MOUNTAIN HOME, Idaho — The first pilots for this weekend's Gunfighter Skies Air Show are touching down in Mountain Home.
The Thunderbirds will take flight at Mountain Home Air Force Base this weekend as the show returns after an eight-year hiatus.
WATCH: What to expect from the Thunderbirds this weekend
Major Samuel Larson, Thunderbird 8, flew into Mountain Home on Wednesday to prepare for the show. It is his first year on the team.
"Getting to see six red white and blue F-16s and that type of a formation doing loops and rolls and different breakout maneuvers is absolutely stunning," Larson said.
Strong winds have delayed practice passes as the team waited for conditions to improve.
"We'll fly out to the show site early to get the site set for the rest of the team," Larson said, "We look for obstacles, any visual illusions, any hazards."
Around 70 members of the Thunderbirds team are heading to Mountain Home for the weekend performance. The team has already completed seven shows this season after five months of intense training.
Larson says safety is always at the forefront, "We try to get all the repetition we can before we hit the road."
The pilots are all experienced airmen who previously served as instructor pilots in fighter aircraft before joining the Thunderbirds.
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Spectators can expect a high-speed performance at the Gunfighter Skies Air Show.
"They can expect six red white and blue F-16s flying as close as 18 inches apart at speeds just under the speed of sound and at altitudes as low as 100 ft," Larson described.
According to Larson, the show is about more than the performance. He hopes it inspires the next generation to serve in the Air Force.
"The most rewarding part for me, and I say for a lot of folks on the team, is we were once those kids at the fence watching the Thunderbirds air shows, so now to get to be on the other side and get to share that inspiration with others," Larson said.
The show takes flight this Saturday and Sunday at Mountain Home Air Force Base.
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