Canadian warbirds steal the show at EAA

The Royal Canadian Air Force is headlining afternoon air shows at EAA Airventure this year, with a CF-18 jet exceeding the speed of sound and challenging gravity.

• Canada's air force is celebrating its 100th birthday at EAA
• The demo team will perform Saturday evening around 5 p.m. and Sunday evening around 1 p.m.
• Video shows the CF-18 Hornet's former pilot, and first-time EAA visitors excited to see it

(The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story.)

Visitors here at EAA can't help but stop to look at the paint jobs on these Canadian fighter jets. We're in Oshkosh with why this plane excites its pilots — and aspiring pilots.

Jaxson and his brother Reid are from the small town of Valders — and it's their first EAA.

"I love it," Jaxson Dobrzynski said. "It's been a wonderful — like, I'm so glad that my mom took me, because I've been wanting this for a long time."

They're looking forward to seeing some warbirds pull some tricks like this at supersonic speeds.

"Straight up, straight down to the ground," Captain Jesse Haggart-Smith said. "There's going to be an afterburner, pulling seven-and-a-half 'Gs,' the big vapes coming off the jet — it's going to be a great performance."

Haggart-Smith — callsign "Modem" — flew this F-18 Hornet in demo shows for two years.

Now, he's the safety pilot on the ground for his partner, "Tango," as the Canadian Royal Air Force celebrates its 100th anniversary with a series of shows here.

"It's such a great privilege to be out here," Haggart-Smith said. "There's a great crowd, great people that we get to interact with. There's a big Canadian contingent, of course, that comes down to this show."

Jaxson and Reid know the noise might hurt their ears, but they say they're ready for the shows.

"It's cool to see [the planes] in person, instead of just TV and videos," Reid said. "Lotta loudness, I'll say that."

The Canadian demo team will perform Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon at EAA — and if you're anywhere near Wittman Regional Airport, you'll definitely hear it.