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Bill Murray flies with 315th AW for RiverDogs opener

  • Published
  • By Capt. Shane Ellis
  • 315th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
CHARLESTON, S.C. --  

Actor Bill Murray joined 315th Airlift Wing Reservists and helped kick off the Charleston RiverDogs 2021 season opening home game with a C-17 flyover May 4, over Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park in Charleston, South Carolina.

The Reserve aircrew was comprised of pilots, loadmasters and support crew members from the 315 AW’s 701st Airlift Squadron, and the game was the first time the RiverDogs had hosted a game since Sept. 1, 2019, which was 611 days since their last game day.

Murray, co-owner and “director of fun” for the RiverDogs, Mike Veeck, the minor league baseball team’s executive advisor to the chairman, and a small group of community leaders participated in the flyover.

Flyovers help the public see the excellence of our men and women in uniform who serve to protect freedoms daily around the world, and civic leader participation shows support to our military community.

Piloting the C-17 were Lt. Col. Keith Moore, 701st AS director of operations and aircraft commander for the flight, and Maj. Ed Sutton, 701st AS C-17 pilot. The carefully coordinated flyover required skill in the air and great communication on the ground for the flyover to occur with the final lines of the National Anthem being sung at the stadium.

According to Lt. Col. Wayne Capps, 315th AW Public Affairs chief, flyovers like these are great for both aircrews and the community.

“We perform flyovers like this as added readiness training for aircrews, who are often relied upon to be over target at a specifically coordinated time – especially when air dropping troops or supplies to troops on the ground in overseas military operations,” said Capps. “We love the community we serve, and we love to actively participate with our community and community leaders every chance we get.”

“Bill is here to support our military community, and we’re excited to have him and the rest of our civic leaders on board for the opening night of the RiverDogs,” Capps added.

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