The Philadelphia metropolitan area celebrated Air Force Week May 26 – June 2.  There were displays, concerts, and demonstrations throughout the metropolitan area to show the community the humanitarian, global reach, and power capabilities of the U.S. Air Force.  The culmination of Air Force Week was Air Expo 2008 held at McGuire AFB in Wrightstown, N.J. featuring the U.S.A.F. Thunderbirds Air Demonstration Squadron.

  Weather has caused havoc this year so far among several of the Mid Atlantic area airshows, and McGuire was not to be any different.  After a perfect day on the practice day with hardly a cloud in the sky, Saturday’s forecast was not looking good.  After starting off with a mass parachute jump of 40 members of the 82^nd Airborne out of a C-17, and the Team McGuire flyby, consisting of the KC-10, KC-135, and C-17, a strong line of thunderstorms and high winds forced cancellation of the remainder of the day’s events.

  Sunday turned out to be sun and clouds through out the day.  The civilian performers dazzled the crowd, and they literally smoked up the sky.  Dr. Smoke, Ron Saglimbene, demonstrated his Siai Marchetti SF260 utilizing a three smoke system, red, white, and green as he maneuvered across the sky.  The Geico Skytypers smoked up the sky displaying their SNJ-2’s in formation as if we were back in WWII watching new pilots being trained.  Matt Chapman, flying the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University sponsored CAP Eagle 580, appeared as if he was being swallowed up by his own smoke at times as he tumbled across the sky.  Even though no one was close enough to hear what was said, a bit of trouble happened between Matt and Bill Braack. The end resulted in a race between Matt in his Eagle 580 and Braack in his U.S. Air Force Reserve jet car.   Jerry “Jive” Kerby in the vintage straight winged U.S.A.F. Thunderbirds painted T-33 Shooting Star graced the skies over New Jersey with this beautiful old bird.  Herb Baker, of Herb & Ditto Airshows, entertained the crowd with his smoke rings aerobatics.  The wing tip smoke would swirl due to the vortex created by the wing tips making smoke tornado’s and smoke rings which Herb & Ditto would fly through. Last but not least was an airshow act that is new to the circuit this year, Red Star and the Dragon. This performance consists of two aircraft, an L-29 Delphin piloted by Jerry Conley, and a BAC-167 Strikemaster piloted by Andy Anderson. They entertained the crowd as if there was a dogfight above the skies over McGuire AFB.  Both aircraft have tremendous paint jobs on them with the L-29 having a Russian theme on the one side of the jet, and an American theme on the other side. The Dragon has a face of a dragon painted on the nose, and claws on the wing tanks.

  The military was not to be out done in this Air Force Week celebration.  There were two very special guests to Air Force Week at the McGuire Air Expo, the U.S. Army 82^nd Airborne did a mass parachute jump of 40 personnel out of a McGuire based U.S.A.F.

C-17, and the U.S. Navy demonstrated the raw power of the F/A-18C Hornet as their East Coast Demonstration Team was on hand from VFA-106 out of NAS Oceana.  The Hornet also flew in a Legacy Flight with the FG-1D Corsair Skyboss.  McGuire showed their capabilities with the Team McGuire flight, and a demonstration of the C-17 Globemaster III.  The U.S.A.F. F-16 East Coast Viper Demo Team out of Shaw AFB, and the F-15E Strike Eagle Demo Team out of Seymour Johnson AFB each turned and burned in the skies over McGuire AFB to the delight of the crowd.  Following the F-16 demo, Capt. George “Dog” Clifford in the F-16, and Capt. Phil “Ritz” Smith with Weapons Officer Ed “Wild” Colfer  joined up on Capt. Dale “Snort” Snodgrass USN (ret) in the beautiful P-51D Glamorous Gal, of the Warbirds Over Long Island collection, for the U.S.A.F. Heritage Flight.  The Thunderbirds closed McGuire AFB Air Expo 2008 giving a great sense of patriotism to the 170,000+ people in attendance.