Our review of the March ARB Airfest 2010. So big we had to make an entire page for it.
Today was arrival day for many of the performers and static aircraft for March ARB Airfest 2010. We arrived at the base around noon and setup at the south end of the runway, almost directly under the approach path. Arrivals were slow at first but quickly picked up. The first we caught were two F-15’s, they performed a few passes before landing. We then got to experience the landing of the massive B-52. Soon the F-22 arrived and performed a few low passes. Shortly after we heard “scramble” on our scanner and down the runway on full afterburner were two F-16’s from the California ANG. Later on a few warbirds came in, as did a few of the aerobatic pilots, two F-18’s and the Patriots jet team.
It was a great spot to be to feel the power of the jets and catch every detail. Below are some photos and one video from today. Tomorrow is media day and we will be on base to get all the behind the scenes for Airfest 2010.
The show is just days away, time to look a little closer at the weekend.
Weather:
Weather for the show will be perfect. Mid to upper 70’s with some breeze. Saturday will see some scattered clouds with Sunday clear and warm.
Parking:
Parking is of course free. The main entrance of the base is off Cactus avenue. Simply follow the signs to be directed to parking. Early birds and VIP/disabled get parking on the tarmac near the gates. Parking then overflows onto grass/dirt field.
Security:
Expect metal detector and bag searches. Essentially, if you cannot bring it to an airport terminal, don’t bring it to the show. Folding chairs and small umbrellas will be allowed, as will small coolers (soft-sided).
Thursday and Friday activity:
There will be activity on and around the base Thursday and Friday, this activity is not open to the public. Thursday will be final preparations and arrivals of aircraft. Friday will be media day and show practice. If you wish to view this, the museum will be the place to be. For Friday the museum will charge $10 for admission.
The Museum:
The museum offers a different perspective on the show for the small price of $5 per person on Saturday and Sunday. It’s location places you withing the airshow box (meaning aircraft fly right over you). This is a popular location for photographers due to the glare we get on the base side facing the sun. There are the museum aircraft and a few vendors to see, but you will not get the music and narration of the show.
For even more information, check out the Airfest blog
We will be covering the show from arrivals through to the Sunday show. We will try to have photos from each day up those evenings. Video will take longer to edit and post.
A few of our images from 2008, click for larger:
With the show a week away, things are looking much better. There was worry of rain during the show, but latest outlook shows partly cloudy skies with about 20% chance of a shower. March ARB confirmed that if it does rain, the show will go on.
I have confirmed that the museum will be charging $5 per person to view the show from their property. Viewing the show from the base is still free.
All is good to go.
March Field Airfest
Thunder Over The Empire
May 1-2, March ARB KRIV – Riverside, CA
Main Page – Schedule – ASB Discussion
Though without the Air Force demonstration team the Thunderbirds, March ARB has set an impressive line-up for its 2010 Thunder Over The Empire. Among the line-up is the civilian L-39 team the Patriots, making their first visit to the base after being shut out of the Miramar air show for 2010. On the military side the big headline performer is the F-22 Raptor making its second demonstration appearance at the base.
The list of performers is one to be excited about. In aerobatics we have five of the best; John Melby, Ron Harrison, John Cullver, Tim Weber and Tim Decker. Calfire returns with their demonstration of the OV-10, S-2 and DC-10 aircraft. On the Military side we have the F-15, F-18, F-22, F-86, KC-135 and C-17 demonstrations. It was recently revealed that the USAF haritage flight will consist of the F-22, F-15, F-86 and P-38. Truly a great lineup!
Gates open at 8am, opening ceremonies begin at 10am with first aircraft in the air at 10:15am. Get there early as traffic gets quite heavy around the base. It may take about an hour to get parked. Parking is generally on grass/dirt so plan accordingly. It is a long walk from main parking to the flight line. March generally has full security measures, expect metal detectors and K-9, generally this is within one of their hangers.
One of the downsides of the show at March ARB is the position relative to the Sun. The flight line faces into the sun most of the day, creating a huge glare problem for cameras. The view isn’t too bad naked eye, but it sometimes gets hazy.
We will be there and hopefully come out better than Riverside. We have a new camera on the way and have worked around the issues plaguing our video camera.
The air show season for the Inland Empire is nearing with Riverside kicking off on March 27. About a month later March ARB will host their show…or so we hope.
Read our Riverside Air Show Preview Here.
Riverside Air Show Update – Nothing in the schedule has changed with a little over a week left. Long Range forecast calls for partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the 70’s. More weather updates as the show gets closer.
March ARB Airfest, Long Range Preview – The show at March has been up-in-the-air ever since the Thunderbirds revealed that March ARB will not be on their demonstration schedule. This left us without a major demo team, and concerns that the show would be canceled. The Patriots demonstration team stepped up and will now highlight the show in their first visit to the base. TODAY: The ACC (Air Combat Command) released the May schedule of demonstrations, confirming the F-15E East and F-22 East Demo’s for March ARB. This is very good news as had March not been able to land these two demos the show would be in jeopardy of being canceled.
We decided to compare the two Inland air shows:
First we look at the number of performances, this is based on the schedules as of the writing of this post. Includes flying demonstrations, fly-bys, ground demos, jet-cars and parachute teams, and previews – does not count opening ceremonies.
Riverside: 21 (16 Civilian, 5 Military)
March: 17 (10 Civilian, 7 Military)
Now a look at show times:
Riverside: 10am-4pm (Approx 6 hours)
March: 10am-3pm (Approx 5 hours)
As you can see, the show times just about match the number of performances. With the Size of the base, March is setting up to be left in the dust by Riverside. Keep in mind, Riverside is a single-day show, while March is planning for two days. Next, we take a look at the hour by hour performance breakdown of each show.
10am-11am:
Riverside: 4 Performances
March: 3 Performances
11am-12pm:
Riverside: 4 Performances
March: 4 Performances
12pm-1pm:
Riverside: 3 Performances
March: 3 Performances
1pm-2pm:
Riverside: 3 Performances
March: 3 Performances (if you count the C-17 Ground and air demo separate)
2pm-3pm:
Riverside: 4 Performances
March: 3 Performances
3pm-4pm:
Riverside: 4 Performances
March: 1 Performance (F-22 Demo)
What can we take from this comparison? Riverside has a great line-up of performances, and by far is the most action-packed by the hour. March is gearing up to be a slow and steady show. Good or Bad? It’s bad in that March may not draw a good crowd over the two days, maybe a single day show would be better. It’s good in that the overall crowd will be fairly thin (Good for us photographers), and that a slower and steady schedule is more predictable and less likely to run into delays.
We will be keeping an eye on the developments for both shows. We will also have a formal preview of the March ARB show following the Riverside air show.
