Lots of sore necks this morning for thousands who had their eyes
in the skies at the air show
NEW WINDSOR – Mark the weekend of September 16-17, 2017 as the dates for the third New York Air Show at Stewart Airport.
Tens of thousands of people attended this year’s second annual
air show at the Newburgh area airport as the US Air Force Thunderbirds
and other aerial acts flew in the skies over the Mid-Hudson Valley wowing
the crowds.
Orange County Executive Steven Neuhaus, who played a large role in coordinating
the last two years’ shows with the Port Authority, which operates
Stewart, said next September will be important to one branch of the armed
forces.
“The significance of that date is that it is the 70th anniversary of the formation of the US Air Force,” Neuhaus said.
The final day of this year’s show featured performers from Saturday’s show, as well as new performers and activities, such as the West Point Black Knights Parachute Team, Kent Pietsch in the Jelly Belly Bi-plane, Buck Roetman of Wild Horse Aviation, the L-39 Cold War Era Jet Demo, the C-17 Globemaster III Demo, the Panchito B-25 Bomber demonstration and rides for spectators, the U.S. Navy F/A 18 Hornet Demo, David Windmiller in the Edge 540, and the crowd favorite, the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds who closed out the weekend show. People came from all over the Northeast with family, friends, and dates to view the aerial demonstrations.
Flying machines, small and big, delighted the crowds
Deemi, of Rockland County, said she thought her first time at the New York Air Show was great and an excellent family event. “I’ve been to other air shows and this has been a great display, I mean amazing,” she said. “The activities for the kids were fantastic; the setup, the layout: a really great day out for the family.”
Mark from Fairfield, Connecticut agreed and said it is definitely a great family outing. “There’s a lot to do over here,” Mark said. “There’s a lot of air stuff going on and you don’t have to stay for the whole thing, but there’s a lot to see.”
Highlight of the show for many – the famed
Air Force Thunderbirds
Colin and Matthew from Succasunna, New Jersey said they couldn’t get enough of the Air Force Thunderbirds. “I thought it was really awesome! The Thunderbirds were amazing,” said Colin.
“Every time they did a really cool trick, my heart skipped a beat! It looked like they were going to crash, but they didn’t and it’s really cool that they can do that,” said Matthew.
Colin said he would definitely recommend the air show to others. “You will have a great time. The people are great here. The shows are fantastic and it’s really nice,” he said.
Sam from Fairfield, Connecticut, a huge fan of the Thunderbirds, came back to the show from last year’s inaugural run. “Every year it’s a little different, so you’re not always going to see the same thing, and it’s just an amazing air show to see because of all the excitement and how they fly the planes so well and close to each other,” Sam said.
Cathy Bassett, director of public relations for the New York Air Show 2016, said she credits the success of the event to the local partners of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, local first responders, and the help of Orange County Executive Steve Neuhaus’ office.
“We learned a lot last year,” said Bassett. “Anytime you do something for the first time you learn a lot; so, we tweaked some things, we doubled the number of vendors this year, we tweaked our parking situation this year, and I think all of those results helped make it an even better experience for the fans.” Basset added that they will be debriefing this week, taking into account all the successes and how to make them even better next year, in an effort to continue improving the air show.
Neuhaus said they will be firming up the aerial and static acts for the third air show, a year from now.
