"It went head first into the ground," said Linda Ogletree, of Windsor, Ontario.
The pilot was identified as Chris Smisson, of Atlanta, base spokesman Capt. Chris Karns said. Smisson was an experienced aerobatics pilot who had served several years in the Air Force test-flying fighter jets, according to the Web site for the company he worked for, Air Show Unlimited.
Smisson's plane, a single-engine, propeller-driven SP-95, was designed for high-performance aerobatic flight.
After the crash, an appearance by the Air Force's Thunderbirds precision flying team was canceled.
The show at the Florida Panhandle base and another at Punta Gorda featuring the Navy's Blue Angels flying team were being held despite the war against Iraq and stepped up vigilance against possible terrorism.
Brig. Gen. Larry New, commander of Tyndall's 325th Fighter Wing, ordered the show to go on under increased security. Air Force and Florida National Guard personnel patrolled the base and conducted spot checks on cars and spectators.
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