IF YOU GO• General admission tickets are still available, though most VIP seating has been sold out. Tickets are good for one day. Adult tickets are $20, youths (age 6 to 17) are $15, military, fire and police personnel are $15, seniors (65 and up) are $15, and children under 5 are free.• Family four-packs of general admission tickets are also for sale, and include four admission tickets and one premium parking pass for $95.• Tickets for just Saturday night are available for $5 each.• See wingsovernorthgeorgia.com for additional information and parking recommendations.Airshow scheduleSaturday:• 10 a.m.: Gates open• 11:45 a.m.: Opening ceremonies• Noon: Aerial performances and ground demonstrations• 3:15 p.m.: Benning Silver Wings Demo and Parade of Military Veterans• 4:30 p.m.: Smoke-n-Thunder Concert Series and BBQ Classic Competition• 8:30 p.m.: Ladies for Liberty patriotic music, night air show and fireworks finale.Sunday:• 10 a.m.: Gates open• 11:45 a.m.: Opening ceremonies• 12:00 p.m.: Aerial performances and ground demonstrations• 4:30 p.m.: BBQ Classic awards ceremonyDue to FAA and DOD security requirements, specific performer demonstration times cannot be posted.
Plane engines will roar and crowds from all over the Southeast will cheer this weekend in Rome, Ga., at the Wings Over North Georgia's third annual airshow.
"We have tweaked a couple of things each year and this has become more than just an airshow," said Airshow Director Rob Skelton.
The weekend's events include the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds and 18 other aerial performances, along with the Smoke-n-Thunder Concert Series and a BBQ competition with 50 professional teams expected to participate.
"We picked a great time of the year for the airshow," Skelton said. "The leaves are beginning to change and the temperature should be great. Also, Georgia football is out of town this weekend, so we are not competing with any major games."
Skelton said he anticipates a crowd of 75,000, which doubles the number of people who attended the past two airshows.
The government sequestration last year prevented the Thunderbirds from performing, which Skelton said affected turnout.
This year the airshow organizers do not foresee any setbacks and are excited to add a concert series to the weekend's events.
On Saturday night, four local bands will perform, and the four-hour concert will be followed by a night-time airshow and fireworks finale.
Ken Johansen, a pilot with GEICO Skytypers which is one of the groups performing in the show, grew up attending airshows with his father and said he was destined to be a pilot.
"It was my goal as a kid was to fly in airshows," Johansen said.
The skytyping fleet will leave messages with their smoke in the sky across the metro-Atlanta area, and will perform a low-level demonstration on Saturday and Sunday that incorporates planes flying and narration, he said.
"Looks like it will be a beautiful fall weekend and the crowds will get to see some wonderful acts," Johansen said.
Contact staff writer Kendi Anderson at kendi.anderson@timesfreepress.com or at 423-757-6592.