starting a Google search for USAF Thunderbirds.
MISSION: The U.S. Air Force Demonstration Squadron, the Thunderbirds, performs precision aerial maneuvers demonstrating the capabilities of Air Force high performance aircraft to people throughout the world. The squadron exhibits the professional qualities the Air Force develops in those who fly, maintain and support these aircraft.
OBJECTIVES:
• To support Air Force recruiting and retention programs.
• To reinforce public confidence in the Air Force and to demonstrate to the public the professional competence of Air Force members.
• To strengthen morale and spirit de corps among Air Force members.
• To support Air Force community relations and people-to-people programs.
• To represent the United States and its armed forces to foreign nations and to project international goodwill.
THE TEAM: The Thunderbirds squadron is an Air Combat Command unit composed of eight pilots (including six demonstration pilots), four support officers, three civilians, and more than 130 enlisted personnel performing in 25 career fields.
A Thunderbirds air demonstration is a mix of formation flying and solo routines. The four-aircraft diamond formation demonstrates the training and precision of Air Force pilots, while the solo aircraft highlight the maximum capabilities of the F-16.
The pilots perform approximately 30 maneuvers in a demonstration. The entire show, including ground and air, runs about an hour and fifteen minutes. The season lasts from March to November, with the winter months used to train new members.
Officers serve a two-year assignment with the squadron, while enlisted personnel serve three to four years. Replacements must be trained for about half of the team each year, providing a constant mix of experience.
The squadron performs no more than 88 air demonstrations each year and has never cancelled a demonstration due to maintenance difficulty. More than 280 million people in all 50 states and 57 foreign countries have seen the red, white and blue jets in more than 3,500 aerial demonstrations.
In addition to their responsibilities as the official U.S. Air Force demonstration team, the Thunderbirds are part of our combat force. If required, the team’s personnel and aircraft can be rapidly integrated into a fighter unit at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. Since the aircraft are only slightly modified, they can be made combat ready in less than 72 hours.
THE F-16 FIGHTING FALCON: The Lockheed Martin (formerly General Dynamics) F-16 Fighting Falcon represents the full range of capabilities possessed by the Air Force’s tactical fighters. This highly maneuverable multi-role fighter has proven to be one of the world’s best precision tactical bombers and air-to-air combat aircraft. The only modifications needed to prepare the aircraft for its air demonstration role are installing a smoke-generating system in the space normally reserved for the 20mm cannon, and the painting of the aircraft in Thunderbirds colors.
HISTORY: The Thunderbirds were officially activated 01 June 1953 as the 3600th Air Demonstration Team at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona. Their first aircraft was the straight-winged F-84G Thunderjet, a combat fighter-bomber that had seen action in Korea. Early in 1955 the team transitioned to the swept-winged F-84F Thunderstreak. In June 1956, the team moved to its current home at Nellis AFB. At the same time the Thunderbirds traded the veteran F-84 for the world’s first supersonic fighter, the F-100 Super Sabre—an aerial platform that would serve the Thunderbirds for 13 years. More than 1,000 demonstrations were flown in the Super Sabre, thrilling spectators around the world. The team changed briefly to the Republic F-105 Thunderchief. After only six shows, due to an extensive modification that became necessary on all Thunderchiefs, the Thunderbirds returned to the F-100 Super Sabre.
From 1969 to 1973, the Thunderbirds flew the Air Force front-line fighter, the F-4E Phantom. In 1974 the Thunderbirds converted to the T-38 Talon, the world’s first supersonic trainer. The T-38 was more fuel-efficient and less costly to maintain than the larger F-4. Early in 1983, the Thunderbirds reinstituted their traditional role of demonstrating the Air Force’s front-line fighter capabilities. Transition to the F-16A allowed the team to retain manpower and fuel efficiency while demonstrating to spectators the very latest in fighter technology.
The Thunderbirds returned to Europe for the first time in 13 years in 1984. More than 3.2 million people viewed the aerial demonstrations in 11 countries. In 1986, the Thunderbirds participated in the rededication flyby of the Statue of Liberty, and in September of that year the team went over the 200 million mark for total attendance. The largest crowd, 2.25 million people, to see a performance was at Coney Island, New York, 04 July 1987. The 1987 Far East tour marked their debut in Beijing, China—the first American military demonstration performance in a Communist country.
Operation Desert Storm cancelled the 1990 European tour and the season was shortened. The team converted to the F-16C in 1992, bringing the F-16A to an end. In 1996, the team traveled to Europe where crowds from former Warsaw Pact countries enjoyed the “Ambassadors in Blue.” In July 1996, the team participated in opening ceremonies of the Centennial Olympics held in Atlanta, Georgia, which were viewed by an estimated 3.5 billion people around the world.
CONTACT: USAF Thunderbirds, Public Affairs Office, 4445 Tyndall Avenue, Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada 89191-6079, phone 702 652-6776 (or you can e-mail them at USAF.Thunderbirds@nellis.af.mil).
I hope you enjoyed this article and make good use of all the information. My personal thanks and appreciation go out to all our armed forces personnel worldwide.
Written permission from the author required to reprint this copyrighted article. (2005)
Jim Trusty, ATP/CFI, was named the FAA/Aviation Industry National Flight Instructor of the Year for 1997, and the FAA Southern Region Aviation Safety Counselor of the Year for 1995 & 2005. He still works full-time as a Corporate Pilot/ “Gold Seal” Flight & Ground Instructor/ FAA Aviation Safety Counselor/ National Aviation Magazine Writer. You have been reading his work since 1973 in publications worldwide. If you have comments, questions, complaints, or compliments, send them directly to him and he will respond. E -mail works best (Lrn2Fly@bellsouth.net).
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