Specialty Press

Front Row Center 4: Inside the Great American Air Show

by  Erik Hildebrandt

Reviewed By  David Reinecke, IPMS# 42626

MSRP: $39.96 ISBN: 978-0-967404-7-3 Website: www.specialtypress.com Hardback 172 Pages 200+ Color Photos Air shows are fascinating and thrilling for both the spectators and for the pilots. Erik Hildebrandt chronicles the 2008 Air Show season with his stunning photography and tells the stories from the pilot's point of view. The enthusiasm and energy of the aviators is vividly captured. This coffee table book definitely cures the "airshow withdrawal" mentioned by Rob Reider, air show announcer and writer of the Foreword. There are no chapters, so each segment of the book showcases an air show act. Beginning with the "First Lady" of air shows, Julie Clark, and her T-34 Mentor (which is also pictured on the front of the jacket) and T-28 Trojan. She is a retired AirBus A320 captain who has been dazzling audiences with her choreographed 12 minute routine capped off by live pyrotechnics. The T-34, while a basic trainer, is heavy on the controls to prepare would-be fighter pilots for the faster and heavier warplanes. Julie's mastery of this aircraft astounds the author. The next segment is the father and son team of Bob and Chris Baranaskas, flying a P-40 Warhawk and P-51D Mustang, respectively. Bob has been flying warbirds since 2000 and Chris since 2005. Their most memorable flight occurred when an ATC controller handed them over to Dover Air Force Base who requested a low-level pass. Fearing trouble, they sidestepped a colonel's call, until they found out the reason for the call. You will have to read it to find out what the colonel said. Fagen Fighters has three war birds; a P-38 Lightning, a P-40K Warhawk, and a P-51D Mustang. Ron Fagen used to fly aerobatics, but yearned for the "bigger things in aviation." He first learned the P-51, then helped restore the P-40K and other Warhawks, but the P-38 is his favorite. His father told him of a P-38 that strafed German positions on the Normandy beachhead, thus saving his father's life. The USAF Heritage Flight showcases modern war planes with yesteryear's war birds. Paul "HARB" Brown flies the A-10 Thunderbolt II in these flights. This section contains photos of the A-10 with Ron Fagen's P-38. Paul enjoyed showcasing the twin-engined and twin-tailed attackers from two eras. The Jacquie B Airshow is an anomaly in the male-dominated skies of air shows. She began her career at age 50 and within five years managed to perform at the top shows on the circuit. Flying her Pitts S-1T emblazoned with eagle's head on the sides of the fuselage, Jacquie is a powerhouse of energy that is infectious and inspiring. Greg Poe has been on the circuit for 16 years. His current sponsor is Fagen Inc. (the same Fagens mentioned earlier) but Greg runs his own show. He is unique in that his plane, the Fagen MX2, is powered solely by ethanol. Greg has more than 8000 hours in over 100 types. He turned a family tragedy into "Elevate Your Life," a program that teaches kids to be positive and tap into their natural abilities. Being compared to Tiger Woods and Michael Jordan, Michael Goulian is the top in his sport. He flies the Extra 300SHP in the Red Bull Air Races and is very meticulous is his planning and execution. He measures himself only by his own bar, not anyone else's. Patty Wagstaff has a perfect safety record in her thirty years of flying. She has numerous awards and accolades, as well as being an inductee into the National Aviation Hall of Fame. She has the honor of one her aircraft on display at the Smithsonian, right next to Amelia Earhart's Vega. Insisting she is too young to slow down, she is quite happy to be with the "best people in the world." The Collaborators are a four plane demonstration team that is a bit unusual. They use 3 different types of aircraft: Two Extra 300Ls, a Challenger biplane, and an Edge 540. The Extras and the Challenger are two seaters for VIP rides, making the team "true ambassadors of aviation." While the RAF Red Arrows are a military demonstration team, that are not as rigid as their American counterparts. They also have larger formations and a witty narration to lighten up the crowds. The Red Bull Air Force is a collection of "paragliders, skydivers, and B.A.S.E. jumpers" who thrill the crowds with their skills and grace while whizzing past at low altitude to land precisely where they want. After a year in Iraq, the Rhode Island National Guard came home to a hero's welcome. The troops were brought home in C-130J cargo planes, sparing them a bus ride from Quonset. The F/A-18 Hornet Strike Fighter is the US Navy's multi-use carrier based aircraft. Most of the specialized aircraft of the past have had their missions combined into the various versions of the Hornet. The US Navy Strike Fighter Demo/Legacy Flight currently flies the E and F versions in shows. Chuck Aaron flies the Red Bull Helicopter almost like it were an RC toy. The modified BO-105CBS can do stunts that any other pilot would lose control and crash if they tried to emulate him. The Blue Angels always perform last. That is not to say the shows are saving the best for last, it is out of respect to the oldest demonstration team in the United States. The gleaming blue and gold F-18s sit on the ramp while anxious eyes peer once in a while wondering when the Angels will take to the air. Eric Hildebrandt has photos of the Blue Angels never seen before since most of the photos are taken from one of the two seat Hornets. As impressive as the Blue Angels are, seeing these photos will take your breath away. For fantastic imagery and an author who is intimately familiar with the people and aircraft that wow air show crowds, this fourth installment is a definite must for fans. My thanks to Specialty Press for the chance to review this beautiful pictorial.