2008 MCAS Cherry Point Air Show

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NC'S LARGEST AIR SHOW TAKES OFF JUNE 6-7-8!

Just as Much Fun on the Ground as in the Air!
Is craning your neck skyward getting a little painful from watching all the great aerobatics?
While attending the upcoming 2008 MCAS Cherry Point Air Show, there are lots of fun things to do other than just watching exciting air performances!

USMC Marine AV-8B Harrier - serves as the symbolic icon of MCAS Cherry Point and is the most versatile in the Marine Corps aviation arsenal. The Harrier is the most advanced vertical takeoff and landing jet in use today.

No fighter in the history of military aviation comes close to the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II joint strike fighter – a truly transformational weapon system that provides quantum leaps in survivability and lethality.

All-weather fighter and attack aircraft. The single-seat F/A-18 SuperHornet is the nation's first strike-fighter. It was designed for traditional strike applications such as interdiction and close air support without compromising its fighter capabilities. With its excellent fighter and self-defense capabilities, the F/A-18 at the same time increases strike mission survivability and supplements the F-14 Tomcat in fleet air defense. F/A-18 Hornets are currently operating in 37 tactical squadrons from air stations world-wide, and from 10 aircraft carriers.

V-22 Osprey
Range, speed and flexibility. Hard rules once defined by the limitations of legacy helicopters. The V-22 offers twice the speed, three times the payload, five times the range, and can fly more than twice as high as older rotorcraft it is destined to replace.
It is the world's first production tilt rotor combining the vertical performance of a helicopter with the high speed and range of a fixed wing aircraft...
...The V-22 not only rewrites the rules of mobility, it mobilizes the rules of engagement.

The EA-6B Prowler is a twin-engine, mid-wing aircraft manufactured by Grumman as a modification of the basic A-6 Intruder airframe.

B-52 Bomber - Air Combat Command's B-52 is a long-range, heavy bomber that can perform a variety of missions. The bomber is capable of flying at high subsonic speeds at altitudes up to 50,000 feet (15,166.6 meters). It can carry nuclear or precision guided conventional ordnance with worldwide precision navigation capability.

The F-16 Fighting Falcon is a compact, multi-role fighter aircraft. It is highly maneuverable and has proven itself in air-to-air combat and air-to-surface attack. It provides a relatively low-cost, high-performance weapon system for the United States and allied nations.

The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is a four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft and the main tactical airlifter for many military forces worldwide.

The F/A-18 "Hornet" is a single- and two-seat, twin engine, multi-mission fighter/attack aircraft that can operate from either aircraft carriers or land bases. The F/A-18 fills a variety of roles: air superiority, fighter escort, suppression of enemy air defenses, reconnaissance, forward air control, close and deep air support, and day and night strike missions. The F/A-18 Hornet replaced the F-4 Phantom II fighter and A-7 Corsair II light attack jet, and also replaced the A-6 Intruder as these aircraft were retired during the 1990s.

The graceful lines of the British Spitfire were designed by Reginald J. Mitchell,

whose seaplane racers of the 1920's laid the foundation for a new generation of military interceptor fighters. The first prototype built by Vickers-Supermarine in 1936 was powered by the new V-12 Rolls Royce engine of 1000 horsepower with a fixed pitch, two bladed, wooden propeller.

On November 6, 1935, the first Hawker Hurricane designed by Sydney Camm, took flight. The original plans for the British Hurricane called for a Rolls-Royce Goshawk engine, four machine guns, and fixed landing gear. Instead, the first production of the Hurricane included a more powerful PV.12 Merlin engine, retractable landing gear and eight machine guns. Similar to the Hawker biplanes, the monoplane Hurricanes’ fuselage was built around a mold of four alloy and steel tube longerons known for its durability and simplicity. Initially, 600 Hurricane MkIs were ordered by the Royal Air Force on June 1936, and were in service by December 1937.

Curtis P-40 - One of the most popular and successful American aircraft of the Second World War was the Curtiss-Wright P-40 Fighter Aircraft. Initially a derivative of the radial engine P-36 pursuit plane that first flew in 1935, it became the upgraded P-40 three years later with the installation of an Allison liquid-cooled V-12 engine. This made the aircraft more streamlined and able to achieve airspeeds in excess of 300 mph.

The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang was an American long-range single-seat fighter aircraft that entered service with Allied air forces in the middle years of World War II. The P-51 became one of the conflict's most successful and recognizable aircraft.

The P-51 flew most of its wartime missions as a bomber escort in raids over Germany, helping ensure Allied air superiority from early 1944.

