Posted on 12/31/2008 9:55:45 AM PST by BenLurkin
PALMDALE - They may not be rose-covered, but they will certainly be attractions during Thursday's Tournament of Roses Parade and the Rose Bowl. Twin B-2 stealth bombers arrived Tuesday in Palmdale from their home at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri in preparation for their featured roles in the New Year's Day festivities.
One bomber will fly over Colorado Boulevard to open the morning's parade, while the second will punctuate the National Anthem before the start of the football game that afternoon.
The batwing bombers are enjoying a homecoming of sorts, making Northrop Grumman Corp.'s facility at Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale their base for the Pasadena flights. All 21 stealth bombers were built at the site.
The stealth bombers are "a revolution in modern airpower and, quite frankly, the finest aircraft ever built, ever put into service," said Col. John Robinson, vice commander of the 509th Bomb Wing and one of the pilots ferrying the bomber to California.
"We look forward to showing America's bomber to America. It's a great opportunity for people to see what the Air Force is doing for them," he said.
"For many years this was shrouded in mystery," Robinson said of the once top-secret bomber. "It brings such a tremendous capability to our forces, it's important for taxpayers to see what they bought."
Plus, "it's a crowd-pleaser," he said.
The Tournament of Roses appearance is not the first for the stealth bombers, but it does kick off celebrations marking the 20th anniversary of the B-2's first flight, from Palmdale on July 17, 1989.
(Excerpt) Read more at avpress.com ...
"GRACEFUL LANDING - The two B-2 stealth bombers that will perform the fly-overs at the Rose Bowl on Tuesday flew to Northrop Grumman in Palmdale. The planes, piloted by Col. John Robinson and Lt. Col. John Vitacca, will also fly over the 2009 Tournament of Roses Parade on New Year's Day." MOLLY HAUXWELL/Valley Press
Usually not announced in advance.
They’re stealths.
If you don’t tell people, they might not know they were there.
;-)
Saw a news clip run last night and commentary to the effect that there are a lot of big rigs and RVs parked along the parade route.. maybe the B2s are armed.. ;-) They aren’t messing with security .. or potential threats.
We ought to send them down to Mexico after the game.. let ‘em dump their loads on a cartel compound or two.
I got the same feeling standing on the deck of the Battleship Missouri looking at those VERY BIG GUNS. I don't want to think about what we could do, if called upon to do so — on the other hand, it's a great comfort to know we can. ;-)
I'd rather see it carpet bombing a bunch of ragheads.
All I could thank of was the fact that I would hate to be under one of these big boys on a carpet-bombing run...
BTW — Happy New Year to everyone. My very best wishes to all FReepers as we enter 2009. God bless us EVERY one.
the B2 was delayed 2 hours this morning due to ice on the wing in Palmdale.
Did it not make it? I recorded the parade but haven’t watched yet.
It made it, just flew at 906am....not the beginning.....then the pair went up the coast and simulated bombing an unspecified target....then came back and the 2nd bomber made the pass over the Rose Bowl.
Hey that’s cool. I love seeing the Bs and the Fs flying around out here.
At first I laughed about “simulated bombing,” wondering how the differs from “flying.” But you probably mean they ran a procedure. Helps justify the $.
I’m still a little surprised to hear about ice. The temps are usually low enough out here, but humidity’s not ordinarily high enough. That’s been different this year. I notice how often I can see my breath this winter, when it’s usually not the case at all.
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