WXPort2006 Celebration of Flight Airshow, Andrews, NC
21 October 2006

Bright skies and crisp temperatures greeted the over 7,000 airshow attendees at the Andrews-Murphy Airport in Andrews, NC during the 2006 Celebration of Flight Airshow on 21 October 2006.  The 2006 event featured by far the best array of aerobatic performers in the event’s 3 year history.

The day opened with a local high school choir singing the national anthem and numerous speeches by local dignitaries and politicians.   This year’s event celebrated the 60th anniversary of the airport and the 80th birthday of the former airport manager.  

The flying activities started with the Swift Magic Aerobatic Team’s “Evil Roy” comedy routine which entertained the crowd and got everyone in the mood for a great day of flying.  Following the animated and smoky Swift Magic performance, the Red Star Formation Team of four YAK-52s took to the skies with a series of 4-ship formation maneuvers that showcased the gracefulness of formation flight and the agility of the Russian trainer aircraft.

Performances continued with the North Carolina Army National Guard performing flybys and hoverwork in their AH-64A Apache attack helicopter and the United States Coast Guard in their HH-65C Dolphin.   The search and rescue demonstration by the Coast Guard was from a unit based at CGAS Savannah, GA.

Aerobatic performances continued with Jill Long in her S2B Pitts and Rob Holland in his Ultimate 20-300 aircraft.  Rob showed the airshow crowd why he is one of the best aerobatic pilots in the world today.   With his low level, high energy routine, the crowd was amazed at his skill and showmanship.    Jill Long also performed a great routine in the Pitts S2B to the delight of the thousands in attendance. 

Gary Rower, a Andrews crowd favorite, was also at the event with his Salute to NASA, PT-17 Stearman performance.    The wonderful routine with lots of smoke and noise was a delightful change to the high energy aerobatic aircraft that made up most of the airshow.     The routine showcased the best flight characteristics of the vintage bi-plane.

Swift Magic returned later in the afternoon with their graceful formation performance routines as well as head-on maneuvers and the afternoon concluded with a high power performance by the Red Eagle Air Sports Team in their Eagle Talon and Pitts aircraft. 

Neal Melton from the Tennessee Aviation Museum brought in his P-47D Thunderbolt for the crowd to see on static display and also participated in the flying with numerous flybys that showcased this rare vintage aircraft.     Unfortunately the other scheduled warbird performance by Kevin Russo was cancelled due to the aircraft and pilot being stuck in Virginia in poor weather conditions.

The static displays offered the public a great chance to see many of the performer aircraft as well as aircraft from the United States Military.     The United States Air Force was represented by the Andrews AFB, MD based 1st Helicopter Squadron with their  UH-1N Iroquois.  The North Carolina Army National Guard brought in an UH-60 Blackhawk as well as an AH-64 Apache for display and the Georgia Army National Guard was represented by another UH-60 Blackhawk and an UH-1H Huey.    The United States Navy from NAS Whiting Field brought in a T-34C Mentor for the airshow as well.

It was an ideal day for an airshow with bright blue skies and everyone enjoyed the afternoon at the local airport.   With airplane rides scattered throughout the afternoon and between the flying acts there was always something in the air at the Andrews-Murphy Airport.