2010 Nellis AFB Air Show Review by AirshowsReview.com

2010 Air Shows

AVIATION NATION, Nellis AFB, Nevada

Location: Nellis Air Force Base, located in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Admission: Free

Parking: Free

Value: Excellent

The Nellis AFB Air Show, located in the north east part of Las Vegas and it is the home of The Thunderbirds.

The end of the air show season in the United States brings us Aviation Nation 2010 held on November 13 and 14 at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada. This is one of the premier shows in the country with a good mix of aircraft types performing against a spectacular mountain backdrop unique to the area. The skies over Nellis were sunny and clear throughout the weekend. The Nellis Air Force Base Open House is the largest free event in Nevada . The 2-day event is attended by several thousands of people every year. With over 100 aircraft on static display and non-stop flying displays this is a show not to be missed.

The gates opened at 9 am, but the only way to get into the base is by parking the car at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway nearby and take a shuttle bus to the base but not before going through security. Plan to arrive at the parking lot by 7:30 a.m. to secure a good spot on the line for the shuttle bus and a early arrival at the base. By 8:30 a.m. the lines are much longer and it seems that the buses are fewer in between. This puts you in the base by 10 a.m., one hour and half later! The event is completely free, there are no tickets on sale for chalets or special seating. There are some bleachers near show center, but they fill out fast. Plenty of food and souvenir vendors were located throughout the show grounds. There are so many children attractions to keep kids busy all day.

The show starts with Tim Weber's Geico 300 practice followed by the opening ceremonies with parachute jump from the Wings of Blue of the 98th Flying Training Squadron from the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado and a flyby of 2 blue and gray camouflaged F-16s from the 57th Wing Agressor Squadrons . Four Yak-18 and Nanchang CJ-5 took to the air for a formation flyby. Trainers were represented by a parade in the air of PT-17, PT-22, T-6, T-34, T-28 and a T-33, immediately followed by a demonstration by Greg Colyer's T-33. Ed Hamill flew his red white and blue biplane to the delight of the crowd and raced Bill Braack Air Force Reserve jet Car. The KC-135 flew over the runway to demonstrate its slow speed capability. At the Sunday flying display it developed a small fuel leak from the refueling boom.

The Doolitle Raiders reenactment by 2 B-25s flew next followed by a very large formation flight of 25 RV planes. When the RVs landed the F-4 , A-1 and O-2 took to the air to perform a Vietnam-era search and rescue demonstration along with a Bell UH-1 Huey. There were flights by a Navy F-18C as a solo display as well as flying with an F8F Bearcat as the US Navy Legacy Flight. F-86, P-51s and P-40 flew together. The Air Combat Heritage Flight was flown by F-86, F-4, F-22 and P-51. The U.S. Air Force Warfare Center was represented by a flyby of F-16, A-10 and F-15. Returning to the show this year after being absent last year was the F-22 with a striking and powerful display. The F-4E Phantom (actually a QF-4 Aerial Target) also flew solo at the show. Another search and rescue demonstration was flown by 2 HH-60s helicopters with air support from a F-16 and an A-10. The air show ended with the Thunderbirds at their home base flying their last performance of the year.

Some of the highlights of the aircraft on static display was the Polish PZL TS-11 Iskra, the Republic Seebee, F-5E Tiger II and 3 Royal Air Force Eurofighters that were visiting the base.

A special thank-you to the Nellis AFB Public Affairs Office.

Some of the Teams and warbirds participating were:

The Thunderbirds
F-86
F-22 Raptor
F-18C
F-4E Phantom
HH-60
P-51 Mustang
F8F Bearcat
and many others.

Rating: 9.5 out of 10

Review by R. von Puttkammer for AIRSHOWSREVIEW LLC

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