We have attended air shows in Brunswick since the 70s and found this one lacking in many respects.

We arrived at Saturday’s show around 8:30 a.m. in order to beat the traffic, and anticipated whiling away the morning viewing the ground display and other exhibits. We were amazed to find that the static display consisted of exactly two planes and a helicopter! The handful of tiny exhibits could be viewed in about ten minutes, and at 9 a.m. we were scratching our heads about what to do for the next three hours. Lunch food was being set up, but there was not a cup of coffee, doughnut, bagel, or such to be found. There was a small midway that helped keep kids occupied, but little to do until the show started, a half-hour late.

There was no parachute team to kick things off as in year’s past, and while the anthem singer was fine, there was not an American flag to be seen! The flying itself was good, though certain segments were repetitious and long (20 minutes of Ave Maria and a looping airplane). The F-22 Raptor was amazing, and the Blue Angels put on their usual top-notch display, even though they could only come up with five jets that could fly out of the seven they usually bring.

All in all, it was not a stellar effort, even though the Midcoast Authority brought in a supposedly “professional” outfit called the Air Show Network to run things. The Authority did a much better job running the last two shows themselves. Let’s hope more foresight and planning go into future air shows.

The people of Maine deserve it.

Daniel Connolly,

Brunswick