An air show featuring the U.S. Air Force’s elite Thunderbirds may be on the horizon for next year in Kalispell.

The Kalispell Chamber of Commerce, in cooperation with Glacier Park International Airport and the Federal Aviation Administration, is applying to host the Thunderbirds flight demonstration team in 2013, according to John Vander Laan, who directed the Mountain Madness air shows here in 1999 and 2005.

The normal interval between shows has been about six years, but Kalispell turned down the opportunity to host a show in 2010 because of the struggling local economy.

When it became apparent the business community couldn’t afford to make the necessary donations, the Chamber gave up its air-show slot and allowed the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels to go to Great Falls instead.

“It takes a great deal of logistical and community effort to bring an air show to an area like ours,” Vander Laan said in a letter sent to the Daily Inter Lake, in which he stressed the need for local volunteers and sponsors.

Chamber officials should find out in mid-October if they have been confirmed for the 2013 air-show schedule.

Vander Laan said there’s a special reason to push for the Thunderbirds for next summer. The team will have a new member with close ties to the Flathead Valley — Jason Curtis, a graduate of Flathead High School. Curtis will be the Number 6, called the Opposing Solo.

“How great will it be to have this young man coming home to be part of the centerpiece of the 2013 Mountain Madness Air Show?” Vander Laan said.

Curtis, 31, a captain in the Air Force, was chosen earlier this year to fly as one of six F-16 pilot members of the Thunderbirds squadron. There hasn’t been a Thunderbird pilot from Montana since 1985. He begins his training in November at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas.

Local involvement is what will make the show a success, Vander Laan said.

Sponsors may contribute financially or in services such as car rentals, motel/hotel rooms, advertising and so on.

Many of these things are unseen by the local residents, such as 24-hour security at the airport, professional traffic-control personnel, tents for sponsors, insurance and portable toilets, Vander Laan said.

“There are typically in the order of 100 cars required for the jet team and the other acts,” he said. “The same is true of motel/hotel rooms. Cars and rooms can be difficult because the show lands right in the middle of summer tourist season. We will be getting an early start rounding up sponsors.”

Volunteers are divided into two groups.

Nonprofit groups operate the food and drink concession stands.

“We use 400-plus people each day for the concessions,” Vander Laan said. “In 2005 we gave approximately $45,000 to those nonprofit groups for two days of work. It is a great fundraiser for them.

“The second group are the volunteers who plan, organize and run the show,” he continued. “This includes people like the air show director, the air boss, director of static display aircraft, Thunderbirds liaison, safety director, parking director, communications director, civilian acts selection committee and advertising director. The folks who do these jobs work for almost a year — a little the first six months and a lot the second six months. We will be filling all of these slots over the next few months.”

The air show makes for a busy schedule at Glacier Park International Airport, where the Thunderbirds practice and the static display aircraft and the civilian acts are staged.

During the two-day show, it’s a challenge “to schedule everyone who wants to fly and yet cause as little interference as possible with arriving and departing airline flights,” Vander Laan acknowledged.

“On top of that, there is the crowd. We have had a total of almost 40,000 spectators at each of the last two shows,” he said. “And parking all those cars — somehow we manage to get it done.”

If you are interested in helping as a sponsor or a volunteer, contact the Chamber at 758-2803 or email info@kalispellchamber.com.