F-35 and Airshows

F-35A 2022 Oregon Airshow
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RlhEq7Un1_M
F-35C 2022 Salinas Air Show
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RN3errew3YQ

BEO Interview Articles.
https://www.fox13now.com/news/local-new ... or-airshow

Hill Air Force Base's own F-35 demo team prepares for airshow
By: Spencer Joseph Posted at Jun 03, 2022
HILL AIR FORCE BASE, Utah — It's been four long years since Utah hosted an airshow, but soon that will all change.
In three weeks, the "Warriors Over the Wasatch" airshow will take flight at Hill Air Force Base.
FOX 13 News got a sneak preview of why this year will be bigger and better. It will feature some local talent, too.
This will be an extra special show because, for the first time, their home F-35A Lightning II Demonstration Team will be taking to the skies over Utah.

“This is our last practice before the local Hill air show,” said Major Kristin “Beo” Wolfe, the commander of the demo team. “It’s awesome — this is obviously our home base. We've been here since 2019 when we started practicing.”
The team was scheduled to be a part of the 2020 show, but with it being canceled, it was a letdown for all.
“We're really excited just to get everybody out — especially the local community — onto the base just to see this airplane, the Thunderbirds," Wolfe said. "It's going to be a huge lineup."
While it's the first time they are being shown off in Utah, these jets aren't just for show.

“We don't modify the airplanes, take out any sensors anything. Like, this airplane could go to war tomorrow with bombs in it,” Beo said. "We've got like about 78 tails [fighters] on the ramp out here, and so we can take any single one of those and do the exact same show that we just showed you.”
Wolfe has flown the F-16 Falcon/Viper, the F-22 Raptor, and now the F-35 Lightning II.
“I love this airplane because it's the newest, latest, and greatest. You know, when you kind of get into your habit patterns and pretty focused on the maneuvers,” she said about the F-35A Lightning II. “You're the only person in the airplane; The airplane does whatever you want it to do. It's like flying a roller coaster.”
“We're the first active-duty base in the United States Air Force that has truly capable F 35s that can go to war,” added Kevin Ireland, the executive director of the Utah Airshow Foundation, adding how exciting it will be to see their pride and joy at Hill fly over a home crowd.

Ireland also knows how difficult it has been.
He said the last four years have been tough because the show relied on the 2020 show to raise funds.
"It was a hit to our pocketbooks," Ireland said. "We planned this show almost two years out. And we were within 90 days of launching the show, and then it got canceled.”
But he added that they were going to make 2022 work, and now the show is just three weeks away.

For those pilots in the sky like Wolfe, it's going to be an exciting first opportunity to inspire a home crowd.
“That's the rewarding part, honestly — for me, and as well as the team maintainers, to see the impact that we get to have,” she said. "Just to get kids, especially young kids, excited to fill our shoes one day."
The show will take place all day on June 25 and 26th. Entrance is free, and Ireland recommends attendees take the train to Hill AFB.
The USAF Thunderbirds will also put on a performance during the show. The full schedule is forthcoming.

https://www.ksl.com/article/50416977/wa ... l-air-show

War-ready F-35 fighter jets show off before Hill air show
By Logan Stefanich, KSL.com | Posted - June 3, 2022
HILL AIR FORCE BASE — Flying fighter jets is in Maj. Kristin "BEO" Wolfe's blood.
"My dad was a fighter pilot, so (I was) born on an Air Force base, moved around in the Air Force my entire life — so very familiar with that military lifestyle," Wolfe said.
Despite the familiarity, Wolfe didn't decide that she wanted to pursue a military career until she was in college, where she joined the ROTC, before being commissioned into the Air Force two years later.
Now, Wolfe is an experienced fighter pilot with more than 800 flying hours in the F-35A Lightning II and F-22A Raptor under her belt, as well as a feature spot in the Air Force's new "Own the Sky" commercial.

