Thunderbirds in Milwaukee

[falconvalley]

Well it's that time of year again! I love saying that now. For as long as I can remember, Milwaukee hadn't had really any type of airshow to speak of. Once in a while, we'd get either the Thunderbirds or Blue Angels, but it was usually a shortened cameo from another show. I think the first official show here was in 2004. It is now called the Milwaukee Air and Water Show.

There's a forecast for some clouds in Milwaukee today and I was curious about the limits for ceiling and visibility for the different versions of the T-Birds show. I didn't notice anything posted here in the recent past, so I figured I'd post the limitations for anyone who's interested.

The visibility limit for a "Flat Show" is 5 nautical miles and the ceiling must be at least 1500 ft. It sounds like they would do some fly-by's but not much else and definitely nothing aerobatic. The limit for a "Low Show" is 3500 ft ceiling. They would do some basic aerobatics but no performance climbing maneuvers. The limit for a "High Show" is 8000 ft ceiling. That's what I'm hoping for! Right now the forecast is broken at 3500 ft. Keeping my fingers crossed.

I found this info at:

http://www.geocities.com/tbirddmnd/Thunderbirds-FAQ.html

 

[thndr8]

As a former member, they could transition back in forth between the profiles as the weather changes. They could start the low show then a big opening in the ceiling opens and they finish with the high show bombburst. They're at the mercy of the weather just like us. I got delayed for two hours at FSD yesterday for the Blues performance. Doing a MKE turn today in the middle of the show. I doubt scheduling knows about an airshow in MKE today. Gee, another delay.

 

[Snoopy2]

Been a few years since I've seen the Thunderbirds. It never gets tiresome to see any of these flying magicians. Very fortunate to live in a state that has one of the best annual airshows in the nation. This year we had the Blue Angels, Canadian Snow Birds and the new Raptor at Quonset Point. Beyond spectacular!!!

 

[falconvalley]

As a former member, they could transition back in forth between the profiles as the weather changes. They could start the low show then a big opening in the ceiling opens and they finish with the high show bombburst. They're at the mercy of the weather just like us. I got delayed for two hours at FSD yesterday for the Blues performance. Doing a MKE turn today in the middle of the show. I doubt scheduling knows about an airshow in MKE today. Gee, another delay.

We had some good luck today. It was raining right before the show and as soon as the clouds cleared-

BOOM

They came blasting over the trees. I think they started with a high show and ended without the burst. It was still an AWESOME show. I can't wait until next year. I think the Blue Angels are coming. Good thing for you is the show is 5 NM north of KMKE, so you should be ok delaywise.