DENVER — Look toward the skies on Monday morning: The Colorado National Guard will be doing helicopter flyovers in the Denver metro area and across the state in honor of Memorial Day.
The flyovers are a salute to Coloradans who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country and to health-care workers and first-responders who are supporting veterans and their communities during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a news release from the Colorado National Guard.
> The video above is of an Air National Guard F-16 flyover on May 6.
The aircraft are a CH-47 Chinook, two UC-60 Black Hawks and a LUH-72 Lakota.
Two of the flyover routes cover the Front Range and are scheduled to start at 8:30 a.m. at Buckley Air Force Base in Aurora. Those routes will take the aircraft over Centennial, Parker, Highlands Ranch, Fort Logan National Cemetery, Arvada, Thornton, Denver and Colorado Springs.
Aircraft flying a third route will go over Rifle, Grand Junction, Montrose, Silverton and Gunnison.
“We are really excited that U.S. Army leadership has allowed us to focus some of our training hours to thank our veterans and the health-care workers and first-responders caring for them during these difficult times,” State Army Aviation Officer U.S. Army Col. William Gentle says in the release. “This Memorial Day is unique but no less important than any other in our nation’s history. We must never forget those who have sacrificed so much to keep this great nation free.”
Here are the approximate times and locations to see the flyovers:
Route 1:
- 8:30 a.m.: Buckley Air Force Base (AFB)
- 8:45 a.m.: Centennial Airport, Centennial
- 10 a.m.: J.S Parker Cemetery, Parker
- 10:10 a.m.: Highlands Ranch
- 10:15 a.m.: Ft. Logan National Cemetery, Englewood
- 10:20 a.m.: Arvada
- 10:15 a.m.: Thornton
- 10:35 a.m.: Denver
- 10:45 a.m.: Centennial Airport
Route 2:
- 10:55 a.m.: Centennial Airport
- 11:30 a.m.: Colorado Springs
- Noon: Buckley AFB
Route 3:
- 9 a.m.: High-Altitude Army National Guard Aviation Training Site (HAATS)
- 9:25 a.m.: Rifle
- 9:50 a.m.: Grand Junction
- 10:15 a.m.: Montrose/Fuel
- 11:30 a.m.: Depart Montrose
- Noon: Silverton
- 12:25 p.m.: Gunnison
- 1 p.m.: HAATS
The flyovers serve as training for the pilots and are done at no additional cost to taxpayers.
The participating units include the 2nd General Support Aviation Battalion, 135th Regiment, Colorado Army National Guard, Buckley Air Force Base in Aurora; and the High-Altitude Army National Guard Aviation Training Site in Gypsum.
There have been several flyovers along the Front Range and in Colorado during the COVID-19 pandemic, including a Flyover Fundraising Parade and Aerial Salute on May 14, a Colorado Air National Guard F-16 flyover on May 6, and the Thunderbirds on April 18.
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