On Friday, Wolfe could be seen performing aerial maneuvers over the Wasatch mountains during an F-35A Lightning II Demonstration Team practice show in preparation for the upcoming Warriors Over the Wasatch Air and Space Show.
The show, which is returning to Hill Air Force Base on June 25 and 26 after a four-year hiatus, will feature the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds alongside more than a dozen world-class acts, including Wolfe flying in Hill Air Force Base's very own F-35A Lightning II Demonstration Team.
"We're very excited, this is the largest show that we've put on in many, many, years ... people are going to be thrilled with what they're going to be able to experience," said Kevin Ireland, executive director at the Utah Air Show Foundation.
Friday's practice demonstration featured a breathtaking array of aerial maneuvers in an F-35A Lightning II that Wolfe said features the "latest and greatest" in aviation technology.

"Some of the airplanes that we take on the air show circuit have less than 200 hours on them and they're like five years newer than my car," Wolfe said.
Watching Wolfe perform her aerial acrobatics while in the cockpit of a fighter jet is certainly an adrenaline rush in its own right, even for those on the ground. And, as far as how it feels to fly an F-35?
"It's like flying a roller coaster," Wolfe said.
Though a task compared to flying a roller coaster might seem daunting to anyone else, to Wolfe, it's like second nature.

"Pretty focused out there. You know, once the canopy closes you forget everybody on the outside and you forget kind of what's going on, all the cameras and people watching and you kind of get into your habit patterns and pretty focused on the maneuvers," Wolfe said. "It is pretty aggressive flying ... a lot of G's, a lot of strenuous maneuvers, but it's a lot of fun."
Wolfe and the F-35 team have been flying across the country performing at various air shows, but she said that it's an "awesome" feeling to return to Utah and put on a show on her home turf.
"This is obviously our home base, we've been here since 2019. We started practicing (and) skipped the 2020 air show, so we're really excited to see everybody out and especially the local community," Wolfe said.

Even though the F-35A Lightning IIs are flown in the air show circuit, Wolfe emphasized that the fighter jets aren't modified in any capacity for the shows.
"This airplane could go to war tomorrow with bombs in it," Wolfe said. "Some of them come back from war (and) we fly them in demos."
In addition to giving the local community — and others who come from all across the U.S. — a glimpse of what happens behind the gates of Hill Air Force Base, Wolfe said that air shows serve as crucial recruiting tools for the military.
"Just to get kids, especially young kids, excited to fill our shoes one day so it's a huge recruitment platform for us," Wolfe said. "We just hope to inspire literally anyone that's out here watching."

Demo team explains.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CegrGV8LZYX/

f35demoteam
June 7, 2022
Ready? Break!!
#didyouknow: Our 2-ship Heritage Flights typically culminates with a maneuver called the "switch break" at show center?
If you've ever been curious about what goes into this maneuver at the end of our demonstration, here's a look at how the "switch break" looks from inside the cockpit vs. how you might see it at an air show.

Notes from our pilot
This maneuver is designed to appear to the crowd as if the two aircraft have converging flight paths, when in reality they're safely de-conflicted. With lots of practice and choreographed radio calls,
the "switch break" is a big crowd pleaser when we nail the illusion.
Here's how we do it - When passing overtop show center, the lead aircraft, (in this case the P-38), directs the wingman, (us), to "Lag." The wingman pulls power slightly to slide aft and descends slightly.
Once the fighter has ensured nose/tail separation and calls "Clear," the lead pilot calls "Ready, Break" and the two aircraft break in opposite directions towards each other.

