Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : Edwards AFB Public Day Will Open With a Supersonic Bang : Military: Annual air show permits visitors to salute the base and allows it to lift a bit of the secrecy that surrounds its work.

EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE — Pioneer test pilot Chuck Yeager will break the sound barrier in an F-16, and the B-2 Stealth bomber will make a rare public flight Saturday during the annual open house and air show at Edwards Air Force Base.

More than 200,000 visitors are expected to flock to the normally restricted High Desert base, home of a renowned training school for Air Force test pilots and the proving ground for high-tech military planes.

“Once a year, it gives us a chance at Edwards to show the taxpayers where their money went to,” said George N. Fox, community relations chief at the base. “Just about every aircraft in the Air Force inventory has been tested here.”

Opening ceremonies will begin at 10 a.m., when Yeager, a retired brigadier general, is slated to fly an F-16 fighter jet and set off a sonic boom. Yeager, a frequent participant in the air shows, will commemorate his historic 1947 flight at Edwards aboard an X-1, when he became the first pilot to break the sound barrier.

Along with the traditional flyovers, visitors will be able to view about 35 military planes on the ground, including aircraft used by the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and NASA. A few experimental civilian planes also will be on display.

The free air show and open house at Edwards dates back at least to the 1950s, Fox said. Last year’s show drew an estimated 225,000 visitors, luring aviation buffs from across Southern California as well as from Europe and Japan.

The event is particularly popular among Antelope Valley residents because many are affiliated with the armed forces or the aerospace industry.

The base plays a key economic role as the Antelope Valley’s largest employer. About 20,000 military personnel and civilians are assigned to or work at Edwards.

Fox said the annual air show permits local residents to salute the base and allows Edwards to lift a bit of the secrecy that surrounds much of its work. “It helps recruiting,” Fox said. “It helps show the Air Force off to the public.”

The showing off will include aerial demonstrations and displays of several costly--and sometimes controversial--modern jets, such as the B-2 bomber, the F-117 Stealth fighter and the C-17 cargo plane.

Although the B-2 and the F-117 will be set up for ground viewing, visitors will not be allowed too close because the aircraft are still considered top secret.

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Gates to the base will open to visitors at 8 a.m. Early arrivals will be able to watch radio-controlled models and demonstrations by military working dogs.

After the opening ceremonies, Air Force pilots will provide a glider demonstration and a parachute drop. The new C-17 will demonstrate its ability to drop cargo safely from the air.

The air show will conclude with a low flyover by the bat-winged B-2 at 2:10 p.m. The open house ends at 4.

Military support groups will staff more than 70 booths, where visitors can buy refreshments and souvenirs.

There is no admission charge. Visitors may bring coolers and picnic lunches, but no alcoholic beverages or glass containers will be permitted.

The base will not provide seating, so visitors should bring lawn chairs or be prepared to stand or sit on the ground. Visitors are encouraged to wear hats and sunglasses because “There’s no provision for them to find shelter in the shade,” Fox said.

Visitors who come to the show in self-contained recreational vehicles will be allowed onto the base 12 hours early, at 8 tonight.

The base, 90 miles north of Los Angeles, can be reached by driving north on the Antelope Valley Freeway past Palmdale and Lancaster. Visitors should exit at Rosamond Boulevard, just over the Kern County line, and follow the signs to the base.