The U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels precision-flying team roared over Andrews Air Force Base this weekend, drawing about a quarter-million visitors to see the newest and the oldest flying machines in America’s arsenal.
The high-speed rolls, dives and near-misses by the Blue Angels and other stunt pilots were part of an air show that featured equipment and aircraft from every branch of the U.S. military.
On Saturday, attendance was “record-breaking” for the Andrews Air Force Base air shows, with about 150,000 visitors, said Staff Sgt. Jennifer Redente, an Air Force spokeswoman. As the parking spaces at FedEx Field filled to capacity and the crowd at the air base grew beyond expectations, the military stopped allowing more people to enter the free show.
Television ads as well as posters on Metro buses and trains apparently contributed to the record attendance Saturday, she said.
Rain kept attendance to a much smaller number yesterday.
The visitors could see nearly every kind of airplane the Air Force has ever used, from biplanes to the menacing F-22 Raptor, the latest jet to be adopted by the military.
Its roaring engines forced many onlookers to cover their ears as they watched the plane approaching at low altitude, followed a second or two later by the sound of its jets.
The military had 150 aircraft at the show along with 70 other displays of tanks, armored personnel carriers and other weaponry.
They covered a swath of the “flight line” next to the runways that stretched a quarter-mile wide and three-quarters of a mile long.
“If someone had brought me to one of the shows when I was younger, I might have joined one of the [military] branches,” said Christopher Hahn, 30, a mechanic from Baltimore.
Air Force officials acknowledge the air shows are a powerful recruiting tool for the military.
“It absolutely does” aid recruiting, said Maj. Alana Casanova, an Air Force public-affairs officer.
Visitors “get to talk to the people who may be back from a campaign,” she said.
She was referring to military personnel who stood near the aircraft and weaponry displays to speak with visitors and explain how the equipment works.
“It gives them a different perspective,” Maj. Casanova said.
The unloaded guns appeared to be popular with children, who sometimes gripped the triggers and aimed them at other people or objects.
Judging by the crush of crowds next to the runway as the jets started flying, the Blue Angels were the biggest attraction.
“They’re my favorite,” said Camden Drewry, 8, who attended the show with his mother, Tina Drewry, of Baltimore County. “They fly upside-down and get really close.”
This year’s show was a tribute to the 60th anniversary of the Berlin Airlift of 1948. Following World War II, the Russian army surrounded Berlin and refused to allow people, food or supplies to enter or leave the city, creating the threat of mass starvation. The population was saved by U.S. air transports of food and supplies over East Germany.
A C-54 transport plane that participated in the Berlin Airlift was displayed at the show. Nearby was a booth set up by the German government with a sign commemorating the air transports.
“Friends Forever,” the sign said.
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