USAF to counter Top Gun.
https://www.flyingmag.com/flying-fancy- ... erobatics/

Flying Fancy: USAF Fighter Pilot Demos F-35 Aerobatics
Second-generation USAF fighter pilot Maj. Kristin 'Beo' Wolfe's aerobatic maneuvers were featured in a new commercial paired with Top Gun: Maverick.
By Kimberly Johnson May 30, 2022
Editor’s Note: When pilot Maj. Kristin “Beo” Wolfe finished F-22 pilot training in 2013, she became the second-generation U.S. Air Force fighter pilot in her family. Trained to fly both the F-22 Raptor and the F-35A Lightning II, she now sets the bar for flying the service’s single-seat stealth combat aircraft as commander of the F-35A Demonstration Team, 388th Fighter Wing based at Hill Air Force Base, Utah. Her aerobatics were featured in the service’s “Own The Sky” commercial, which is paired with Top Gun: Maverick in theaters. She recently sat down to chat with FLYING, recalling her first flight in an F-35, what it’s like being a female fighter pilot and how the reality of flying fifth-generation fighters differs from cinematic portrayals. Here are her words, lightly edited for space and clarity.
I flew the [F-22] Raptor first. That airplane’s a little more impressive on takeoff. The first time you take off in those airplanes, it’s you alone in the cockpit. They don’t have any two-seater models. I think flying a really advanced, powerful fighter for the first time, especially by yourself not having an instructor inside with you—they’re actually in another plane, on the radio with you—is a pretty cool experience.
We, of course, have a lot of emergency procedures, training and the simulators prior to being allowed to, you know, step foot, or even take off in one of those airplanes. Generally, you’ve got at least a handful of takeoffs and landings under your belt before you’re allowed to do it in real life. So that training just takes over. And it becomes, you know, very focused on habit patterns and stuff, you’ve learned to bring the airplane safely back. It’s kind of a whirlwind. And then every time after that, you know, you get to enjoy the moment. It feels like you’re flying a roller coaster sometimes, taking off and landing at 150 miles an hour.
Anytime you fly an airplane for the first time, the whole purpose is to get the lay of the land and feel what the airplane feels like. The profiles and anytime we go out in an airplane—in at least a military airplane—we have very specific what we call learning objectives for that day. So that includes, you know, doing some advanced handling with the airplane, just seeing basic turns, loops, how the airplane feels and flies at different altitudes, low speed, high speed. So that’s generally your first take flying the airplane. You come back over to the field, you know, doing some little approaches before you’re actually allowed to, you know, land it for the final time. That’s a general profile with the instructor alongside you leading you through it.
The acceleration isn’t like getting shot off an aircraft carrier, so it’s not that aggressive. It’s not like zero to 150 in a couple seconds. It’s definitely an acceleration, you know, pushed back in the seat a little bit. But, you’ve seen the sight picture and done it, you know, like I said, 10 to 20 times in that simulator, so you’ve seen what it feels like. But you add in the noises and the feels and the rumbles. It’s probably what you would assume is going from—in a racecar—going from zero to 150 to take off as well. So, there’s definitely the acceleration, you feel the power of the motor right under you.

How does the reality of flying a fighter jet differ from the Hollywood treatment?
I haven’t seen Top Gun: Maverick. Hopefully, they’re trying to make it as realistic as possible. But you know, there’s a lot more than just dogfighting other airplanes and wildly maneuvering the airplane. That makes for good TV, [but] there’s a lot of different things that go on, you know, in real life. … The fighting in relation to other airplanes is more a thing of the past, at least for the fifth-generation fighters that I fly. Our goal as a fifth-generation fighter is to be stealthy, which means you’re detecting and shooting missiles at people way before they even know you’re there, way before they can even target you and shoot back. That all happens basically in straight-level flight. You know, getting high and fast to shoot the missiles. It’s not as wildly aggressive of maneuvering that makes for good TV. So that’s a lot of what people don’t see.

What was it like to film the commercial?
It was a good time. We had all four demo teams out there to film together. [We were] working with a civilian production company in an airplane, which is a little bit difficult to get on the same terminology when you’re talking about civilian and military flying. They’re talking about, you know, cinematography, things that they want to see and what they want to, they want you to do and try to translate that into military terms, to both, you know, comprehend that, tell them what we can and can’t do, what would maybe look more realistic than what they’re trying to get. But ultimately, I think it turned out some really good footage of all the airplanes showing off what at least the fighter side of aviation can do.

