Seafair Events -- Snowbirds A Pale Imitation Of Blue Angels Performances

I'm writing this letter immediately after the "air show" that replaced the Blue Angels. It's bad enough to break a 22-year tradition and not have the Angels appear. But, what occurred was ridiculous. Do we need a Seafair 101 course? The finale of the air show is supposed to be on SUNDAY afternoon just before the final heat, not on SATURDAY morning.

The show was a pale imitation of what our (U.S.A., remember?) Blue Angels perform. It was only half as long and they did not fly as tight as the Angels. Low maneuvers were done at medium altitude. Some were done miles away from the boom and even north of the bridge.

What do you think people on the boom and the pits want? They want the show over them where they can see it. They're out there to be close to the race and the air show. They want the noise. They want to see the planes overhead, not miles away. They might as well have been at home watching on TV for a lot of this one.

There's a very simple test: after the Angels performed a spectacular maneuver, you would hear cheers and boat horns all the way up here on the island. What did I hear Sunday? Deafening silence.

Saying the FAA wouldn't allow the show because the Angels wouldn't change their flight plan is just the usual political denying of responsibility. It just wasn't worth the effort by our Seafair director from Denver or anyone else involved. Political correctness strikes again - they're noisy, they waste fuel, they're

military, what if there's an accident. . . .

Well, most of the same can be said of the hydros themselves. What's next? Put mufflers on the hydros because the EPA decides they're noise pollution and slow them down to 40 mph because of the danger to the boats on the boom? Marc McDonald Mercer Island