Naval Air Station/Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth is hosting its first air show since 2016 this weekend. "Wings Over Cowtown" takes place on Saturday and Sunday.
The U.S. Navy Blue Angels will fly at the end of both days from 3 to 4 p.m.
"It's always exciting," says Blue Angel #6 Thomas Zimmerman. "It's cool bringing all six airplanes plus our C130, our entire team here to show the Fort Worth area what the Navy and Marine Corps are all about."
The Blue Angels last flew over North Texas in 2020 to show support for medical workers during the pandemic. They also flew at the Fort Worth Alliance Air Show in 2019, but last year, organizers cancelled the event without establishing plans to resume.
Zimmerman says the Blue Angels are glad to return to the area because of its strong connection to the military through the JRB as well as private companies like Lockheed and Bell Helicopter.
"The town and just the outreach and support we get for being here, not only do we get to see it, but hopefully, you'll see it in the crowds and feel that energy," Zimmerman says.
The Blue Angels were seen flying around Fort Worth Thursday as they familiarized themselves with the landscape and prepared for this weekend. Zimmerman says they would also visit hospitals and schools before the show.
"When I was six years old watching the Blue Angels fly in Annapolis, Maryland, that sparked my interest," Zimmerman says. "Here this weekend, we're going to have kids in the crowd who are going to watch the Blue Angels and the other performers. Hopefully, that sparks the same interest, and hopefully, we can inspire them to achieve great things and just follow their dreams."
Zimmerman says the air show can also show kids the variety of jobs connected to the Navy, Marines, and other branches of the service. He says a kid may not develop an interest in becoming a pilot but may get interested in engineering, mechanics, or even medical teams who work with the group.
"We are just a group of people who get to showcase what those 800,000 men and women active-duty and reservists are doing day in and day out," Zimmerman says.
Friday, the Joint Reserve Base announced parking passes at both the base and Ridgmar Mall had all been claimed. They had 8,000 spaces at the base and 3,500 more at the mall. VIP tickets and reserved seating were also sold out. People may find other parks or spaces to watch the show, but they would not be sanctioned by the JRB. Details about the air show are available online.
Outside the base, businesses are eager to welcome a spike in customers with up to 50,000 people expected to attend both Saturday and Sunday.
"They'll see it popping, and they'll see people coming," says Krystal Guardiola, manager of Rule the Roost Nashville Hot Chicken on Highway 183 near the JRB's main gate. "Probably the last four or five people to come through the drive-thru today, it was their first time. One girl said, 'It was so busy. Obviously, it's a good place to eat if it's that busy.'"
Guardiola says the restaurant has been seeing more new customers, but a lot of their lunch rush comes from people who work at the base.
"It's a really good feeling," Guardiola says. "We get to know them. It's a family business, and they connect with everybody on a daily basis."
She says those connections led to an addition on the menu.
"We have a secret menu spice called, 'Good luck,' that he actually created because of the military guys," Guardiola says. "They said, 'Ah, that's not that hot,' and he said, 'I got you.' They care. They care about what people like and what tastes good."
She says a lot of people from the base become regulars. She says Rule the Roost hosts "military weekends" every other weekend with specials for service members and to introduce people who may have just arrived at the base.
"I know half of them, but then I won't see them for a little bit and I'm like, 'Oh, they got deployed,'" Guardiola says. "But then they come back. I had a guy yesterday who started ordering his sandwich, but I recognized his voice. When he finished ordering his sandwich, he said, 'Hey!' I said, 'Where have you been?!' 'They deployed me! I just drove back into town and came straight here.' It's a really good feeling."
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