Suburban pilot ready to soar at Chicago Air and Water Show
Susan Dacy's 11-minute aerobatic routine for the 58th annual Chicago Air and Water Show this weekend pays tribute to the daring exploits of early fliers.
Still, the pilot from Harvard knows that most folks crowding Chicago's lakefront Saturday and Sunday are clamoring to see top-billed precision routines by the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds - back after a five-year absence - or the feats of the U.S. Army Parachute Team Golden Knights and the U.S. Navy Leap Frogs.
"The neat and really fun thing about the Chicago Air and Water Show is the diversity," Dacy said. "You can go to this show and there's something for everybody, even if you're not an airplane person. Obviously the water stuff, but how can you not stand back and be awed by the Thunderbirds, or the new F-35 fighter jet that's going to be there this year, or all the other acts with amazing aerobatics?"
With a mix of military and civilian teams and daredevil pilots, the free show draws an estimated 2 million people each year to Chicago's waterfront, in an area that stretches from Fullerton Avenue to Oak Street Beach. Among this year's highlights is a tandem jump Saturday with retired Chicago Bears player Charles Tillman and the U.S. Army Golden Knights.
Dacy has performed in the show before, but this year marks the debut of her restored and converted Super Stearman biplane she calls "Big Red." It was originally built to help train naval aviators during World War II.
Dacy has customized Big Red by replacing its 220-horsepower engine with a 450 one by Pratt & Whitney. She has also installed an inverted fuel system to allow for environmentally friendly air show smoke.
Dacy executes tricks - barrel rolls, Cuban eights, hammerhead turns and others tied to the early 20th-century "barnstorming" era of flight.
"The term 'barnstorming' came because these early-on fliers, they loved aviation, too, and it was so young that to support their aircraft and their flying, they would fly from town to town near the pastures, because there were so few airports at the time, and try to sell rides to folks in the town and drum up attention by flying around and doing tricks." Dacy said. "I love to show the romance of the early aviation days when I do my act."
Flying has always been a family affair for Dacy, since she and her siblings are from the namesake Dacy Airport family in Harvard. They have also formed a company together called Dacy Airshows.
Two of Susan's brothers have been featured in past Chicago Air and Water Shows, with Dave Dacy and Tony Kazian executing a biplane act flying a Super Stearman Model 75, and Phil Dacy as a guest commentator alongside longtime Air and Water Show show announcer Herb Hunter.
If there's one drawback for Dacy when comparing the Chicago Air and Water Show to other aeronautic events, it's her inability to hobnob with fans or pose for pictures before and after flights. The majority of the Chicago Air and Water Show planes take off and land from the Gary Jet Center in Indiana.
"I hope to be a role model in aviation for everyone, but especially for females to let them know that this is so doable," said Dacy, whose "day job" is flying Boeing 777 passenger jets for American Airlines.
"I pinch myself because I have the best of both worlds. I have my airline career, but I can also do this wonderful, grass-roots type of flying where my heart has always been."
58th annual Chicago Air and Water Show
Location: Along Chicago’s lakefront from Fullerton Avenue to Oak Street, with North Avenue Beach as the focal point
Showtimes: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday
Admission: Free
On radio and TV: WBBM will provide live radio coverage both days at 780-AM and 105.9-FM. ABC 7 runs a half-hour special on the air show with meteorologists Jerry Taft and Tracy Butler at 11 p.m. Sunday.