Frequently Asked Questions - Airshow Related
Q: Are any of the foreign jet teams touring North America in 2010?
A: No.\
Q: I heard there will not be any more F-15 Eagle demonstrations. Is that true?
A: Yes. The East Coast Demo Team flew their last airshow at Nellis AFB in November 2006. The West Coast Demo Team flew their last public display at Langley AFB on April 24-26, 2009. I will be there to document that performance and hope to be able to capture all aspects of the last performances.
You can still see Strike Eagle demonstrations over North American airshows.
Q: What happened to the Texan II demonstrations? You had them listed for the remainder of 2006 and yet, most of those show sites did not have a Texan II demonstration!
A: I usually don't update the schedule pages as the year progresses, since it's just one more thing I'd have to worry about. To answer the original question, the Air Force and AETC decided to disestablish both Texan II Demo Teams at various intervals in 2006 because of budget cuts. I believe the last demo for the Moody guys was in early June and the last demo for the Randolph guys was Labor Day weekend, but don't hold me to those dates. I don't think we'll see the Texan II perform any demonstrations at airshows this season or anytime in the short and long terms.
Q: Are A-10 and F-16 demonstrations affected? What Block are the F-16 demo team aircraft?
A: Because of BRAC, the A-10 East Coast Demo Team was disestablished at the end of June 2007. The 23rd Fighter Group's A-10s have moved to Moody AFB, GA and the Demo Team will resume this year. The A-10 West Coast Demo Team is unaffected.
The F-16 East Coast and West Coast Demo Teams are unaffected. As long as there are plenty of airframes at both bases, you will see F-16 demonstrations for quite a while.
Viper East and Viper West fly the Block 50 F-16. You can easily tell what Block an F-16 is by the pitch of the engine, especially when idling. The Thunderbirds currently fly Block 32s and will transition to Block 52s in 2009, both of which are powered by the Pratt & Whitney PW F100-220 (or -225 or -229) while the demo teams' F-16s are powered by the General Electric GE-F110-332. The PW F100-200/-225/-229 series can also be found on the F-15/F-15E while the GE F110-332 can also be found on the F-14B/D Tomcat. All Blocks 30, 40, 50, and 60 F-16s have the GE engine while Blocks 25 and below, 32, 42, 52, and 62 have the Pratt & Whitney engine.
Q: Will the Phantoms fly Heritage Flights in 2010?
A: Yes!
Q: What's the status on F-14 Tomcat operations?
A: All F-14 Tomcats have been retired. The last jet (164603, AJ-101) was flown to Republic Airport in Farmingdale, New York on October 4, 2006. I have had the opportunity to go out to Republic Airport to witness and capture this historical event - only the landing is online, but the entire landing and much more appears on The Ultimate F-14 Tomcat.
Q: What song is played during the Heritage Flights and where can I download it?
A: The song is called "We Remember" by Dwayne O'Brien. Out of respect for the entire Heritage Flight Program, I am not going to upload the song on my site but I do recommend that you purchase the CD it is on because it contains an album full of great aviation songs written and performed by Mr. O'Brien. You can purchase it by clicking here.
Q: How many and which airshows will you be attending this season?
A: The answer to both questions can be found by clicking here.
Q: How will the high gas prices affect which shows you're going to attend?
A: I guess my previous answer to this is null and void. I am planning the 2010 season with $4.50 in mind and hope prices don't go beyond that. I can get by with prices sustained around $3 a gallon but once it goes higher, I may make sacrifices.
Q: How will the ECONOMY affect airshows, and those shows that you attend?
A: I have seen many airshows become cancelled, not just got not being able to secure a jet team, but not being able to secure valuable sponsorship dollars.
Now, having said that, I have cut down the number of shows I will be attending this year because of the state of the economy. Expenses are being cut left and right and in any cases where I don't need a hotel, I will capitalize on that. I am also cutting shows as a result of becoming one of those people in the country who suddenly has too much extra time...
You may see some shows on my list that are far away, and I'm not making any promises in attending those shows. Those show sites that require flights, hotels, and cars will only be confirmed closer to the show dates and if I can snag a deal. I am also committed to spend NO MORE than a certain amount for those shows.
Air Combat Command is, for this season, not sending any single ship demonstration teams to shows where the Thunderbirds will also be performing.
Q: You're always going to the same airshows every year. Why not change it up a bit?
A: I would, if I moved to a different part of the country. In addition, most people will come to expect that I will be at certain show sites...
Q: What if it rains? What about the wind?
