Wings over Gillespie
Air show brings memories to life
By Dean Calbreath, UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

Monday, June 7, 2010 at 12:04 a.m.

EL CAJON — In the sky over El Cajon on Sunday, a C-53 Skytrooper that once dropped soldiers behind enemy lines on D-Day released a team of parachutists onto Gillespie Field, as re-enactors restaged a World War II battle between U.S. and German troops.

The battles and parachute drops were all part of the two-day Wings Over Gillespie air show, which has been an annual showcase for antique planes for 15 years. At this year’s show, which drew an estimated 10,000 spectators, about three dozen vintage planes were in the air and on the ground, including the Flying Wing, an experimental boomerang-shaped craft from 1942 that looks futuristic even today.

Among the other attractions, Grace McGuire, who plans to re-enact Amelia Earhart’s round-the-world flight, showed off her Lockheed 10-E Electra, reputed to be the only remaining twin of Earhart’s final plane. And there were mock bombing runs, model-airplane flights, a mock helicopter rescue of a downed airman and a flyby from The Ninety Nines, an all-women pilots group.

Because the air show coincided with the 66th anniversary of D-Day on Sunday, there was a special focus on the Allied invasion of Normandy, which spelled the beginning of the end of Adolf Hitler’s control of Europe. Though the bulk of the attack came from the sea — the largest amphibious landing in history — it began with a critical aerial assault that dropped paratroopers behind German lines.

One of the highlights of the show was the parachute drop by the C-53, nicknamed D-Day Doll, which flew three missions during D-Day in addition to other missions throughout World War II.

“This plane is a piece of history, a real icon of the war,” said Rich Brooks of Victorville, who headed the parachute team. “Once you sit down and get off the ground, all dressed in military-type uniforms, you have no time reference — you can’t see the modern cars or houses below — so it sort of becomes a time machine that takes you back to that period. Sometimes it can give you the chills.”

Brooks said he gets chills not only when thinking about the war, but also looking forward a decade or two “when you’re not going to see many of these planes around anymore — and you’re going to see a lot fewer of the people who flew in them.”

As Brooks and his team jumped out of the plane, members of the 82nd Airborne World War II Living History Association were preparing for their mock battle against re-enactors portraying the German army.

Jack Draper of La Mesa, director of the show, said one of its major purposes is to keep the memory of World War II alive. Ian Wilgus of Corona celebrated his 13th birthday by participating in the fight.

Because Ian is so young, he was not allowed to fire the rifles, which were loaded with blanks. Instead, he played the role of medic.

“Of course I know a lot about D-Day, since it’s my birthday,” Ian said. “I’ve watched ‘The Longest Day’ (a 1962 film about D-Day) many times. John Wayne (who portrayed a paratrooper commander) is one of my favorite actors.”

Adam Groeber, a 17-year-old from Fontana, said he was also familiar with World War II largely through movies, including “Saving Private Ryan,” and HBO’s “Band of Brothers” miniseries.

“But you get a lot more respect for those soldiers after you try living in tents and sleeping on cots,” Adam said, referring to his activities with the living history association.