Crowds Flock to See High-Flying Daredevils Wing It

Nose first, the single-engine plane hurtled toward the Earth in a series of hairpin loops Saturday, twisting and trailing a plume of white vapor high over the Oxnard Airport.

Below, thousands of spectators at the 14th annual Oxnard Air Show shaded their eyes, craned their necks for a better view and filled the air with the sounds of oohs and ahs.

“Look at that!” said Ronnie Sotelo, a truck driver from Oxnard. “God, did you see that?”

Sotelo and other fans of daredevil stunts and high-flying aerobatic maneuvers got a healthy dose of thrills as a dozen pilots simulated death-defying danger in a three-hour aerial display.

The show is a fund-raiser for local charitable organizations, chairman Steve Barber said. Officials hope to raise between $15,000 and $20,000 during the two-day event, which continues today.

As many as 40,000 people are expected to attend over the Labor Day weekend.

Good causes aside, some audience members professed that what really brought them out was the prospect of seeing wing walkers, parachutists and top-notch stunt pilots.

“I think they’re amazing. I love it,” said Camarillo resident Carol Weeks, grasping the hand of her 6-year-old grandson, Tony.

Nearby, Eric Minnig, 7, of Sun Valley settled into a front-row seat beside his mother, Karen Minnig, and his best friend, Louis Granados, also 7.

“I really like seeing all the flips,” Eric said. He has been to about 10 air shows--three this year alone, Minnig said.

She said she started bringing her son to air shows so she could share her own love of flying. Minnig, who earned her pilot’s license 15 years ago, said she got hooked on aviation after she took her first lesson for $5 at the San Fernando Airport.

Minnig said she can appreciate what it takes to command a plane through a complex sequence of maneuvers.

“It’s just thrilling to watch,” said Minnig, a payroll manager with the county of Los Angeles. “What brings me out is the aerobatics. I just love seeing all the stunts.”

For some World War II buffs, nostalgia for vintage airplanes was a major draw. Encino resident Fredric Arnold, who has written an autobiography on his experiences as a P-38 fighter pilot in North Africa, said he gets a thrill from seeing planes from that era.

“I’m a relic,” said Arnold, 68, from a booth where he is selling his book. “I thought it would be nostalgic to come back to Oxnard. The first time I flew a plane was over here.”

Oxnard resident Pete Coronado said the appearance of imminent danger attracts him. “I come to see if anybody’s going to crash,” Coronado said.

But Bruce Hinds, chief test pilot for the B-2 at Edwards Air Force Base, who flew to Oxnard in a Piper Seneca during a celebrity rally, said the extreme precautions and high level of experience of the stunt pilots decreases the chance of an accident.

“I think by and large everybody tries to minimize the risk,” Hinds said. “They make it appear more dangerous than it is.”

Barber said the annual show, which evolved from an airport open house, is also intended “to encourage people to get involved in aviation and to show residents the benefits of having an airport in their community.”

Gates open today at 10 a.m. and performances run from 1 to 4 p.m. Admission is $7, $5 for seniors and $3 for children 6 to 12. Children under 6 are admitted free.