FLYING HIGH; AIRPORT ARRIVALS THRILL AVIATION SPECTATORS.Byline: Douglas Haberman Daily News Staff Writer As some of the military's fastest and deadliest planes flew into Van Nuys on Friday afternoon, nearly 100 airplane buffs The name Buffs can mean:
A few fans didn't seem to mind the Saharan temperatures nor the occasionally long waits between arrivals of planes. ``Heat wouldn't stop me from this,'' said Louie Porras, 40, of Reseda as he sat in the bed of his red truck, a cooler by his side. He had a list of the 32 different kinds of craft that were flying in from Air Force bases and military air stations around the country, and he had a scanner tuned to the airport control tower so he would know when one was approaching. ``The sheer power is awesome,'' he said. One of the day's highlights was the F-117A stealth fighter, which landed around 8:30 a.m. Lori Mares, 35, of Van Nuys has already seen it a few times, but ``I got, like, goose bumps goose bumps or goose pimples: see gooseflesh. when it flew over,'' she said. Over the years, veteran spectators have learned some tricks. Some come the day before and camp out. Others come really early Friday morning to snare snare (snar) a wire loop for removing polyps and tumors by encircling them at the base and closing the loop. snare n. a good spot along the runway fence on Hayvenhurst Avenue. A few bring stepladders for a boost when shooting photographs of the roaring jets and large transport planes. Don Laubhan of Van Nuys and his son Sonny rented a U-Haul truck for $19.95, parked it along the fence Friday around 6 a.m. and set up their folding chairs and umbrellas - on the roof of the truck. ``You're up above the fence line so you have an unobstructed view,'' said Laubhan, 58. This year's event is the 35th annual show, featuring advanced military aircraft and some of the nation's top aerobatic pilots. But people who came out Friday wanted to actually see the fighter jets and transport planes fly in and land. ``I just like to feel the force and the power when they come in,'' said Craig Bowden Craig David Bowden (born June 18, 1968) is an American professional golfer. Bowden has gone back and forth between the PGA Tour and the Nationwide Tour during his career. He is currently a member of the PGA Tour. , 38, of Reseda. Shirtless at 2:30 p.m., the Laubhans had come fully prepared for a day of aircraft watching in 100-degree weather. They had a ladder to get on the vehicle's roof, an ice chest with food and drink, towels, one large umbrella and two smaller ones, spray bottles A Spray Bottle is a bottle that can squirt, spray or mist fluids. A common use for spray bottles is dispensing cleaners, cosmetics, and chemical specialties. While spray bottles existed before the middle of the 20th century, they used a rubber bulb, which was squeezed; the filled with water and topped with mini-fans, and a video camera. The U-Haul truck was empty. Except for a portable potty. From his perch on high, Don Laubhan was almost condescending toward other spectators, the unprepared ones staining their shirts with sweat in the midday sun. ``Look at how miserable these other people are down below,'' he said. Some spectators draped drape v. draped, drap·ing, drapes v.tr. 1. To cover, dress, or hang with or as if with cloth in loose folds: draped the coffin with a flag; a robe that draped her figure. blankets over their truck and car windows and watched from the darkened dark·en v. dark·ened, dark·en·ing, dark·ens v.tr. 1. a. To make dark or darker. b. To give a darker hue to. 2. To fill with sadness; make gloomy. 3. interiors. Some strung up tarps and sat on folding chairs underneath. Alex Delao, 13, of East Los Angeles East Los Angeles, uninc. city (1990 pop. 126,379), Los Angeles co., S Calif., a residential suburb of Los Angeles, in an industrial area. It has a large Mexican-American population. There is a performing arts center and a cultural center. A junior college is there. and Nick Rosas, 8, of Santa Clarita Santa Clarita, city (1990 pop. 110,642), Los Angeles co., S Calif., suburb 30 mi (48 km) NW of downtown Los Angeles, on the Santa Clara River; inc. 1987. Situated in the Santa Clara valley and nearby canyons, Santa Clarita includes the former towns of Canyon Country, said they loved it when just about any plane arrived. ``It's exciting when the jets come in,'' Alex said. But they admitted they grew a little bored waiting sometimes one-half hour between landings and wished they had something else to occupy the time. But there was nothing but a black-and-white television in Alex's father's motor home. ``My Dad didn't let me take my Nintendo,'' Nick said. CAPTION(S): 7 Photos, Map, Box PHOTO (1--2--Color) Jeff Wyatt, left, and Terri Park watch pilots perform during Friday's Aviation Expo preview at Van Nuys Airport Van Nuys Airport (IATA: VNY, ICAO: KVNY, FAA LID: VNY) is a public airport located in Van Nuys, California in the San Fernando Valley, within the Los Angeles city limits. . (3--Color) Brian Mayer of the U.S. Army's Golden Knights
Evan Yee/Daily News (4) Susan and Rick Underwood of Valencia watch an aerobatic pilot practice maneuvers Friday in advance of Aviation Expo '98. Evan Yee/Daily News (5--7) Pilots practice aerial maneuvers Friday to prepare for the annual show that will conclude today. John McCoy/Daily News MAP: VAN NUYS AIRPORT AVIATION EXPO Gregg Miller/Daily News BOX: SCHEDULE OF EVENTS |
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