Cemetery Flyover Planned Today — Expect to see a military flyover today around 1:45 p.m., in support of a funeral at Arlington National Cemetery. [Twitter]
Grant to Pay for Reforestation — “Arlington County government officials will accept about $9,700 in federal funds to restore nearly four acres of riparian buffer along Four Mile Run. The grant will fund purchase of more than 1,000 tree and shrub seedlings to be planted in areas that have been treated for removal of invasive plants.” [InsideNova]
Arlington Man Convicted of Murder — “On Friday, April 13, 2018, a Charles County jury, after a 5 day trial, convicted Bryan Javier Aquice, 25, of Arlington, VA. of the First Degree Murder of Michael Beers.” [Southern Maryland News Net]
Disgusting Discovery Prompts Call to Police — A woman called police after she reportedly found a used condom on the hood of her car in Arlington’s Douglas Park neighborhood. [Twitter]
Nearby: New Company HQ in Falls Church — Investment firm Kiddar Capital will be relocating its headquarters to a new office building in the City of Falls Church. [Washington Business Journal]
Flickr pool photo by John Sonderman
Vigil for Parkland — Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) was among those to speak at a candlelight vigil last night in Falls Church for the victims of the Parkland, Florida high school shooting. Beyer spoke in favor of stricter gun control measures. [Blue Virginia]
Police Investigate Sound of Gunshots — Arlington County Police investigated a report of shots fired near the intersection of Lee Highway and Glebe Road Friday night. No injuries were reported. [Twitter]
Fmr. Arlington Resident Convicted of Murder — “A jury found a man guilty of multiple counts related to an execution-style shooting that killed three people in a D.C. park in 1991. Benito Valdez, 47, formerly of Arlington, Virginia, was found guilty of first-degree murder while armed.” [WTOP]
Theater’s Pre-Oscar Deal — With the Academy Awards now less than two weeks away, the Regal cinema in Ballston is offering a special deal: a $35 pass to see all nine films nominated for Best Picture. [Patch]
Flyover This Morning — A military flyover is scheduled just after 11 a.m. this morning for a funeral at Arlington National Cemetery. [Twitter]
Flickr pool photo by Erinn Shirley
Porter Drama Centers Around Arlington — The resignation of White House aide Rob Porter, which has been a national headline this week, has a number of Arlington connections. Porter reportedly has an apartment here, which he shared with a girlfriend before starting to date White House Communications Director Hope Hicks, and the protective order Porter’s second wife filed against him was to keep him away from her Arlington residence. [Daily Mail, New York Times]
Arlington Kid’s Star Continues to Rise — Nine-year-old Iain Armitage stars as the title character in the CBS comedy Young Sheldon and also was featured HBO’s Golden Globe-winning Big Little Lies. That’s in addition to film roles Armitage, an Arlington native whose family owns a house in Ashton Heights, is getting as he continues to build his Hollywood career. Just 3.5 years ago, Armitage was best known for his viral reviews of Signature Theatre shows. [Toronto Star]
Flyover This Morning — There will be a military flyover around 11:30 this morning for a funeral at Arlington National Cemetery. [Twitter]
Local Lawmakers’ Bills Defeated in Richmond — A number of bills introduced by Democratic lawmakers that represent parts of Arlington have, predictably, failed to gain traction in the GOP-controlled state legislature. Among the current batch of bills being defeated in committee: a bill to force the release of presidential candidate tax returns (Sen. Janet Howell), create an state-level Office of Immigrant Assistance (Sen. Adam Ebbin) and expand the list of IDs accepted for voting (Del. Rip Sullivan).
Photo via @NCPCgov / Twitter
It’s going to be an active weekend for military flyovers.
According to an advisory for the National Capital Region, the following flyovers will be conducted over or around Arlington.
- Friday at 2:04 p.m. — “Four (4) F-15E aircraft will be conducting a flyover of Arlington National Cemetery.”
- Saturday at 5:38 p.m. — “Four (4) E-2C aircraft will conduct a flyover of Washington Nationals Park (NLDS Game 2).”
- Sunday at 7:40 a.m. — “U.S. Army Golden Knights will be conducting a planned parachute jump at the Pentagon in support of the Army 10 miler race.”
- Sunday at 7:40 a.m. — “Four (4) UH-60 aircraft will be conducting a flyover of the Pentagon for the Army 10 Miler Race following the parachute jump.”
The advisory also lists a flyover planned for next week.
- Friday, October 13 at 9:45 a.m. — “Four (4) A-10 aircraft will be conducting a flyover of Arlington National Cemetery.”
Update on June 17 — The flyover has been pushed back to 1 p.m., according to the Coast Guard.
The United States Coast Guard will conduct a commemorative flyover of the D.C. area around noon on Friday, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of USCG aviation.
The flyover will involve nine aircraft representing the current Coast Guard fleet — painted in historic color schemes to honor Coast Guard aviation’s history of national defense and saving lives.
The aircraft will ultimately be flying to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum’s Udvar-Hazy Center, near Dulles International Airport, for the museum’s Innovations in Flight display on Saturday.
Arlington is right in the flight path of the flyover, thus making places like Gravelly Point Park, the Pentagon and the Air Force Memorial ideal viewing points for the event.
The aircraft participating in the flyover include “MH-65 Dolphin helicopters, MH-60T Jayhawk Helicopters, HC-144 Casa and C-27J Spartan Medium Range Surveillance aircraft, HC-130J Hercules Long Range Surveillance Aircraft, and the C-37 Gulfstream G-5 Long Range Command and Control Aircraft,” according to the Coast Guard.
Today is the 70th anniversary of the German army’s surrender to Allied forces in World War II, and to commemorate the occasion, there will be massive formations of war-era planes flying over the Potomac River.
