Las Vegas Review-Journal (Sunday)
Aviation Nation air show will returns to Nellis
Performances set over two days in November
Nellis Air Force Base has launched a promotional campaign for its traditional Aviation Nation air show and open house after the event wasn’t held last year because it was not part of the Thunderbirds air demonstration team’s schedule.
The team will cap their 2016 season with performances Nov. 12 and 13 at their home base at the north end of the Las Vegas Valley. The team will also have season-ending shows in 2017 at Nellis on Veterans Day, Nov. 11, and Nov. 12.
“Attendees will get to experience exciting aerial acts, static aircraft displays from past and present, and be able to interact with the Airmen who carry out the Nellis mission,” according to a statement released Thursday. The event is free and open to the public.
“The Airmen of Nellis are excited for the chance to say ‘thank you’ to the community for the incredible support they give our mission each day,” the statement said.
To meet cost-cutting mandates under the Budget Control Act of 2011 and associated sequestration, Pentagon leaders had to cut $46 billion from their planned spending by October 2013, cutting short the Thunderbirds’ season and grounding the team for the November 2013 Aviation Nation show at Nellis.
The team was supposed to mark its 60th anniversary season in 2013 after having performed in 4,400 air shows in 50 states and 60 countries. The team, known as “America’s ambassadors in blue,” has been a recruiting tool for the Air Force. It was formed at Luke Air Force Base, Ariz., in 1953 and moved to Nellis in 1956.
The Air Force typically spends about $300,000 to hold the Nellis air show and host the Aviation Nation open house. In turn, the weekend shows combined draw about 100,000 spectators and inject about $19 million into the local economy, according to estimates. The Thunderbirds performed at Nellis in November 2014, but the 2015 schedule didn’t include public performances at Nellis.