这是第二次来看航空表演展，两年前的十月来过一次。不同于那次的美国蓝天使表演，今年的表演有英国皇家空军红箭飞行队，美国空军雷鸟和加拿大空军雪鸟，合称是"大太平洋空中表演" (The Great Pacific Airshow)。虽然对于我一个外行看热闹的人来说，航空表演有几分类似杂技，无非是腾空拉高然后直线坠落，空中翻，空中旋转，两架飞机远距离快速对冲交叉，六七架飞机并驾齐驱，然其表演的精彩纷呈却是无可置疑的。
By the time we arrived at the destination for the airshow, it was 1:10 pm. The main parking lot was full, as said in a sign at the entrance. So he dropped us at the pier and looked for the parking alone. The girl invited to watch along with us is a college student, whose mom was a high school classmate of his. The beach was thronged with people, as she and I trudged through the sand. The noon sun was high above in the blue cloudless sky. The sand was warm and soft. Dotted on the long shore were colorful flags, beach umbrellas, beach chairs, tents, and people in shorts or swimming suits. The air was filled with noise, and a few smokes from the barbecue stands in the park.
Walking through the crowd gingerly between chairs and the towels strewn on the sand, we came to the waterfront. Kids were digging the sandcastles, and playing gaily in the water, while some young surfers braced the waves. The sea was shimmering in the sun, glaring silvery on the dark blue surface. Ships in white sails afloated on, and occasionally a cruiser(?) sped by. Like all the people who flocked to the beach, we were patiently waiting for the show to begin.
Even though this was the second time I came to watch the show, I am a layman, with little knowledge other than the show is called the Great Pacific Airshow, the largest one in the U.S., performed this time by USAF Thunderbirds, The Royal Air Force Aerobatic Team, the Red Arrows, Canadian Forces Snowbirds. When the formal show finally started after 2 pm, the sky was blasted with the loud thundering sounds, accompanied by the wows from the audience. People squinted into the sky, big cameras or handy phones following the aircrafts. Emerging from one end of sea surface, the aircrafts glided through the air powerfully, gracefully and impeccably. They were like high flying acrobatics soaring and plummeting, twisting and swirling in solo or in tandem. Twice in the show, we were terrified by the sudden explosive sounds deafeningly over our heads. As we jumped to bury our heads and muffled our ears, we were baffled at no sight of aircrafts. It must be the alleged supersonic aircraft that travels at a lightning speed.
Around 3:30 pm before the show ended around 4 pm, we were exiting, as the girl was not so interested in the show. On the way back in the car, we saw the most spectacular ending, when three teams performed together looping with white, blue and red smoke ribbons. The patterns they drew in the sky soon faded, but tthe airmen's aerial maneuvering skills as well as the pride and patrotism the show embodies will stay fresh in my memory.
回复 '7grizzly' 的评论 : Thanks, my friend, for reading and comment. Sometimes I wrote in difficulty (I mean English portion), pulling my hairs out for just a few paragraphs. Thanks for the "sonic boom".Boom is a good word, associated with sound.:)
7grizzly 发表评论于
Great pics and description. Just learnt the explosive and deafening sound is called the "sonic boom."
