F-16 Fighting Falcon News

December 9, 2010 (by Lieven Dewitte) - The US Air Force Flight Demonstration Squadron, the Thunderbirds, has announced their show schedule for the 2011 season.
Following winter training, the team begins the season in on February 20th with a flyover at the NASCAR Great American race - the Daytona 500. The teams will begin the airshow season on March 19-20 with a performance at Luke AFB in Arizona. Their season will conclude on November 12-13 at Nellis AFB in Nevada.

Demonstration sites are selected in support of the Department of Defense objectives and in the interest of the armed services with safety as the primary consideration. Performances greatly assist in the recruiting and retention goals for the military services, enhance esprit de corps among uniformed men and women and demonstrate the professional skills and capabilities of the Air Force to the American public and U.S. Allies.

The schedule posted to this blog is subject to change without notice and is weather permitting, for everyones safety.

Stay tuned to the MMP blog and check the "Milcom Blog Guide to Airshows" section on the right hand side of this blog for links to other schedules and field reports from readers during the airshow season.

Don't forget to checkout our 12th annual Air Show Guide that will appear in the March 2011 issue of Monitoring Times magazine. It will be loaded with the latest frequencies (for US and foreign teams), combined schedules, and radio equipment recommendations to make your air show experience an enjoyable and pleasurable one.

The web version of our March guide won't be posted to the MT website until mid to late April. This is done as a courtesy to our subscribers and readers who pay the freight. So get your copy of the March issue before it sells out when it is released in the last week of February. Better yet, get a subscription and don't miss a single exciting issue of Monitoring Times magazine.

I hope to have a more detailed schedule very soon when the team makes its official release later this month, so stay tuned to this blog for the latest updates.

2011 Show Schedule

February 2011

• February 20 NASCAR Daytona 500 Fly-By, Daytona Beach, Florida

March 2011

• March 19-20 Luke AFB, Arizona
• March 26-27 Tyndall AFB, Florida

April 2011

• April 2-3 Ceiba, Puerto Rico
• April 9 Charleston AFB, South Carolina
• April 16-17 Seymour Johnson AFB, North Carolina
• April 30 Beale AFB, California

May 2011

• May 1 Beale AFB, California
• May 7-8 Smyrna, Tennessee
• May 14-15 Langley AFB, Virginia
• May 21-22 Andrews AFB, Maryland (the reunion airshow)
• May 25 USAF Academy, Colorado

June 2011 (European Tour)

• June 4-5 Cigli AB, Izmir, Turkey
• June 11-12 Jesolo AB, Italy
• June 15 Karup AB, Denmark
• June 18-19 Turku AB, Finland
• June 25 Graf Ignatievo AB, Bulgaria

July 2011 (European Tour continues)

• July 2-3 RAF, Waddington, UK
• July 6-7 Koksijde AB, Belgium
• July 9-10 Off Weekend for the Team
• July 16-17 Off Weekend for the Team
• July 23-24 Dayton, Ohio
• July 27 Cheyenne, Wyoming
• July 30-31 Travis AFB, California

August 2011

• August 6-7 Milwaukee, Wisconsin
• August 13-14 Portsmouth, New Hampshire
• August 17 Atlantic City, New Jersey
• August 20-21 Chicago, Ilinois
• August 27-28 Waterloo, Iowa

September 2011

• September 3-5 Cleveland, Ohio
• September 10-11 Niagara Falls, New York
• September 15 Reno, Nevada
• September 17-18 Mountain Home AFB, Idaho
• September 24-25 Hill AFB, Utah

October 2011

• October 1-2 Fort Smith, Arkansas
• October 8 Holloman AFB, New Mexico
• October 15-16 Laughlin AFB, Texas
• October 22-23 Ft Worth, Texas
• October 29-30 Lafayette, Louisiana

November 2011

• November 5-6 MacDill AFB, Florida
• November 12-13 Nellis AFB, Nevada