Maybe Next Year …

Established in 1867 by the U.S. Army as Fort David Allen Russell, the facility known today as Francis E. Warren Air Force Base (FEW) is the oldest continuously active military installation within the USAF.

Located some 2.6-nautical-miles west of Cheyenne, Wyoming, F.E. Warren AFB is one of three strategic-missile bases in the continental U.S. and home to the 90th Missile Wing assigned to the Twentieth Air Force, USAF Global Strike Command. The 90th Missile Wing operates the LGM-30G Minuteman III Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM).

On 02 February 2023, the 90th Missile Wing canceled the 2023 Wings Over Warren airshow due to the unfortunate but necessary cancellation of the event’s headline act—the USAF Thunderbirds. The famed air demonstration squadron dropped out of the show after it was determined that performing in Cheyenne carried too much risk insomuch as no approved emergency landing airfields are located in sufficiently close proximity to F.E. Warren AFB.

90th Missile Wing Commander Colonel Catherine Barrington stated: “The closure of the large runway in Cheyenne is a key factor in this decision. After much discussion and consideration, canceling the show for 2023 is the best way to ensure the safety of our community and the Thunderbirds. While we are sad to discontinue our airshow, we understand the risk that comes with performing and are grateful to the Thunderbirds for their many years of support.”

The Cheyenne Regional Airport (CYS) has been under intermittent construction for several years. In 2021 and 2022, the Thunderbirds flew their Cheyenne performance out of northern Colorado’s Fort Collins airfield (FNL).

Following 2022’s Wings Over Warren airshow, a hydraulic leak compelled one of the Thunderbird’s F-16 fighter aircraft to conduct an emergency landing in Fort Collins. Hydraulic fluid spilled from the aircraft occasioned the closure of the FNL runway and forced the remainder of the Thunderbirds team to divert across Denver International Airport (DEN) airspace and land at Colorado’s Buckley Space Force Base (BFK)—which has the [closest] safety equipment required for F-16 emergency landings.

Thunderbird 1 and team commander/leader Lieutenant Colonel Justin Elliot stated: "The team made the difficult decision, due to safety and logistics challenges operating deployed from Colorado, to not return to Cheyenne's airshow this season. While disheartened to part with this important tradition, we hope to see a fully-constructed runway allowing our safe return to Wings Over Warren in the future."

FMI: www.af.mil