It was early summertime, but across America there was a heatwave! There had been triple digit weather in my city so thinking of going somewhere for the weekend might not have been a bad idea.
It's probably been around five (5) years or so that I last visited Dayton, Ohio where I went to see the Air Force Museum, and was curious to find the gravesite of the Wright Brothers.
This time, the annual Dayton Air Show is what fueled my interest in this short trip. The 2-day event was held at the Dayton International Airport in Vandalia, just outside the city. Now in it's 12th year, the show is getting bigger and bigger each time, the show's producers said. Most of the surrounding hotels/motels were fully booked with tourists from nearby states or across the country.
The night before the show, I got some news update of what to expect. Weather-wise, it was forecasted to be in the 100's! And I thought I could escape the heat in Louisville, lol!
I brought with me some bottled water, sunblock, handheld umbrella (patio umbrellas weren't allowed) & a folding chair, but I was still wondering if I would survive the heat for the entire show, which ran from 11am 'til 4:30pm!
The show started with an air drop of the US flag, with Ms Ohio America 2012 singing the national anthem. Then the flight exhibition goes on and on. What really impressed me was "Tora,Tora, Tora," where the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941 was re-enacted, with all the blasting and sirens going off, it gave the presentation realism! And of course, the show's finale, the Blue Angels! Precision was the perfect word to describe it! Just amazing!
The second day was spent mostly on viewing some of the aircraft that were on display, both from the US Air Force and privately owned. It was a good learning experience, and what was quite exciting was being able to get in the cockpits and sit in the pilot's seats. The pilots and event staff were very nice and answered queries too.
I was thinking of knocking it down and staying only half of the day, but it didn't happen, as the line to every aircraft was getting longer as the day went on. I ended up staying all day which gave me the chance to take more photos of the Blue Angels in action, some of which you can see below.
A great event and I didn't melt either...
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| The show started with a "Flag Drop". |
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| Misty Blues--The all-female skydivers. |
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| Wingwalking! Gene Soucy & Teresa Stokes. |
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| Tora! Tora! Tora! |
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| The 1941 Pearl Harbor bombing re-enactment. |
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| The amazing US Navy Blue Angels! |
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| The US Navy Blue Angels' exhilirating demonstration! |
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| An array of US military and private aircrafts... |
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| Pilots welcomed guests to their planes... |
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| The cargo area inside a FedEx aircraft... |
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| The heat didn't prevent the crowd from enjoying the event... |
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| Probably the best seat to view the air show... |
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| Handy digital cameras and shades, a must for this event... |
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| Instinct of a thirsty toddler... |
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| Theodore Van Kirk signing his book. He was the navigator of the Enola Gay when it dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima. He's the last surviving member of the Enola Gay crew. |
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| US Air Force personnel making the rounds at the Dayton Air Show. |
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| Press coverage of the event. |
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| Air Show enthusiasts were everywhere during the show... |
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| Can't tell the planes apart without a program! |
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| The planes move faster when you buy a drink from these guys! LOL |
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| Colorful vendors row... |
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| People had fun signing the gigantic tennis ball! |
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