Look, Up In the Air!

For the second year in a row, I went to the Chicago Air & Water Show by myself. (Last year A was studying, and this year he was out of town.) I don't mind, though. I like to take tons of pictures, and I understand not everyone is obsessed with airplanes. (Though I don't know why not!)

The Air & Water Show is comprised of mostly airplane acts. Aerobatics, flybys, etc. There is technically a "water" portion, but it consists of people jumping from a low-flying helicopter into the harbor. Not exactly thrilling. It spans two days over a weekend in August, with the same acts repeated on both days. Though sometimes not in the same order (the pilots determine it the day-of).

This year, for the first time in many, it rained on Saturday. I'm sure it was a huge bummer for people who only traveled into the city for that one day. (Oh, by the way, 2 MILLION people come to this show every year. Yeah, madness.) Thankfully, I had Sunday as an option. :) It was a bright, breezy, beautiful day!

Be prepared for many photos!

I started out near Oak Street Beach, which is a few blocks away from Air Show Center on North Ave Beach. The lakefront near Oak Street is much less crowded.

Yes, I said "less" crowded. Just wait until you see North Ave Beach.

I actually got a late start and missed the first act or two - including the AeroShell aerobatic team. Good thing I saw them last year - they're amazing!

I did catch some paratroopers.

Then the F-18 Super Hornet scared everyone as it screamed by overhead. Loved seeing it break the sound barrier!

Some people are lucky to have boats - must be a cool view!

At every event there will be dissenters... their signs were quite amusing. I love how they were watching the show and not trying to actually make a point!

Next up was Sean D. Tucker, a member of Team Oracle. He flies a custom-made plane called the Oracle Challenger. They built it for him! He pushed the limits in every other plane they have.

He is seriously amazing. He does the smallest inverted loop in the world. Check it out:

See how many people are on North Ave beach? It's packed. You can't walk without rubbing elbows with someone.

Next on the agenda was the Army Golden Knights.

They did this crazy move where two guys jumped and then pulled their chutes, then a third guy fell off one of those first two, zoomed down a ways then pulled his own chute. It looked scary!

The last act was the headliners: The US Air Force Thunderbirds.

Their F-16s are pretty awesome.

Very impressive feats of flying.

They did a maneuver where one pilot flew in the middle of a group of four... very cool!

Their large-scale whole-group maneuvers were outstanding.

While there, a woman brought along a spectator who wasn't too impressed. But extremely laid back! (Orion would have been desperate to get away!)

This is the scene when you try to leave at the end... mass chaos.

All in all, another great Air (& Water) Show! I still prefer the Blue Angels, but I'm still amazed!