Airshow planned at muni

The Gunfighter Skies 2003 airshow festivities will actually begin Friday afternoon at Mountain Home's municipal airport when a free civilian air show, displays and performances kick off the weekend celebrating airpower in Idaho.

Events are scheduled to begin at 5:25 p.m. when the U.S. Army's Golden Knights parachute team jumps while the National Anthem is played.

At 5:42 p.m. the base's 389th Fighter Squadron will conduct a flyover with its F-16CJ Vipers.

Performers scheduled to appear at the base over the weekend also will provide shows, including Lon Arnold in his Long Easy at 5:45 p.m., Steve Oliver with the Pepsi Team at 6 p.m., and stunt pilot Greg Poe at 6:30 p.m.

A barbecue and concert by Redstone will take place during a break from 7-8:30 p.m.

At 8:45 p.m. Chuck Lischer will perform in his F-260 Warrior, at 9 p.m. Dan Buchanan will perform and at 9:15 p.m. Eric Beard will fly his Russian-built acrobatic aircraft, Russian Thunder.

The Redstone concert and a dance will then take place from 9:30-11:30 p.m.

Gates open at noon. The event is free to the public and will include static displays of aircraft and a food court.

Silver Wings of Idaho, a not for profit organization, is helping fund the airshows at the municipal airport and on base. The organization was born in 1999 when Air Force budget restraints threatened the future of airshows nationwide. A small group of community leaders joined together to team with the Air Force to develop an event from a vision into a world-class extravaganza, the first co-produced and directed airshow in the community's history.

Alan Bermensolo, president of Silver Wings of Idaho, noted, "Silver Wings of Idaho is proud of the Air Force community and recognizes their important contribution to our nation's defense and world peace." Bringing together corporate and local partners, the members of the organization donate hundreds of hours to the effort to produce the largest airshow in Idaho and the intermountain northwest.

You can keep abreast of the organization's plans by visiting the website at: mountain-home.org/airshow.