Stars Old And New Getting Ready To Wow Air Show Crowds
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Practice runs were underway on Thursday for the 57th annual Chicago Air & Water Show, and WBBM Newsradio's Mike Krauser flew with a team many fans probably haven't seen before.
New to the air show this year is the Breitling Jet Team, from France. They put their Czech-made Aero L-39c Albatros jets in shipping containers to bring them to the U.S. for their first American tour.
Team leader Jacques Bothelin took Krauser along for a ride.
"We try to choreograph the scenes in a specific European manner. It's a little different from what you have seen with the American teams. We also use a lot of music, and try to give positive emotion to the spectators. We just want to give them a good time by the elegance (and) grace of the maneuvers," he said.
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Krauser said his flight with Breitling was awesome; speeding through the air upside down in formation over the lake providing a perspective that's hard to describe, but quite an experience.
WBBM also caught up with another Air Show crowd favorite as he prepared to take off. Team Oracle leader Sean Tucker gets his little red biplane to perform stunts you wouldn't think airplanes can do.
"You know, I put my heart and soul in this. I practice about five to seven hundred times a year, and I'm looking for perfection in the sky. You never get there, but I'm looking for perfection in the sky; whether I'm flipping, whether I'm tumbling, or whether I'm twirling, or whether I'm flying backwards, tail first at 100 miles an hour. I just love the art form. I love the opportunity to inspire and thrill," he said.
Tucker pulls 10 Gs in some maneuvers – 10 times the acceleration of gravity, a force that would cause most people to pass out.
In addition to Team Oracle and the Breitling Jet Team, performers this year include the U.S. Navy Blue Angels, the U.S. Army Golden Knights parachute team, the AeroShell Aerobatic Team, and the Aerostars.
WBBM Newsradio 780 and 105.9FM will have live play-by-play Saturday and Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. CBSChicago.com will live stream the show.