At 12:10 p.m., dozens of planes of different models that were used during World War II will pass over the Lincoln Memorial, then fly over Independence Avenue before turning back up the Potomac River and leaving the area.
The planes — which have come to the area from all over the country — take off from airports in Culpeper and Manassas, Va., join together outside Leesburg and fly almost 50 miles toward D.C. While they’re flying, they will make formations from signature moments of the War, including the Doolittle Raid, Pearl Harbor and the Battle of Midway.
The planes were brought together by a nonprofit called the Arsenal of Democracy, backed by the Commemorative Air Force. Among the different models flying will be the North American B-25 Mitchell (pictured), P-40 Warhawk, P-63 Kingcobra, P-38 Lightning, P-51 Mustang and P-47 Thunderbolt.
Also included: the only B-29 Superfortress still flying, the same type of plane that dropped the atomic bombs on Japan. Overall, the flyover organizers said more than two dozen different types of planes will participate.
“Never before has such a collection of WWII aircraft been assembled at one location, to honor the large assemblage of veterans gathered at the WWII Memorial for a ceremony,” the flyover’s website reads.
The planes will be clearly visible from Arlington, so those hoping to see them arrive from the northwest should be outside, looking up, at just after noon. The flyover is expected to last about an hour, according to the Washington Post, during which time flights from DCA will be grounded.
County Government Open on Columbus Day — Even though it’s a federal holiday, Arlington County government offices will be open for Columbus Day on Monday. Courts, DMV offices, the Sheriff’s Office and other state-related offices will be closed. Arlington Public Schools will be closed for a teacher work day. [Arlington County]
Antique Plane Fly-Over — About 30 World War II-era planes will be flying over the Pentagon and Arlington National Cemetery around 12:30 p.m. today 11:55 a.m. Saturday. [WTOP]
Higher Charges for DCA Passengers? — Reagan National Airport is expected to have its traffic increase by another two million passengers next year, while overtaking both Dulles and BWI in passengers by the end of this year. To help keep up with the growth, and perhaps encourage use of the recently-upgraded Dulles International Airport instead, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority is considering an increase of the passenger fee at DCA from $4.50 to $8.50. [WTOP]
Metrorail Ridership Continues to Slide — Ridership on Metrorail is continuing its five-year-slide. Ridership has slipped from a high of 225 million annual trips in 2009 to just over 200 million annual trips now. A shrinking federal workforce, increased telecommuting and increased bike and bus commuting are said to be the main drivers of the decrease. [Washington City Paper]
Office Buildings as Schools — Converting older office buildings into schools is increasingly being eyed as a two-fold solution to office vacancies and a school capacity crunch in Northern Virginia. In Falls Church, a five-story office building was converted into an elementary school — although a full gymnasium has yet to be built. [Washington Post]
‘Historic’ Garage Move Considered — Arlington’s Historical Affairs and Landmark Review Board will meet on Wednesday and consider a proposal to move a “historic garage” from county property onto the now privately-owned Fraber House site in Cherrydale. Preservationists might not be thrilled about the move, which would also require the removal of an oak tree. “Historic preservation advocates had wanted the county to draw the historic district line around the garage so that this wouldn’t have to happen… oh well,” one tipster told ARLnow.com. [PDF]
Photo courtesy @ClarendonScene
The coordinated flyover of more than 30 World War II-era planes has been pushed back until this weekend due to rain.
The National Air Trainer Association, which organized the “North American Texan” 75th anniversary flight, delayed it until approximately 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, weather permitting.
If the visibility is not good enough tomorrow, NATA’s Tom Malone said, they will fly on Sunday.
The decision will be made at about 7:00 a.m.
There is a 40 percent chance of rain Saturday, and a 30 percent chance of rain Sunday, according to Weather.com.
More than 30 airplanes built for World War II will conduct a large-formation flyover of the Pentagon and Arlington National Cemetery Friday afternoon.
Friday’s ceremony will celebrate the “North American Texan” plane’s 75th anniversary. Friday afternoon at approximately 12:30 p.m., the planes will reach Arlington by way of a flight path that follows the Potomac River, according to the North American Trainer Association, which is coordinating the event.
More than 15,000 Texans were built between 1938 and 1947, according to the NATA, and more than 400 of them are privately owned and still in flight. They were the most popular plane used in American fighter-pilot training in the 1940s and 1950s.
The formation is expected to be visible from much of Arlington and Alexandria. The forecast for Friday as of Tuesday afternoon is a 60 percent chance of showers.
Photo courtesy of NATA
A lone F-15C Eagle fighter jet flew over Arlington at noon today to honor eight airmen killed during World War II.
The crew’s B-24 Liberator bomber was shot down over the Republic of Palau on Sept. 1, 1944. For 60 years, the wreckage — and the crew’s remains — were lost to the sea.
Then, in 2004, the BentProp Project, a California-based group dedicated to finding military wreck sites in the western Pacific, located the lost bomber.
The remains of the eight service members recovered from the crash site were buried together today in Arlington National Cemetery’s section 60.
One of the crew members was navigator Second Lt. Frank J. Arhar, who was just two days shy of his 22nd birthday when the plane went down.
“To at least know that they found him and he’ll be buried and we can have peace… it means a lot to us,” Arhar’s younger sister, Theresa, told the Johnstown, Pa. Tribune Democrat.
A B-52 “Stratofortress” flew over Arlington National Cemetery at 11:40 this morning in honor of retired Air Force Colonel Thomas Mounts.
Mounts, a Vietnam veteran, was buried in Section 38 today after a service at Ft. Myer’s Old Post Chapel.
