If you’ve never seen the Air Force Thunderbirds, or if you want to seem them again — which you do — now is your chance.
They will headline the Cannon Air Force Base Air Show this weekend: a perfect way for you and your family to honor Memorial Day and witness the precision and pride of America’s Ambassadors in Blue.
I got the rare opportunity to go behind the scenes, and in the backseat of a Thunderbirds jet: The F-16 Fighting Falcon.
After several briefings, they suited me up and strapped the beast to my back: the pilot, Thunderbird #7, Major Kevin Walsh, call sign: “Lowen.”
After an unrestricted takeoff, from flat to vertical and up two miles in a matter of G-forced heartbeats, he took me through all the maneuvers the T-Birds will do in the show this weekend; barrel rolls, eight-point aileron rolls, vertical corkscrews and more.
What’s remarkable is how smooth it looks from the ground, but how brutal it can be in the plane.
And the Thunderbirds demonstration isn’t only thousands of feet up, it’s grounded by a crew of the best in the Air Force. There are more that 120 on the team who do everything from maintain the machines to grooming the gear to pleasing the public and doing it all to the highest of standards.
So this Memorial Day weekend, give some time to those who have fought and fallen for freedom, see just how much time and effort and perfection your military contributes, and let your family see, hear and feel the roar of Freedom that IS the United States Air Force Thunderbirds.