Arctic Thunder 2008 . . .

I do not know if it is the ‘kid’ in us that still has that longing to see things go fast or make loud noises while at the same time allowing us to marvel how incredible man (or woman) can make an aircraft perform.

Arctic Thunder did not disappoint this year as Elmendorf Air Force Base hosted a weekend celebration of Alaska’s 50^th Statehood anniversary and military family appreciation.

It started with a concert on Friday night, continued Saturday with the first air show and finished this afternoon after another crowd pleasing flight demonstration. Almost one hundred thousand people showed up for Saturday’s and another fifty thousand or more are expected today to see all that is on display or in the skies over Anchorage. On Saturday, we actually had a taste of traffic like Outside as cars jammed the designated parking lots and officials opened overflow lots. They were asking people on the news to ease traffic today by car pooling, coming early and taking the shuttles from parking lots. I had almost forgotten what stop and go traffic was like.

Things started with The U.S. Air Force Academy Wings of Blue parachute team dropping in from the skies with the American Flag and the Alaska Flag which is a field of blue with the gold stars for the Big Dipper and the North Star.

The static displays on the tarmac allowed kids young and old to get a close up look at both civilian and military aircraft. Some of the displays could be climbed on or walked into for a first hand look which thrilled everyone.

There were old and new war birds in the air ranging from a B-25 Mitchell Bomber with a P-51 doing a simulated bombing run to light the “We’re In” bonfire across the runway from the viewing areas. There were also the big birds of the military including transports the C-17 Globemaster and the C5-A Galaxy.

One of the interesting flights was the P-51 flying with the F-22 Raptor . . .

And the F-22 Raptor doing a high G-force climb with a wet and wild

After all of the military and civilian flybys it was time for the stars of the show to take off and WOW us with what they do best . . . Fly!

The precision of the takeoffs to the mix of slow and fast flight made an interesting mix of ooohhh’s and ahhh’s from the crowd.

People pointed their cameras and fingers upward toward four red, white and blue Air Force planes flying in a row east toward the mountains Saturday afternoon at Elmendorf.

The F-16s glided into a diamond formation and, within seconds, rolled 360 degrees in sync . . .

Just as they appeared to kiss the mountains, another plane swooped unexpectedly over the audience.

WHOOOSH as the afterburners lit up!

Babies screamed . . . Adults shrieked . . . You stood still, you couldn't move to see what was coming up next from either the four plane formation or the two ‘solo’ pilots who broke your attention from one direction to another.

It was an awesome display of what our military are trained to be . . . the best at what they do . . . whether it was the pilots in the air or their ground crew members making sure everything is right for another breathtaking . . . jaw dropping . . . performance.

Again, we thank our military and their families for the sacrifices made to ensure our freedoms and those around the world seeking the same.

Ice