Your dad was a fighter pilot. How did that inspire your career choice?
I was born on an Air Force base and moved around throughout his assignments. So [after] moving around every couple of years, I was very used to that military lifestyle. As a kid running around through fighter squadrons, at all the social events, it was just a thing that me and my siblings did. It was a very normal way of life, of being involved in like that, that Air Force fighter pilot, fighter squadron mentality. That was a familiar thing for me. I honestly didn’t think about joining the Air Force or even being a pilot till much, much later in college. For me, it was you know, very familiar with moving around, it was something I actually enjoyed versus living in one spot for an extended period of time. I figured, you know, the military might be a right fit for me. I started researching options from there, and eventually found my way towards the Air Force and then applying for a pilot slot. There wasn’t a “must fulfill this legacy of being a fighter pilot” sort of thing. That was never pressured from myself or for my parents. It’s just something that seemed to fit my personality and lifestyle the best as I found my own path later on.

What’s it been like as a female aviator in a male-dominated career field?
It’s honestly a non-event. It’s a very rank-based structure, it’s very skill-based. Obviously, we’ve been opening up more and more jobs to women as we go along, but the standards are exactly the same. As long as you can do your job, fly the airplane, know the tactics, you know, perform exactly as well as the men, that’s all anybody cares about. Because they want to take the best people to war. Everybody wants the best wingman beside them. They really don’t care what they look like, what they sound like, where they came from, or you know, what they’ve been through. It really just matters if you can perform at the end of the day.

What did your dad say when you told him you were joining the Air Force?
I think he was probably excited, just to be able to talk to someone about the military and aviation and fighters and all that. That’s something that he enjoys. And it’s a common ground that, obviously, we can talk about now—how things have changed and how things are exactly the same.

What’s the demo team pace like?
In the Air Force, people are mostly familiar with the Thunderbirds and the Blue Angels. Those are multi-ship, they’re flying up to six airplanes at a given time very close together. The Air Force also has four single-ship demo teams, where we fly one airplane at an air show in about a 15-minute routine. We do 15 minutes, all to narration of music. [We] travel around the country, sometimes internationally to air shows, to really show off the airplane.
Our whole mission of demo teams and air shows, in general, is to recruit people to take our place one day. There’s one pilot flying at a time, but there’s also a team of maintainers behind me, making sure the airplane is safe and ready to fly. It can be a quick pace kind of thing as you’re going from airshow to airshow to airshow three weekends in a row. It’s a lot of traveling. But it’s also a lot of fun to get to see different places of the country.
We don’t listen to any music while we’re actually flying because I’ve got earplugs in and because the airplane’s pretty loud in there. We’re listening to about three radios up at any given time. I’m either talking to who we call the air boss who’s running the air show. I talk to my pilot on the ground, who’s called my safety officer. And then I can talk to a warbird, a World War II or similar airplane that we fly with, as well. So, I’ve got those frequencies up. My maintainers on the ground do run a soundtrack to the airshow, and each maneuver gets its own given song to a variety of different types of music, depending on what fits with the maneuver or fits into the local airshow vibe of what people want to hear.
What you see at airshows is very different from what the rest of the combat Air Force is doing every day when they start training for threats. My squadron just got back from Germany, [after being deployed] for three months doing the whole Russia-Ukraine sort of thing. So what they’re doing every day is extremely different from what I’m doing in front of an airshow doing aerobatics very close to the ground. They’re doing very serious things.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxEgTGzu_Qg

Edwards AFB progresses with air show plans
29 Jun 2022 ALLISON GATLIN

"Plans are quickly developing for the first air show at Edwards Air Force Base in 13 years, set for Oct. 15 and 16. The Aerospace Valley Air Show will showcase not only the Air Force’s premier flight test facility, but also the entire aerospace community of the Antelope Valley, highlighting other facilities and firms such as the Mojave Air & Space Port, NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center and Air Force Plant 42.

Headlining the free two-day event will be the Air Force Thunderbirds flight demonstration team. They will be joined by a vast array of aerial performance and static displays representing nearly every aircraft in the Air Force inventory, Chase Kohler of the 412th Public Affairs office said. “It’s a rare opportunity to get pretty much every aircraft in the Air Force inventory either in the air or on the ground,” he said.

