AF Drill Team to offer free performances

  • Published
  • By J.C. Corcoran
  • 66th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
HANSCOM AFB, Mass. --  The Hanscom community welcomes the Air Force Honor Guard Drill Team, who will perform a dazzling 20 minute routine for the base community at 3 p.m. Monday at Hanscom's outdoor track. 

The team will perform again in the area at the Minute Man National Historical Park, Route 2A, Tuesday at 1:30 p.m. 

This performance is open to the public and will be held in the amphitheater outside the visitor center building. 

During its 59-year history, the Drill Team has performed in every U.S. state and in numerous foreign countries, according to the team's Web site at www.drillteam.af.mil. 

As Ambassadors in Blue, the Drill Team promotes the Air Force mission by showcasing drill performances at public and military venues to recruit, retain and inspire Airmen, the Web site states. 

Members are selected from current U.S. Air Force Honor Guard personnel and represent the best of each of the individual ceremonial flights, according to the Web site. 

"In all they do, the Drill Team personifies the integrity, discipline, teamwork and professionalism of every Airman and every Air Force mission," the site states. 

In addition to the standard 16-person performance group, which features a sequence of show-stopping weapon maneuvers, precise tosses, complex weapon exchanges and a walk through the gauntlet of spinning weapons, the team also provides a four-person performance. 

"Centered on a stationary drill commander flanked by four team members who simultaneously hurl their 11-pound weapons over and around the commander, they perform a sequence of events unmatched by any other professional military drill team," the Web site states. 

Drill Team applicants from the Honor Guard must undergo a grueling four to six week training course that teaches the fundamentals of precision drill. 

All servicemembers in the grades of E-6 and below must complete Drill Team Training and then be evaluated in front of the U.S. Air Force Honor Guard leadership and their peers to be considered for membership, according to the site. 

"To maintain drill proficiency, all Drill Team members serve a minimum of two-years when assigned to the Drill Team." 

All Hanscom military personnel interested in becoming a member of the Air Force Honor Guard can attend a briefing Monday from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. in the Brown Conference room located in building 1305. 

For more information, on the Air Force Honor Guard Drill Team visit the team's Web site, www.drillteam.af.mil.