Defenders of Freedom

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Jason Haag
  • 55th Wing Public Affairs
OFFUTT AIR FORCE BASE, Neb. --  Offutt Air Force Base opened its gates to 110,000 people during the 2011 Defenders of Freedom Open House and Air Show, Aug. 27-28.

The annual event, which allows Offutt Airmen to showcase their talents and hardware, included 20 flying performers, more than 30 static displays, vendors and a kid's fun zone entertainment area.

"The open house went extremely well this year. I have received nothing but praise for how smoothly things went," said Maj. Lance Hofer, 2011 Defenders of Freedom Open House and Air Show director. "An event of this size requires a team effort and Team Offutt stepped up in an amazing way."

About 300 wounded warriors, special needs children and Make-A-Wish Foundation guests were treated to a sneak peak of the weekend's line up during a special show Aug. 26. The advance show allowed Offutt to hosts guests who would otherwise have a difficult time attending a show with tens of thousands of people. It also gave the performers a chance to practice their demonstration over the base.

Visitors Saturday were treated to ideal air show weather and no shortage of things to do. Lines to get inside static display aircraft were long throughout the day and aircraft were in the air constantly from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The highlight of the static displays was a B-2 Spirit bomber from Whiteman Air Force Base, Mo.

The day started with a U.S. Army Golden Knights member delivering the U.S. flag to show center while Tech. Sgt. Krista Joyce of the Air Combat Command Heartland of America Band sang the National Anthem. Flying acts included World War II aircraft, two demonstrations by Russian aircraft (MiG-17 and Mi-24 helicopter), civilian aerobatic performers, a B-2 flyover and was capped off with a display of modern air combat power from the ACC F-15E Strike Eagle Demonstration Team.

Some bad weather impacted Sunday's schedule, but after an early lightning evacuation, sunny skies and flying returned.

"Safety is our primary concern, so we did have to evacuate the ramp which may have caused some people to leave," Hofer said. "But eventually the good weather returned and we had a nice turnout for a great afternoon of flying."

The weather also affected one of static display aircraft, as the B-2 had to be moved inside due to the lightning and hail threat.

"I had numerous visiting aircrews, to include the demonstration pilots, say this is the best organized and executed air show they've ever attended," said Brig. Gen. Don Bacon, 55th Wing commander. "That is a tribute to all of [our Airmen] and to the great community support we receive from our local leaders."

Now that the ramp is clear of static aircraft and vendor booths, Hofer is compiling lessons learned to make the next show even better.

"Every year we see little things that we can tweak to make the show better the next year, but most of troubles we experienced this year were completely transparent to the public. Next year we'll focus on bringing in some different acts and hopefully we'll have a jet demonstration team return to Offutt," he said.