Air Show ~ part 1 ~ B-52 and C-17 (CC-177)

Last weekend, the kids and I went to the Windsor International Air Show. We spent most of the day there, and learned so much about so many different types of airplanes. Two of my children are very interested in the Canadian Forces, and seeing several Air Force planes from Canada and the USA was perfect. We also watched all the amazing shows in the air.

I am going to split this into a few posts because I have many photos!

I hope you will enjoy seeing our adventures.

The first plane we visited was a B-52H Stratofortress from the US Air Force. This is a bomber, and we were able to walk underneath and see where the bombs would be attached and dropped from.

Celeste couldn't believe how big the wheels were!

Below is a photo showing the nose of the B-52:

Walking away from the B-52. The weather was actually really nice that day, at first it was really cloudy as you can see, but then cleared up for the air shows. At least, it wasn't super hot or humid!

The next plane we visited was from the Canadian Forces. The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III (called CC-177 in Canada) was our favourite of the day. It was huge! Canada has 4 of these. This plane can also be used for medical relief, we saw a photo of it set up with beds, but it is mostly used to transport other military vehicles and cargo.

Its wing span is 51.75 meters (169.8 ft), it weighs empty 128,100 kg (282,500 lbs)! The price tag, as of 2010: $ 191 million!

We went aboard twice, once through the back loading dock:

and the second time through the side door:

Andre asked questions to the loadmaster. He was curious to know what some of the tools were.

This huge plane only needs 3 people for its crew: 2 pilots and 1 loadmaster. The loadmaster takes care of the cargo in the plane. He explained many of the things that Andre could see on the sides of the plane. He also told him that this is the same type of plane that was used in the second Transformers movie. You can see it transporting Optimus Prime, and also the Autobots.

In the CC-177, we were able to go into the cockpit.

Celeste loved trying on all the seat belts!

Andre was pretty happy about this! Look at him!

In the pilot's seat of a CC-177.

He might have to grow a little taller to see above the dashboard!!

Adrienne's turn. The loadmaster was very kind and explained more to us. We learned about the armour plates on the floor of the cockpit that protects the two pilots and also the purpose of some of the buttons, screens, and levers...so many of them!

The front of the CC-177:

Next post I will share our photos of the Brazilian Smoke Quadron.