Fort Bliss Monitor

Thunderbirds soar into town

Donita Kelly
Public Affairs Office

Look to the skies this afternoon as the U.S. Air Force’s Air Demonstration Team soars into town for this weekend’s 23rd Annual Amigo Airsho. Celebrating their 51st anniversary as an Air Demonstration Unit, the Thunderbirds return to action over El Paso following a six year hiatus.

The Thunderbirds’ demonstration is a mix of formation flying and solo routines. The pilots perform about 40 maneuvers in a demonstration. The entire show, including ground and air, runs about one hour and is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m.

Other aerial performances include the U.S. Air Force’s F-15, F-16 and A-10 aircraft in individual demonstrations, and participating in the P-47 Heritage Flight. The Red Baron Squadron also returns to the El Paso skies with their crowd pleasing show. New in this year’s line up is Michael Mancuso performing in his Klein Tools Extra 300L.

Traveling on the ground, but really should be in the air, is the Shockwave Jet Truck. Racing airplanes at air shows, Shockwave has been known to exceed 300 mph. In fact, it holds the world record for trucks – 376 mph.
Other ground activities include the popular CarSho. All the local car clubs were invited to participate in this year’s show. More than 150 cars will be featured throughout the weekend. Saturday’s show will feature the euro cars and Sunday’s the classics. For those wanting to be actively involved, the Mt. Rushmore Climbing Experience and the Titanic Giant Slide will be set up at the show.

The gates open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Aerial activities begin at noon. For safety reasons, no pets or smoking are authorized on the field.

The Amigo Airsho will once again be on the tarmac at Biggs Army Airfield. Construction and mobilization efforts have slightly altered the Airsho parking plan. The general public will use the Biggs Gate and Founders Gate entrances.

Fort Bliss personnel with post decals should use the Carrington Street bridge to access Biggs Army Airfield. Traffic control and parking volunteers will direct you to the closest parking.

There are several options available for purchasing tickets. General admission tickets are available at all Good Time Stores and at the Fort Bliss ITR Office. Pre-sale tickets may be purchased through tomorrow. For those willing to pay a little extra, Chalet tickets, which include food, drink, shade and front row seats are also available.

For information on the Airsho, call 562-6446 or visit them at www.amigoairsho.org
Be prepared this afternoon for a grand entrance by the Thunderbirds. Expect a sampling today and tomorrow of how they will enthuse Airsho-goers this weekend.



www.bliss.army.mil	Published for the Fort Bliss/El Paso, Texas Community	October 21, 2004

<map name="boxmap-b4"> <area shape="rect" coords="0, 589, 120, 600" href="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm/privacy-policy.html?o=1" > <area coords="0,0,10000,10000" href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/redirect?tag=&creative=92501&camp=8117&link_code=dl1&path=subst/misc/amazon-cobrand-cc/v3/marketing-from-associates-step1.html/ref%3Db1_assoc_29" > </map>	Thunderbirds soar into town Donita Kelly Public Affairs Office Look to the skies this afternoon as the U.S. Air Force’s Air Demonstration Team soars into town for this weekend’s 23rd Annual Amigo Airsho. Celebrating their 51st anniversary as an Air Demonstration Unit, the Thunderbirds return to action over El Paso following a six year hiatus. The Thunderbirds’ demonstration is a mix of formation flying and solo routines. The pilots perform about 40 maneuvers in a demonstration. The entire show, including ground and air, runs about one hour and is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. Other aerial performances include the U.S. Air Force’s F-15, F-16 and A-10 aircraft in individual demonstrations, and participating in the P-47 Heritage Flight. The Red Baron Squadron also returns to the El Paso skies with their crowd pleasing show. New in this year’s line up is Michael Mancuso performing in his Klein Tools Extra 300L. Traveling on the ground, but really should be in the air, is the Shockwave Jet Truck. Racing airplanes at air shows, Shockwave has been known to exceed 300 mph. In fact, it holds the world record for trucks – 376 mph. Other ground activities include the popular CarSho. All the local car clubs were invited to participate in this year’s show. More than 150 cars will be featured throughout the weekend. Saturday’s show will feature the euro cars and Sunday’s the classics. For those wanting to be actively involved, the Mt. Rushmore Climbing Experience and the Titanic Giant Slide will be set up at the show. The gates open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Aerial activities begin at noon. For safety reasons, no pets or smoking are authorized on the field. The Amigo Airsho will once again be on the tarmac at Biggs Army Airfield. Construction and mobilization efforts have slightly altered the Airsho parking plan. The general public will use the Biggs Gate and Founders Gate entrances. Fort Bliss personnel with post decals should use the Carrington Street bridge to access Biggs Army Airfield. Traffic control and parking volunteers will direct you to the closest parking. There are several options available for purchasing tickets. General admission tickets are available at all Good Time Stores and at the Fort Bliss ITR Office. Pre-sale tickets may be purchased through tomorrow. For those willing to pay a little extra, Chalet tickets, which include food, drink, shade and front row seats are also available. For information on the Airsho, call 562-6446 or visit them at www.amigoairsho.org Be prepared this afternoon for a grand entrance by the Thunderbirds. Expect a sampling today and tomorrow of how they will enthuse Airsho-goers this weekend.