The City Wire (Fort Smith Region) wrote:
Submitted by The City Wire staff on Fri, 12/11/2009 - 10:34pm.
Scheduling conflicts have resulted in a cancellation of the Fort Smith Air Show, according to a statement from the 188th Fighter Wing.
The unit released the following statement Friday (Dec. 11):
FORT SMITH, Ark. – Scheduling conflicts combined with an increasingly arduous training and inspection schedule over the next year has prompted Fort Smith Air Show officials to cancel the 2010 event, which was originally slated for June 26-27.
The 188th Fighter Wing is scheduled for an upcoming Aerospace Expeditionary Force (AEF) rotation in Afghanistan in spring 2010. The 188th will deploy approximately 300 personnel and 10 of its 21 A-10C Thunderbolt II "Warthogs" to Afghanistan.
The 188th is also tasked with multiple Operational Readiness Exercises in preparation for an upcoming Operational Readiness Inspection. Additional 12th Air Force Standard and Evaluation inspections will require further training.
The 188th's busy itinerary limited the amount of dates available to secure a headline performer as in past air shows. Air show officials decided it would be in the best interest of the community to cancel the 2010 event rather than proceed without a headline act.
The air show is held at the 188th Fighter Wing and Fort Smith Regional Airport. It garnered a record turnout in 2008 with approximately 200,000 attending the event, which featured the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds.
"The 188th and the Fort Smith Regional Airport have had the privilege to host one of the nation's best air shows for many years," said Col. Tom Anderson, 188th Fighter Wing commander. "We've had the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds, the U.S. Navy's Blue Angels, U.S. Army's Golden Knights and many of the world's finest civilian air show performers over the years.
"But an intense inspection schedule and an AEF deployment to Afghanistan left us with a small number of dates to schedule a headline act. The 188th and the Community Council are very appreciative of the overwhelming positive response we have received over the years as a result of our air shows. The community's support has helped make the Fort Smith Air Show one of the best in the country and we felt like Fort Smith deserved a headline act."
Officials from the 188th Fighter Wing-Fort Chaffee Community Council said the event will be tentatively rescheduled for 2011 but no dates have been set. Air show officials will release the dates as soon as they become available.
Source
Note: This statement, official titled "Scheduling conflicts, operational tempo prompt cancellation of 2010 Fort Smith Air Show" and written by Capt. Heath Allen, 188th Fighter Wing Public Affairs Officer, was released on 188th Fighter Wings's public website December 15, 2009. Source
See also:
188th Calls Off Air Show
By Rusty Garrett
Southwest Times Record
Saturday, December 12, 2009 10:37 AM CST
The Fort Smith Air Show originally scheduled for June 26-27, has been canceled.
A news release issued Friday by the 188th Fighter Wing cited the reasons as "scheduling conflicts combined with an increasingly arduous training and inspection schedule over the next year."
When the show dates were originally announced in September, officials said the June dates were picked with attention to the Fighter Wing's schedule. The show was to follow the 188th's return from deployment to Afghanistan and precede inspections slated in the late summer and fall.
The 188th Fighter Wing is scheduled for an upcoming Aerospace Expeditionary Force rotation in Afghanistan in the spring. The 188th will deploy about 300 personnel and 10 of its 21 A-10C Thunderbolt II "Warthogs" to Afghanistan.
The 188th also is tasked with multiple Operational Readiness Exercises in preparation for an upcoming Operational Readiness Inspection. Additional 12th Air Force Standard and Evaluation inspections will require further training.
The release explained that the limited number of available dates made it impossible to secure a headline performer as in past air shows. Air show officials decided it would be in the best interest of the community to cancel the 2010 event rather than proceed without a headline act.
The 2008 air show, held at the 188th Fighter Wing and Fort Smith Regional Airport, attracted about 200,000.
The U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds appeared at that show. Other earlier shows have featured U.S. Navy's Blue Angels, U.S. Army's Golden Knights and many of the world's finest civilian air show performers over the years.
Col. Tom Anderson, 188th Fighter Wing commander, said given overwhelming community support for the shows, "We felt like Fort Smith deserved a headline act."
The free shows have provided an economic boost to the community, generating tourism dollars in entertainment, dining and lodging.
Dr. Jerry Stewart, head of the Fort Chaffee Community Council, a citizens organization that co-sponsors the show with the 188th, said the cancellation is "a huge disappointment."
If there are any advantages to a delay, Stewart said they may be that the 188th will now have more time to recover upon their return from Afghanistan.
"Perhaps in the long run it's not so bad," he said.
Officials from the 188th Fighter Wing-Fort Chaffee Community Council said the event will be tentatively rescheduled for 2011, but no dates have been set.
Air show officials will release the dates as soon as they become available.
Source
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