THUNDER GOES OFF WITH A BANG, DESPITE DELAY

Sunny and brisk weather conditions welcomed a crowd estimated at approximately 700,000 for the 21st annual Thunder Over Louisville - the Kentucky Derby Festival's Opening Ceremonies. Spectators lined both sides of the Ohio River as far as the eye could see. Thanks to the generous support of the event's corporate sponsors - E.ON U.S., Horseshoe Casino and Hotel, Meijer, UPS and community McDonald's Thunder Funders - this year's show featured a spectacular lineup of civilian and military aircraft, as well as the traditional pyrotechnic spectacle.

The fireworks were delayed about 15 minutes, due to a computer glitch.  "The Command Center computers weren't syncing with the barges," said Michael Richards with Zambelli Internationale. "We had to reboot to make sure the firing sequence initiated."  Once the computers were reset, the annual half-hour fireworks spectacular filled the sky. 

Highlights of the air show included the first-ever Thunder Air Show appearance of the Meijer Price Drop Skydiving Team and the Red Thunder Air Show. Other crowd favorites included a pair of B-1s, F-15, F-16, F-18, A-10 Warthog, AH-64 helicopter, B-22 Osprey, L-39 Russian fighter and German Tornado. All five branches of the U.S. Military were represented with acts in the Thunder Air Show. As the sun began to set, the Lima Lima team looped and smoked the skies with a sparkling performance shortly before launch time. 

Serving as the official "Thundernator" for the 2010 Thunder Over Louisville fireworks show was UPS pilot Brian Duffy, founder and President of Honor Flight - Bluegrass Chapter. Honor Flight is a non-profit organization that arranges flights for America's World War Two veterans from the Bluegrass region to Washington, D.C., to visit the World War Two Memorial to honor their service and sacrifices. The theme of this year's show was "Thunder Fever: May Increase Heart Rate" - a tie-in to the Derby Festival's overall "Spring Fever Reliever" theme. The fireworks were choreographed to a soundtrack of popular songs that referenced springtime and medical and therapeutic remedies.

"We couldn't have asked for a better forecast for the show," said Wayne Hettinger, Thunder Over Louisville producer. "Once again, Thunder cast a spell over hundreds of thousands of people. It was a magnificent event for the 21st consecutive year."

Thunder Over Louisville - the Derby Festival's Opening Ceremonies - is one of the more than seventy events produced by the Derby Festival in the spring. The Derby Festival is an independent community organization supported by 4,000 volunteers, 400 businesses and civic groups, Pegasus Pin sponsorships and event participation. It entertains more than 1.5 million people in a two-week period. Thunder alone contributes $31 million of that estimate to both sides of the Ohio River. This involvement has made the Festival the largest single-attended event in Kentucky and one of the leading community celebrations in the world.