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| With red, white and blue smoke on, the Patriots Jet Team complete a pass at a recent air show. The Patriots will appear this weekend at the California International Airshow Salinas at the Salinas Municipal Airport. |
It’s small, fast and incredibly nimble.
And used by the Patriots Jet Team of Byron, California (think the farthest eastern reaches of the San Francisco Bay Area), you have an aerobatic jet team that has few rivals.
The one thing, however, about the L-39: It’s not loud.
But where they may not have the ear-bursting crackle of the bigger military jets, the Patriots make up for in sheer art while in the sky.
I mean it’s a jet, for cryin’ out loud, but compared, say, to the F/A-18 Hornets the Navy’s Blue Angels fly or the F-16 Fighting Falcons the Air Force’s Thunderbirds fly, the Patriots are relatively quiet while in the air.
And, while I probably shouldn’t admit this as a hardcore air show fan, I really kind of like that relative quiet. As a fan it allows me to concentrate on the music the team is playing and their overall choreography.
For that reason and others I am really looking forward to arrival of the Patriots at this weekend’s California International Airshow Salinas.
Recently I had the chance to chat with Randy Howell, the team’s founder and leader. I told him I thought his team was a lot like the Canadian Forces Snowbirds, a team that also flies a trainer, the CT-114 Tutor. Howell appreciated the comparison.
“The Snowbirds are great — we love them. The thing about our team is that we are ‘high energy’ — we’re just not very noisy,” Howell said.
Howell said the Patriots try to keep their jets in front of the air show audience at all times throughout their routine — something the more powerful military acts cannot always do.
“We break ourselves up into 2-, 4- and 6-ship units to do that. Then at some point we re-emerge into a six-ship formation,” Howell said.
To make their shows great, the Patriots depend on music, choreography and smoke — the latter emanating from their jets in red, white and blue. Aside from their stunning 6-ship formation loops and barrel rolls, the two-jet opposed “collision” still thrills after all my years of watching airshows. This is the maneuver when two jets appear to be on a collision course and then veer or roll away from one other at the last second.
The great thing about the Patriots is that while the fliers are now all civilians, all of them came to join the team after extensive years and thousands of hours in commercial or military aviation. In fact, some served as members of the Blue Angels, Thunderbirds or Snowbirds.
Bruce Adams, executive director of the Airshow, said he loves booking the Patriots.
“The Patriots are the world's best privately owned 6-ship jet team. They are exciting to watch in their sleek black L-39 jets, and are flown by passionate veteran pilots formerly with the Blue Angels, Thunderbirds, and Snowbirds. What makes them truly unique is their skill and ability to perform aerial maneuvers that the military teams cannot. Precision flying to the edge of the aircraft's capability makes them highly entertaining to watch,” Adams said.
So here on the eve of the 35th Salinas Airshow, my thoughts drift toward all the kids that will look up into the sky this weekend and wonder if ‘that could be them someday.’”
My answer — as corny as it might sound — is a resounding yes! But you have stay in school, take lots of math and science and never lose sight of your goals. Trust me, if you want it bad enough, you’ll get there.
The great thing about this particular event, besides the fact that it gives so much back to local charities, is how it entertains, educates and inspires all at the same time.
Over these past few weeks regular readers of this column know what a big supporter of this airshow I’ve become since coming to Salinas in 2010.
How can you not like an effort that is brought to life each year by hundreds of selfless volunteers?
I hope you and your family will join me at the airport this weekend.
See you on the flightline!
Civic Chronicles columnist Jeff Mitchell covers politics, government and life in the Salinas Valley on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Reach him at 831-754-4281 or email him at jemitchell@thecalifornian.com
2015 Salinas Airshow at a glance
The 35th California International Airshow Salinas is set for Sept. 26-27 at Salinas Municipal Airport featuring these performers:
•The U.S. Air Force’s F-22 Raptor Jet Demonstration
•The Patriots Jet Team
•Canadian Forces CF-18 Hornet Jet Demonstration
•Acemaker Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star Jet Demonstration
•Jacquie B. Warda Extra 300 Aerobatics
•Metal Mulisha Extreme Motocross Demonstration
•The Incredible Wall of Fire
•U.S. Air Force Heritage Formation Flight featuring the F-22 Raptor and a Lockheed P-38 Lightning
•Dozens of static displays, including the massive C-5 Galaxy transport
To purchase tickets, visit www.salinasairshow.com or call 831-754-1983.
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