Ragged Edge tearing through air show Published Oct. 19, 2007 By Staff Sgt. Tonnette Thompson 82nd Training Wing Public Affairs SHEPPARD AIR FORCE BASE, Texas -- Maj. Jill Long is one of those people who takes her work home with her. Of course, her work is a bit more exciting than most. The 89th Flying Training Squadron instructor performs at air shows across the United States, and her next display of aerobatic agility will be right here at Sheppard's Open House and Air Show Oct. 20. Though she finds both flying for the military and air shows equally challenging, there's a personal aspect to air shows that Major Long said she finds addictive. "It's the interaction with the crowd that drives me," she said. "When I land after an air show, I see and hear the crowd cheering me. Sometimes I see that spark in someone's eyes that says 'that's what I want to do.' That's what keeps me going back." When asked why she would practically spend her every waking moment in the cockpit of a plane, be it the Air Force's Talon or her personal Pitts, her answer was simple and immediate. "I love it," said Major Long, who has been flying since she was 16. "There's nothing I'd rather do." When Major Long isn't schooling Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training students on the proper handling of a T-37 Tweet, or eagerly preparing for her first flight in the new T-6 Texan, she takes off in her Ragged Edge Pitts S2B to headline air shows - burning up her leave in the process. "That's how I spend my vacations," she laughed. The major has attended events such as the Women Soar! Air Venture in Wisconsin and the Amelia Earhart Festival in Kansas. Her upcoming stops will include New Orleans and Las Vegas. Major Long said she is thrilled to participate in Sheppard's air show, for its location as much as anything else. "I only have so much leave," she admitted. "This one is home based, so I'm happy to do it." To read more about Major Long and Ragged Edge, visit the 2007 Sheppard Open House webpage.