John Heller, Post-Gazette
Petty Officer Bill Weber, out in front of the Navy's Blue Angel jets at the 911th air base.Surgical instruments are sterile. Band-Aids are sterile. But airspace?
Petty Officer Bill Weber, the assistant events coordinator for the U.S. Navy Blue Angels, has the job of making sure their practice and demonstration space is clear.
"The airspace needs to be sterile," Petty Officer Weber said, "which means no other aircraft."
In preparation for this weekend's Wings Over Pittsburgh air show, Petty Officer Weber, a native of Mt. Lebanon, worked with airport officials to coordinate the airspace around Pittsburgh International Airport for practices and performances.
Sharing the sky led to traffic jams and delayed flights on the ground at Pittsburgh International Airport yesterday as the Blue Angels practiced their maneuvers for this weekend's show.
"It's a safety issue. It takes the number one priority on our list. At [Pittsburgh International Airport] they were really great about helping," Petty Officer Weber said.
He has spent the past year dealing with traffic congestion in the sky and ground around airports where the Blue Angels perform.
After graduating from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 2003 with a degree in criminal justice, Petty Officer Weber wanted to try something new, something interesting that would let him travel, so he joined the Navy.
"I didn't know what I'd do, where I'd go. I didn't know what would happen next. That was the allure," he said.
The Blue Angels, based in Pensacola, Fla., travel around the country nearly every weekend from mid-March to mid-November for about 70 shows.
An estimated 17 million people see the Blue Angels perform each year. Thirty thousand are expected to attend this weekend's Wings Over Pittsburgh show.
The Blue Angels choose their demonstration sites based on a number of factors, including areas with low recruitment and where past shows have been.
"We try to spread ourselves throughout the country," Petty Officer Weber said.
The Blue Angels also performed in Quebec, Canada, and the Netherlands this past June, something Petty Officer Weber doesn't mind at all since traveling is one of his favorite things about working with the Blue Angels.
"I've done things with the Blue Angels that I'd never otherwise be able to do in my life," he said. "To date, it's the best thing I've done in my life."
