Rockford Airfest Rockford, IL June 1-3, 2007

Story and photography by Ken Cheung

 

  Midwest weather can be fickle at times, especially during the volatile summer months, when the warm Gulf air collides with a cold front moving from the north, creating headaches for airshow organizers, volunteers, performers and the fans alike. This was the case at the 2007 Rockford Air Show, but despite the thunderstorm and rain; the crowds persevered through the annoyance to see the world’s finest aerial demonstration and acrobatic teams.

  The 2007 Rockford Air Show was a 3-day event including a Friday twilight show. The show was delayed due to a heavy thunderstorm that rolled through, but when the weather cleared, the F-16 Viper West and F-15E Strike Eagle teams took to the air and didn’t miss a beat. The twilight show also had the Red Barons and the AeroStars performing their team acrobatic portion of the show. The conclusion of the show was the fireworks display. Friday’s spectators even got to reuse their tickets to come back to for the weekend show due to the inclement weather.

  The next two days, the weather had on and off showers but nothing dampened the spectators’ spirits. Over 140,000 spectators made their way through the gates despite the weather. The non-stop action schedule also had the Golden Knights performing the opening of the national anthem and later the Golden Knights completed their full show with their competition-style skydiving. The action continued with the Red Barons flying the Stearman biplanes and the Aerostars flying a fleet of Yak 52s.

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  One of the more unique static displays was the B-52 Stratofortress from Minot. North Dakota. The B-52 is also known as the “Buff” the acronym politely stands for Big Ugly Fat Fellow. In the air, it's not very hard to miss the antiquated eight engines or the thick black trail of smoke. The huge size and shape seems more befitting for the Jurassic age than the 21st century.

  The single ship teams representing the Air Combat Command included the F-15 Strike Eagle flown by Major Al "Jewel" Kennedy and Captain Jack "Woody" Stallworth and the F-16 Viper West Team flown by Capt. Russ “Spicoli” Piggott. Both teams awed and wowed the crowd with some of the best Pilots and equipment the US Air Force has to offer.

  Of course who could forget the Blue Angels, the one act that makes any airshow a memorable one. The Blue Angels put on their high flying and precision demonstration on all three days. After seeing countless Blue Angels shows, I am still awed by the numerous opposing passes and precision team flying. It’s always fun to watch the crowd’s reaction as Blue Angels’ F/A-18 Hornet #5 and #6 perform the sneak pass in front of the crowd in full afterburner.

  All in all, the Rockford Air Show was great success in bringing together some of the top talents in the airshow circuit. The show gave the public a glimpse of the world’s finest precision military and civilian demonstration teams.