The U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds roar overhead at Falcon Stadium in Colorado Springs, Colo., June 1, 2023, following the graduation ceremony at the U.S. Air Force Academy. (Justin R. Pacheco)
(Tribune News Service) — For Westmoreland County Air Show attendees who caught the Air Force Thunderbirds when they last visited in 2017, the F-16 pilots have some new moves in store.
"During 2020, when all of the airshows got canceled, we spent the whole year redesigning our show," said Maj. Jake Impellizzeri of Cincinnati, who flies the Thunderbirds No. 3 jet. "Our show is fast, loud and includes a lot of maneuvers that are done right in front of the crowd."
The Thunderbirds showcase U.S. fighter pilot elite skills and demonstrate the capabilities of the Air Force's main multi-role fighter jet, the F-16 Fighting Falcon. The navy blue outline of a bird of prey can be seen when viewing the plane directly from above or underneath.
This year's show is about 38 minutes long, said Impellizzeri, whose flight call sign is "Primo."
"We actually worked a lot with Disney when we redesigned the show, and sort of modeled it on a fireworks display — false finales, a big finish — those sorts of things," he said.
The revamped show also has new music and narration.
Impellizzeri said it's the most difficult flying he's done in his life.
"We're really 18 inches apart and going more than 500 mph," he said. "We train twice a day between November and March. We spend two hours debriefing after every training flight, going over every maneuver and mistake. We're always striving to be perfect."
The entire Thunderbirds unit is comprised of 135 personnel doing nearly 30 jobs, in addition to the eight officers who serve as pilots.
"Numbers 1 to 4 make up 'The Diamonds,' who show perfection in formation, which is all about grace and smoothness," Impellizzeri said. "Then Nos. 5 and 6 are the solo pilots, sort of the 'shock-and-awe' that show you the full capabilities of an F-16."
The team is about a third of the way through its performance season, with a show that's well-honed and ready to wow the Westmoreland Air Show crowd.
"Every time I strap into the jet, I'm nervous," Impellizzeri said, "but it's an excited nervous."
An Air Force homecoming
In addition to the Thunderbirds team, which arrived at the Arnold Palmer Regional Airport on Wednesday, another Air Force pilot will be making his way to Unity, Pa., on Thursday morning.
John Stein, a pilot with the 2nd Fighter Training Squadron, can recall going to the air show when he was growing up in Latrobe. His first flight lesson took place at the Palmer Regional Airport.
"We're going to be moving some of our jets from Eglin Air Force Base in Florida up to Langley Air Force Base (in Hampton, Va.)," said Stein, 26, a 2015 Greater Latrobe graduate. "This worked as a great stopping point."
Stein received permission from his superiors to fly into Palmer Regional on Thursday, where he'll have a chance to visit with his parents, check out the airshow and put his plane on display over the weekend.
"It's really coming full circle," he said. "Going to the airshow was how I first got the idea to be a fighter pilot."
These days, Stein impersonates enemy aircraft as a member of the 2nd Fighter Training Squadron, where he is in his second year of a three-year assignment.
"Our squadron isn't that well-known," Stein said. "We provide replication of enemy aircraft, sort of a professional 'bad guy' replication. We do dogfights against (the military's latest fighter jets) and provide them some real-world training."
For the coming weekend, though, he's just excited about returning to the air show.
"The timeline just happened to work out great," he said.
The Shop 'n Save Westmoreland County Air Show will take place Saturday and Sunday at the airport in Unity.
Tickets are $15 in advance at area Shop 'n Save stores through Sunday, and $25 at the gate. Children 10 and under are admitted free.
For parking and more information, see PalmerAirport.com/airshow.
(c)2023 Tribune-Review (Greensburg, Pa.)
Visit www.triblive.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
