Air Force F-16 Vipers arriving in Portsmouth ahead of Pease air show: What to expect

Ian Lenahan, Portsmouth Herald
Updated ·3 min read

PORTSMOUTH — Turn your eyes to the skies Wednesday, and you could catch the headlining act of the upcoming weekend’s Thunder Over New Hampshire Air Show flying into Pease Air National Guard Base.

The pilots and flight members of the air show’s headlining act, the U.S. Air Force F-16 Viper Demo Team, are scheduled to arrive at Pease Air National Guard Base around 1 p.m. Wednesday.

Wednesday's arrival is not open to the public, according to the show’s promoter, the Herb Gillen Agency, but the jets will be visible in the area.

The U.S. Air Force F-16 Viper Demo Team is scheduled to fly at the Thunder Over New Hampshire Air Show Sept. 9-10, 2023.
The U.S. Air Force F-16 Viper Demo Team is scheduled to fly at the Thunder Over New Hampshire Air Show Sept. 9-10, 2023.

The Thunder Over New Hampshire Air Show will be held Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 9-10. The shows will run from noon to 4 p.m., with gates opening in the morning.

More: Can I still get into Thunder Over NH Air Show 2023 at Pease? Everything you need to know

When will the air show rehearsals be held?

All the performers are expected to arrive at Pease in time for an air show rehearsal scheduled for Friday, Sept. 8 at noon, according to organizers.

Joining the F-16 Viper team this weekend will be the New Hampshire Air National Guard’s KC-46A tankers, the Vermont Air National Guard F-15 Eagle, the KC-135 Demo Team from Fairchild Air Force Base, the U.S. Special Operations Command Pura Commandos, aerobatic pilot Rob Holland, the N.H. Army Guard UH-60 Blackhawk, aerobatic pilot Kent Pietsch, the P-51C “Mad Max” with pilot Lou Horschel and the Smoke-N-Thunder Jet Truck.

Portsmouth announces parking ban

No parking will be permitted on Grafton Drive, including the truck turnaround area, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday, Sept. 8, Saturday, Sept. 9 and Sunday, Sept. 10. The ban was announced by Portsmouth Police Chief Mark Newport.

Newport advised show attendees to expect traffic delays and advised against bringing pets, noting they are not allowed in the show and shouldn't be left in vehicles.

What is the Air Force F-16 Viper Demo Team?

Capt. Aimee “Rebel” Fiedler, a pilot stationed at Shaw Air Force Base in Sumter, South Carolina, is commander of the F-16 Viper Demo Team. The eight-member squadron flies at over 20 air shows annually and has performed in Texas, California, Louisiana, New York, New Jersey, Georgia, Wisconsin, South Dakota, Montana, Illinois, Nebraska and Toronto thus far in 2023.

The aircraft flown by the demonstration team is the Lockheed-Martin F-16C Fighting Falcon Block 50. Just four Air Force units fly that model: the 20th Fighter Wing at Shaw Air Force Base, the 169th Fighter Wing at Joint National Guard Base McEntire in South Carolina, the 52nd Fighter Wing at Spangdahlem Air Base in Germany and the 35th Fighter Wing at Misawa Air Base in Japan.

Tips for seeing the jets: Where can you watch 2023 Thunder Over NH Air Shows outside Pease? Here are great spots.

“It is highly maneuverable and has proven itself in more than 30 years of operations including air-to-air combat and air-to-surface attack,” a Shaw Air Force Base description states. “It provides a relatively low-cost, high-performance weapon system for the United States and 25 friendly nations.”

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Air Force F-16 Vipers arriving for Thunder Over NH air show at Pease