Preparations underway for Tuscaloosa Air Show

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- They’re not birds, and they’re not just planes. They are the twirling, whirling, United States Navy Blue Angels. The team of seven pilots logged thousand of flight hours, practicing for this weekend's performance. Blue Angel Pilot Captain Brandon Cordill said, “My favorite maneuver as part of the show is going to be diamond 360. It's going to be one of the first maneuvers that the diamond will execute on take off. It's a maneuver where we are flying 18 inches apart from each other across the show line and just over 100 feet off the ground.”

The well oiled Blue Angel team also brings their own mechanics that are busy fine tuning the jets before takeoff.

“Starting the aircraft, shutting it down, fueling it, putting smoke oil inside the oil tank, checking the entire aircraft doing a complete pre-flight inspection and then when they arrive here we do the same thing.” Blue Angel Mechanic AME2 Jared Mann said. 

Before the Blue Angels close the show, private performers will take to the sky show-casing their talents. But on the ground, the group enjoys their quality time together.

“It's a big family. It's similar to Reno of course I don't consider to be strictly an air show performer. I'm a race pilot at Reno air races. But it's the same kind of commendatory. A lot of good folks. If you have a problem a lot of the guys will drop what they're doing and come help you,” pilot Gordo Sanders said.

Planes of all shapes and sizes are gearing up to take sky despite the gloomy weather.

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