Among the aircraft expected are the F-22, F-35, T-38, F-16, B-1 and B-52 bombers and KC-135 tanker. NASA will also be providing a number of aircraft.

The event will commemorate the 75th anniversaries of the Air Force and the first supersonic flight, by then-Capt. Chuck Yeager in the skies over Edwards AFB. To celebrate that first sonic boom and take advantage of holding a rare air show beneath a supersonic corridor, the air show will feature Air Force and NASA jets “going full steam” to see which can break the sound barrier first.

“We want to heighten that and showcase that, because it’s a once-in-a-lifetime for air shows to be able to actually go past Mach .99 and actually hit that sonic boom,” Kohler said. The crowd will not be able to see the aircraft as they will be at altitude, but “they’re definitely going to hear them and feel them,” he said. “We’re just really excited to showcase that unique part.”..."

Photo: “An F-35 and F-16 from Edwards Air Force Base are joined by an F-15E and F-22 from the 422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron out of Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, along with a Navy F-18 from Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 31 out of Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, California, Dec. 13, 2017, for an Orange Flag test exercise. U.S. Air Force Photo by Ethan Wagner” https://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnew ... .image.jpg

Source: https://www.bakersfield.com/news/edward ... 4a3eb.html

‘A’ and ‘C’ appear at Battle Creek.

https://theaviationist.com/2022/07/04/f ... e-airshow/

Original video source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXHp9WpbVuU

F-35B LEVEL I, II, III, AND NIGHT AIRSHOW DEMONSTRATION PROFILES [11 page PDF attaached]
07 Apr 2020 USMC F-35B Model Manager

1. General Information:
“...d. CLAW Limit pulls are defined as stick full aft and S10 pressed and held to the CLAW limit (maximum AOA allowable). Lift limit pulls are defined as full aft stick which targets 33° AOA. The vertical is defined as 80-90° nose high (NH) or 80-90° nose low (NL). All nose low maneuvers were designed to recover above 500’ AGL even in the event of a jet malfunction that restricts the aircraft to only 4Gs, 20° AOA, and MIL power. 4Gs and 20° AOA are available even with an FCS POWER LIMIT Caution....

...e. Certain maneuvers require the pilot to transmit airspeed and/or altitude to a Ground Safety Observer (GSO). The GSO confirms parameters are within specifications, monitors the demonstration pilot's flight path and engine performance while visually clearing the demonstration area for traffic. Specific maneuvers will have a specific comm cadence with position, altitude, and airspeed, and will be denoted in the parameter tables with an asterisk (*); for example, “4000, 200”, for the square loop. With at least the PARAMETER LIMITS met, no response is required from the GSO to the pilot. If the PARAMETER LIMITS are not met, “abort, abort, altitude” or “abort, abort, airspeed” is radioed to the pilot at which time the pilot aborts the maneuver. The GSO will direct an abort anytime parameter limits are exceeded....”

Source: https://www.faa.gov/sites/faa.gov/files ... rofile.pdf (0.4Mb)

Source: https://www.faa.gov/sites/faa.gov/files ... rofile.pdf (0.4Mb)

Interesting, the high profile includes a pedal turn. Has there been any airshows where the F-35B has actually performed it?

Source: https://www.faa.gov/sites/faa.gov/files ... rofile.pdf (0.4Mb)

Interesting, the high profile includes a pedal turn. Has there been any airshows where the F-35B has actually performed it?

see the previous page of this thread

'gta4' posted a video with this comment: "This debunks some myth saying "the pedal turn can only be executed after the loop and at zero airspeed! That is a huge attitude/speed restriction which renders the maneuver unusable in real a2a combat!" Look, F-35B is entering this maneuver when flying inverted, and with a noticeable initial speed. There is no strict attitude or speed restriction at all." viewtopic.php?f=22&t=24622&p=464824&hilit=debunks#p464824

RAAF F-35A demonstration.

Cleveland Bay, Townsville, North Queensland, 21st July, 2022 (~5:17 PM)



Excerpts from about a ~11 min display. Don't have full-length yet.

Original video source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hnsf-xVGMSU

F135 == Mack Truck power