MIAMI - When football fans from around the world tune in to
watch Super Bowl XLIV this Sunday, they will be seeing action, spectacle,
and the Florida Air National Guard.
Four F-15 Eagle fighter jets from the Jacksonville-based 125th Fighter Wing
will be conducting the flyover during the pre-game show, flying low and
steady over Sun Life Stadium in Miami at the conclusion of the National
Anthem
According to Lt. Col. Michael Birkeland, commander of the 125th's Detachment
1 at nearby Homestead Air Reserve Base, Fla., this will be the first time an
Air National Guard unit is providing the prestigious flyover for the big
game.
Birkeland and a ground crew will be at the stadium on Sunday working with
Super Bowl event planners and talking to the F-15 pilots as they approach
the stadium.
I'll be up in the top of the stadium with the production crew, Birkeland
explained, And they have a pretty tight script of events leading up to
kickoff.
The goal is to have the fighter jets pass over the stadium just as singer
Carrie Underwood hits the last notes of the National Anthem; the F-15s will
fly above the cheering fans as pyrotechnics light up the field.
Birkeland said if there are any last minute changes to the schedule, he'll
relay the changes to Senior Master Sgt. Eddie Diaz, Detachment 1's Chief
Enlisted Manager, and the rest of his crew staged around the stadium.
If there are any timing issues we may need to tell the aircraft to come a
little earlier or later,² said Diaz. ³But more often than not these events
are right on-time.
Diaz said he's served on the ground crew for flyovers at NFL games and
NASCAR races before, and they always strive to be as precise as possible
with the timing.
That last minute and a half is nerve-wracking, to say the least, just
because you want to make sure that it comes out exactly perfect, he said.
We've had pretty good success, and expect that this Sunday will be no
different.
Both Birkeland and Diaz said the high-profile nature of the Super Bowl makes
this flyover an extraordinary honor for the Florida National Guard and the
125th Fighter Wing. I'm proud to just be involved in it and show off our aircraft and our
organization, Birkeland said.