The Yakovlev Yak-3 was a World War II Soviet fighter aircraft regarded as one of the best fighters of the war. As one of the smallest and lightest major combat fighters fielded by any combatant during the war, its high power-to-weight ratio gave it excellent performance.

TBM Avenger Bomber Aircraft - In the late 1930’s the United States Navy began

searching for a replacement for the Douglas Devastator. The search ended when Grumman presented the XTBF-1 prototype to the U.S. Navy. The large, powerful radial engine fit well into the barrel-shaped fuselage signature to Grumman aircraft of that era. The requirement for a three person crew to deliver the mass amounts of weaponry, was accommodated by increasing the wing and fuselage length. Production of the TBF Avenger began in 1941 and by June of 1942 the United States Navy flew these planes into combat during the Battle of Midway.

Navy FG-1D Corsair - One of the most powerful and unique fighter planes of the Second World War was

developed by the Chance Vought Corporation during the late 1930’s. The inverted gull wings and abnormally large propeller put the Vought Corsair in the record books as the first U.S. war plane to exceed 400 mph. The earliest XF4U-1 prototype was tested in 1938 and three years later, the U.S. Navy placed its initial order for 584 aircraft. The first F4U-1A Corsairs were powered by a Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp engine that produced 2,000 hp. The strong engine and large propeller pulled the Corsair at speeds up to 425 mph. The war time demand for these airplanes required Vought to contract out much of the production to the Goodyear and Brewster aircraft plants.

PBY 5A Catalina - Unlike many preserved or flying aircraft this Catalina PBY-5A has a true wartime service record, albeit a career that involved many days of mundane maritime patrol work protecting allied shipping from submarine attack. Whilst action for patrol aircraft was scarce their very presence would often be enough to stop a submarine from making an attack.

AD-4 Skyraider "Able Dog" - Near the end of the second World War, the US Navy was looking for a replacement for their obsolete SBD Dauntless dive bomber. The Douglas aircraft Company designed and tested their new Dauntless II in March, 1945. From this initial production order, just prior to the end of the war in the Pacific, came the AD Skyraider. The term "Able Dog" for the Skyraider was originally from when this was the phonetic alphabet for 'AD'. The first version of the AD1 had gradual improvements made to its design, which eventually lead to the introduction of the AD-4 Skyraider in 1949.

C-123K - A workhorse of Vietnam, Ponderous Polly arrived with 19th Air Commando Squadron at Tan Son Nhut AB, South Vietnam, on October 8, 1964 where she served until 1971. This squadron received a Navy Presidential Unit Citation for supporting the Marines at Khe Sahn. Polly was the last C-123 to leave South Veitnam at war's end and make it into Thailand. Today she is based in New Bern, NC and operated by the Northeast Aviation Group.

The Northrop T-38 Talon is an American supersonic jet trainer. It was the world's first, and most produced supersonic trainer. It remains in service as of 2008 in air forces throughout the world including the USAF, which remains its largest user.

The T-6A Texan II is a single-engine turboprop aircraft built by the Raytheon Aircraft Company (now Hawker Beechcraft). It is used by the United States Air Force for basic pilot training and by the United States Navy for Primary and Intermediate Joint Naval Flight Officer (NFO) and Air Force Navigator / Weapon Systems Officer (WSO) training. It is replacing the Air Force's T-37B Tweet and the Navy's T-34C Turbo Mentor.

The T-1 Jayhawk is a twin-engined jet aircraft used by the United States Air Force for advanced pilot training. T-1A students go on to fly cargo and tanker aircraft.

BAC-167 - A single engine jet aircraft with side-by-side seating. The Strikemaster entered service in 1967 and was developed from the Jet Provost for military pilot training, ground attack and reconnaissance duties. It has a top speed of just over 500 mph and is known for its maneuverability, rapid acceleration and climb rate.

The C-2 Greyhound is a derivative of the E-2 Hawkeye and replaced the piston-engine C-1 Trader in the Carrier Onboard Delivery role. The C-2 shares wings and power plants with the E-2 Hawkeye, but has a widened fuselage with a rear loading ramp. The first of two prototypes flew in 1964 and production began the following year. The original C-2A aircraft were overhauled to extend their operational life in 1973.

The Douglas AC-47 Spooky was the first in a series of gunships developed by the United States Air Force during the Vietnam War. It was felt that more firepower than could be provided by light and medium attack aircraft was needed in some situations when ground forces called for close air support.

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Revised: 05/23/08 07:44 AM
This page is designed and maintained by Leigh M. Velez