USAFE Airmen beat the heat, manage airshow crowd

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Corey Clements
  • U.S. Air Forces in Europe Public Affairs
BERLIN (AFPN) --  U.S. Air Forces in Europe Airmen are all smiles despite the heat and crowds of people wanting to tour of their aircraft at the 2008 Berlin Airshow here.

USAFE has about 20 Airmen here, showcasing two F-16 Fighting Falcons, two F-15 Strike Eagles (models C and E) and one KC-135R Stratotanker here at the Berlin-Schoenefeld Airport. 

Temperatures reaching nearly 90 degrees Fahrenheit and catering to about 100,000 spectators have kept the Airmen very hot and busy. 

"I'm drinking about two six-packs of half-liter bottles of water a day," said Airman 1st Class Jon LeMessurier of the 351st Air Refueling Squadron.

Airman LeMessurier, who's been in the Air Force a little more than two years and has been a boom operator on the KC-135 for one year, said the show-goers are very excited to get on the plane and into the boom pod and cockpit.

"There eyes light up when we tell how one plane connects and pumps fuel into another so closely in the air," he said. "They can't fully grasp it."

Each aircraft display demands some organized process to handle the massive crowds, said Master Sgt. John Zilch from the 493rd Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, supervisor for the F-15 maintenance crew here.

"For the F-15 C and E display we have four people escorting five spectators each, one person at the entry gate, and one on bag security and everything has been running smoothly," he said.

There are a total of five maintainers and five aircrew members to help showcase the F-15s.

Both F-15s and crew hail from Royal Air Force Lakenheath, U.K., including Staff Sgt. Amy Stroud from the 48th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron.

For her, applying sunscreen lotion several times a day has become as instinctive as putting on a smile for the airshow patrons.

"The people have been very nice and the F-15 Eagle Keeper tattoo stickers and liberty patches we've been giving as souvenirs are a big hit," Sergeant Stroud said.

The U.S. has participated in the German airshow, more commonly known by the Germans as the Internationale Luftschiffahrt Ausstellung or ILA, since the first one in Frankfurt, Germany in 1909 when the Wright Brothers' airplane was the main attraction.

Then the ILA was held in Berlin in 1928 and moved around to different German cities afterward until finally landing back in Berlin in 1992 after the wall separating East and West Berlin came down in 1989.

"I'm not sure how long USAFE has been a participant in the ILA, but I know they have at least been huge participants since the first one I attended in 1986 in Hannover," said Wolfgang Hofmann of USAFE Public Affairs.

Today that legacy continues as people are still just as intrigued if not more in new developments in aviation as they were at the first ILA and America's industry plays a significant role in the effort in displaying leading-edge products to the international audience.

1st Lt. Garrett Chandler, one of the two pilots here with the F-16 Fighting Falcons from Aviano Air Base, Italy, is here to help continue that legacy.

"What I find most interesting here is how big aviation is," said Lieutenant. Chandler from the 510th Fighter Squadron. "It's amazing how many countries come together and how important these air shows are for the aviation industry around the world," he said.

USAFE's Airmen are part of a U.S. contingent joined with more than 1,000 exhibitors from 37 countries here. The Airmen began showcasing May 26 and wrapped up the show June 1.

The Berlin Airshow is one of the premier events of its type in the world. U.S. military participation contributes to a number of U.S. security and foreign-policy interests.

Participation promotes standardization and interoperability of equipment with our NATO allies and other potential coalition partners, highlights the strength of the U.S. commitment to the security of Europe and the war on terrorism and demonstrates that U.S. industry is producing equipment that will be critical to the success of military operations in the future.

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