A: A rainy day doesn't mean that there won't be an airshow... if it's pouring out, then yeah - probably nobody will fly, but if it's a drizzle, there will still be airplanes in the air (of course, ceiling and visibility permitted). Regardless of location, I will be at the show site if it rains. However, if it's a beach show, I may decide to stay home.
If it's supposed to be a windy day, well, I will be there. The video may not turn out as well as I would like, but at least I'll have some video...
Q: What happens if there is an incident at an airshow involving aircraft and you captured it on video?
A: This is a rather touchy subject, as it depends on the severity of the incident. First and foremost, should the authorities and any other media outlets request video of the incident for news stories and/or investigations, I am required to provide the video (though I keep the master copy) to the said authorities and outlets.
Should the incident result in fatalities, serious injuries to pilots/aircrew/participating individuals, and/or severe damage to the aircraft, I will not share the video online. This is out of respect to the affected parties of the incident.
If there are no injuries to any individuals but a lot of damage to the aircraft, I may share the video, but only after consulting with several different airshow professionals for their opinions on whether or not it is appropriate to share the video.
Should the incident result in little to no injuries to pilots/aircrew/participating individuals, and/or little damage to the aircraft, I may share the video.
Keep in mind that should there be other video from the airshow and there is a DVD for that show, that the incident will not be included on the DVD.
Q: How come for certain show sites you attend just one day and others you attend both days?
A: There's some shows that I can only afford to attend just one day and there's others where it's not even worth going both days - either because of the venue or because of the type of show.
Q: How are you able to get in on media day? Can I get in too?
A: Steve's Airshow World, for the most part, is not just a fan-based site, but also a media site. There are a lot of advantages of having Steve's Airshow World providing coverage of media and practice show days at any show site, but the list below are some of the most common reasons I request and attend media and practice show days:
Steve's Airshow World presents a lot of long-term advantages to a particular show site. Videos are viewable to anyone anywhere in the world and in the long term, many individuals have stated that they would attend the next airshow at the said show site as a result of my videos. In the short-term, the above bulleted list applies.
Unlike photographers and camera crews and reporters for any news outlet or any freelancers, who may do one or two airshows a year and is not aware of things happening on an active flight line, I have spent countless hours on the ground around aircraft and know the "rules" of the flight line, especially when it comes to safety. At no point will I interfere with aircraft movements on any active flight line and at no point will I attempt any access without approval from the appropriate parties or without an escort.
Public Affairs/Airshow Media Representatives: If you find anyone sending in forms to request media access to your airshow and they cite Steve's Airshow World as their employer/representative/organization, please contact me via e-mail or telephone with the name and address of the individual(s) seeking access. There are a small handful of individuals that, in past shows, have helped me out for whatever reason and I have approved for their participation. I can, and will, recommend rejection of media applications for those individuals seeking access under Steve's Airshow World.
For the second question, no. The static display flight line on media/practice day is still an active flight line, as aircraft still arrive on that day.
Q: What are the frequencies that the airboss, the jet teams, the demonstration pilots, and the ground control use?
A: I will NEVER post ANY frequencies on Steve's Airshow World, regardless of who it is for, who uses the frequencies, and anything and everything in between. This is because of safety - if for some reason those frequencies got into the wrong hands, someone could easily transmit on that frequency and jeopardize not only the pilots' safety but also the safety of everyone on the ground. Also, I will not give you any frequencies through e-mail or at an airshow.
Q: What do you use to shoot video?
A: Starting in 2006, I have been using a Sony Handycam TRV480 Digital8 camera. It's smaller than the Hitachi and despite the fact that I'm spending more money on tapes than I did with the Hitachi, the quality of the video is much better. The only downside is that I cannot shoot video and wear sunglasses at the same time, but I have worked around that. The solution may look weird but at the same time, it works.
I have also invested in a Sony Handycam DCR-HC52. It's much smaller than the Digital8 listed above and uses MiniDV tapes. It's a nice little camera, with the only downside being the fact that I'm all over the place when it comes to being all the way in on any subject.
I do not like mentioning what I use now but I will say it is a Sony camera. The HC52 and TRV480 will continue to be used, mainly as secondary cameras, but also to be mounted inside airplanes should the pilots request it.
Q: Why does the video from several 2009 shows (and other later 2009 and early 2010 videos) have pink vertical bars and color distortion?
A: The primary video camera I was using had some internal issues that I believe is the result of being out in wet conditions and transporting the camera (in its bag) on a cart rather than me carrying it on my shoulder. For the 2010 season, I will no longer be using that camera for video (it will serve a role for playback for when I'm at home) and will invest in another camera of the same type, which will produce the results you saw from April through mid June of 2009.
