Greg Anderson To Fly With Thunderbirds
Written by Josh Katinger · January 29, 2004
GLENDORA, Calif. - NHRA POWERade Pro Stock champion Greg Anderson will be the guest of the United States Air Force on Feb. 17 at Nellis Air Force Base outside of Las Vegas. He will be in the co-pilot seat of an F-16D during a 60-minute flight.
Anderson will be in the Las Vegas area testing his Vegas General Construction Pontiac Grand Am. The 2004 season kicks off just days later, Feb. 19-22, at Pomona (Calif.) Raceway. The K&N Filters Winternationals is the first of 23 races in the $50 million NHRA POWERade Drag Racing season.
Anderson will test his car Monday and fly on Tuesday with a Thunderbird pilot. The flight will take Anderson across the Nevada desert, performing maneuvers usually done during a demonstration. “This should be pretty wild,” Anderson said. “I can’t imagine what it’s going to feel like. I’m sure that I’m going to be sick. I think that’s part of their job. It’s going to be the opportunity of a lifetime. It could also be embarrassing if I get sick all over the cockpit.”
The entire process will take about six hours, as Anderson will go through some training before he hopsinto the F-16.
Anderson’s main concern is being bored with his national record-holding car after the flight. After all, his car has the top speed, just 207.18 mph. The F-16 goes a bit faster.
“This whole experience is beyond anything I can imagine,” Anderson said. “They fly with so many G-Forces that compared to them, the drag racing world is slow. They are the bad dogs of speed. “I might have to jump into a Top Fuel car after this. I may never want to go back to the door-slammers. They might feel like taxi cabs after a ride on a F-16.”
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It is to bad that Anderson is not a Top Fuel or Funny car driver. The power and G Force of the top nitro divisions is offen compared with the power of different jets. I would love to hear a first hand comparison.
even if the G’s are similar, I imagine that the fighter would be MUCH smoother!
Yeah, but I think that Anderson has a cup holder in his ride!