In tandem with the SkyHawks Published May 6, 2010 By SSgt Megan Crusher 452 AMW Public Affairs MARCH AIR RESERVE BASE, CALIF -- The roaring sound of airplane engine growls fill the air men in bright red and black jumpsuits roam the area between bites of lunch. Despite their unhurried appearance, a sense of purpose is noticeable in their eyes, demeanor and the meticulous way they pack their equipment. These purpose driven men are members of the SkyHawks, the Canadian Army's professional parachute demonstration team based in Trenton, Ontario. They have just performed an entire run-through of the magnificent 15-minute show they will be performing during the upcoming air show season, but now, they are preparing for another jump. Watching the SkyHawks repack their parachutes are two men dressed in ABUs, one oozing excitement while the other admits his nervousness. "I'm really nervous. I'm scared to death. But it'll be a good time, I hope. I've always wanted to do this, but I've never had the nerve," said Master Sgt. Alfredo Parcasio, 452nd Maintenance Squadron. Nerves were not a factor for the day's second guest skydiver, Master Sgt. Bryan Shifflett, also of the 452 MXS. Sergeant Shifflett worked on parachute equipment during his early years in the Air Force. He says he would see the SkyHawks when they were in town and has always wished he could jump with them. Now he's going to have that chance. "I'm excited, I've been looking forward to it for a long time, it's going to be great" said Sergeant Shifflett, Once the chutes have been packed, Tandem Master Dominic Dumont pairs with Sergeant Parcasio and Tandem Master Travis Hegland pairs with Sergeant Shifflett. Using a mock airplane, the tandem masters explain how the tandem jump will work. The SkyHawks are friendly and personable as they share their wisdom of their craft, taking great care in making sure their guests are comfortable and understand what to expect. As Sergeants Shifflett and Parcasio don their jumping gear, tandem masters check to make sure the pieces are worn correctly and share information about the purposes of the gear. After a few minutes, the roaring engines begin again. Within minutes, the SkyHawks and the two master sergeants board the plane. Within 15 minutes of takeoff, the Canadian SkyHawk's trademark parachute canopies with a red maple leaf can be seen high in the sky. After approximately 50 seconds of free-fall and five minutes of floating beneath the canopy, the tandem masters and the master sergeants have returned to the earth. Upon landing, everyone is all smiles, including Sergeant Parcasio. "That was great! I was kind of scared when we first approached the door and thought, oh my God, I'm jumping out!" said Sergeant Parcasio. "It was a crazy rush, I'd do it again," he said. Sergeant Shifflett was even more excited after the jump than he had been before. "It was awesome! I felt weird at first. I couldn't breathe because I was going so fast, so I put my hand up to my mouth and was able to breathe again," said Sergeant Shifflett. "It was a rush. An absolute rush!" The 44 guest jumpers from March ARB have been unanimously impressed with the SkyHawks' professionalism and expertise. But the tandem masters have been just as impressed by their guests. "It takes a lot of courage for somebody to actually get in the plane in the first place and then to get strapped on to somebody and put all their trust into that person," said Tandem Master Hegland. The jumps with the SkyHawks began March 22 and lasted a month. During that time, the SkyHawks clipped two March members a day to their tandem harness and gave them the ride of their life. It was an exercise of mutual trust between military service members from neighboring countries. Each spring, for the past 20 years, the SkyHawks have traveled to California to train at Perris Valley Skydive, which is just 12 miles south of March Air Reserve Base. While training, the Skyhawks stay at the March Inn, and use the base fitness center, commissary and exchange. While they are in California, in addition to practicing their air show routine, the SkyHawks must certify two tandem masters. The SkyHawks, who each possess the basic tandem jump rating, use one another as tandem jump partners, but with the tandem master certification requiring 25 tandem jumps each, the SkyHawks members were losing a significant amount of time they could have been using for other training. That's when the SkyHawks thought to invite personnel from March Air Reserve Base to become the SkyHawks' tandem partners. "We've got this great military resource right next door to us and why not try to tap into that," said Capt. Christopher Nobrega, team captain. The team is grateful for the support March has shown them over the years and because of the great working relationship, the Skyhawks were happy to be able to take Team March members on jumps, said Captain Nobrega. Along with the once in a lifetime opportunity to tandem jump with the elite SkyHawks, the participants from base were given goodies such as hats, shirts, photos, SkyHawk stickers, and best of all, a DVD of their jump. Two SkyHawks cameramen would begin filming as soon as the March guests arrived each day, and didn't stop filming until after they've landed. After the jumps, the cameramen cut and edited a personalized DVD for each guest. Close to 70 Team March members signed up for the tandem jumps after reading about the opportunity in news briefs in The Beacon, as well as postings on March ARB's Facebook and Twitter accounts. For those who remained on the waiting list, there may be more opportunities next year. Sgt. Brad Mckenzie, team warrant officer, said the tandem jumping partnership with March went so well, the team hopes they will be able to continue it in the future. After removing their skydiving gear, Master Sgt. Shifflett and Master Sgt. Parcasio are still hyped over their adventure. As the master sergeants return to the base, the SkyHawks begin methodically packing their parachutes once again. After a final jump on April 23, the SkyHawks returned to Canada, where their air show season begins May 1 and continues through October. "My kids loved the skydive video; they must have watched it ten times in a row. I hope I get the opportunity to do it again next year so they can see me doing it live." Senior Airman Antonio Vitela, 452 MXS "It was a once in a lifetime deal. I was scared at the door. Up until then you're apprehensive, but the fear sets in when you're looking out the door. It was quite fun. When we got in the canopy that's when I liked it. When you're coming down it was so fast, but it seemed like forever then." Senior Master Sgt. David Stoutenburgh, 452 MXS "It's the greatest rush. You can't even describe it. You're seeing the view on the way up. When the door opened, my heart stopped. It actually did because the guy actually told me I froze.... I like the fun stuff in life and now this is off my bucket list." Senior Master Sgt. Barbara Morris, LGC "I loved it; it was the best experience ever! It was my first skydive and to do it with a bunch of professionals from Canada was really, really cool. It was so exhilarating! I asked them to do a flip on the way out and we were going 120 miles per hour. I was just screaming the entire way until we leveled off and were able to just free-fall. The air seemed so thin I couldn't breathe for a little while, mostly because of excitement. It was so awesome and exciting." Capt. Anna Ruiz, 452 MSG "It was awesome; I'll never forget it. You feel the falling and a bunch of wind in the face and I tried to enjoy it as much as possible. I have friends who have gone and said they were so scared that they don't remember anything. So I kept that in mind and just tried to look at everything and remember it all." Staff Sgt. Araceli Saucedo, 452 MOS