Q: How were you able to shoot the F-15 footage at Langley of Nuke's last demonstration when you were clearly nowhere near the demo jets?
A: I had a second person using the HC52 for the ground footage. This was the first time I was able to utilize a setup like that and won't be the last.
Q: Is shooting video of aircraft as difficult as it sounds?
A: It is and I have made a page detailing some of the tips and secrets I have learned over the last nine years. Click here to go to that page.
Q: How soon will you have the videos up from an airshow you just attended?
A: As long as I have nothing else to do, I can do my best to get all of the videos I wanted to upload up about two to three weeks after the show took place. If there is a situation where I've got many airshows on consecutive weekends, expect that time frame to double. During the 2009 season where I had several consecutive airshow weekends, I managed to get the last airshow's videos uploaded about three weeks after the show took place.
Please be patient with me as I upload. I promise - it will be worth the wait!
Q: Why are all of the videos on YouTube?
A: Two reasons - to draw the YouTube audience to Steve's Airshow World, and to save server space on my host. If you have signed up for a YouTube account, it gives you the chance to comment on the videos as well as to subscribe to my channel, which will enable you to see when I upload any new videos.
You will also see ALL of my videos on YouTube because of copyright problems and infringement. IF YOU SEE ANY VIDEOS on YouTube that are mine and were not uploaded by me, please send that user a message to take down the video. A "cease and desist" message should do the trick.
Q: I've seen some of your competition getting opportunities that you don't get (i.e. rides with performers). Why don't you do that?
A: I've already flown with two big name formation teams and in an L-39 that one of the Legacy Flight approved pilots used to own. Not to mention, I do have a standing invite to go flying with a formation team based a few miles from me at any time they want me up (usually every time). All of these opportunities were presented to me and it should be noted that I did not ask for them. I'm positive the same went for the aforementioned photographers of that site you call my competition, whereas they aren't. Ryan, Aaron, David, and their partners cover airshows in the mid west - an area I don't cover and don't plan to cover anytime soon. They provide almost the same stuff I do, but geared more towards photography, although they do video too. Do check out their site and mention I sent you there.
They have been getting a lot of opportunities this season, and to be honest, it's their time to shine. They are the guys to talk to regarding airshows in that area, not me.
Will I get any more opportunities like they get? I don't know. I do know that I've had my time to do that and I want others to get their share.
Q: Can I meet up with you at an airshow?
A: The short answer is no. During any given airshow day I am very busy, either running around the static displays before flying starts or when flying has commenced I am filming. Trust me - it's not worth trying to bother me at any time during the show. I don't mean any disrespect, but understand I'm doing so many things and listening to other things at the same time and don't need someone talking to me or trying to get my attention.
Remember - the microphone on the camera hears everything. If you have very good hearing and can hear something from afar, the camera's microphone will pick it up.
Q: I see you're going to the same show I'm going to. Are you going to offer any advice as to what to do for that show?
A: The best advice I can give you is to go to ASB.TV, go to the Forums, and into the Airshow Previews section. Many forum members have attended certain show sites in the past and are willing to give you any advice on the show site. In addition, if you have a Facebook account, you might stumble upon an Events page for that same show...
Q: Where will the jet teams, parachute teams, single ship demos, and aerobatic performers be appearing this year?
A: For the jet teams, click here. If you would like to view the schedules for all of the single ship demo teams, please visit David Schultz Airshows. For aerobatic performers and warbirds, please visit their respective websites for their schedules.
Q: Are you affiliated with any airshows or in the airshow industry?
A: No.
Q: I am the airshow coordinator of the (name of airshow and location) and I see you will be attending this very show.
A: E-mail me. I'm interested in anything (media passes, VIP parking and seating, invitations, etc.). I can definitely put together something for you in return as well.
Q: Why all the buzz on ASB.TV on YOUR site?
A: It's not like me to promote another site over mine, but to be honest, I have been known to spend more time on ASB (specifically the forums) than I do working on my own site. I am very good friends with the founder as well as several of the co-founders of the site and I feel that Ed Shipley (that name sounds familiar, doesn't it?) has created something magnificent for the airshow industry as well as for airshow fans and I feel the word should be spread about ASB.
Nowadays my participation in the forums on ASB has dropped from what it has been when the site was first launched, but I still frequent them. Sometimes I wish I was a moderator because there are some topics that can get pretty heated on there... (ha!)
Q: What if my question isn't on here?
A: E-mail me! You are also welcome to post questions on the wall of the Facebook Fan Page.
© 2002-2010 Steven Holzinger