Parking Advisory for the Barksdale Defenders of Liberty Air and Space Show

As an Air Force brat and daughter of a late B-52 navigator, I always get the chills when a B-52 flies overhead. Getting to see them up close and personal is always an awesome experience! When you see the might of our Air Force first hand, you can't help but swell up with pride for our great country.

Over 100,000 people are expected on base this Saturday and Sunday for the Barksdale Defenders of Liberty Air and Space Show. With that many people, parking is at a premium!

Here's what the City of Bossier has to say about parking at Mike Wood park:

Due to the wet conditions from recent rains, Mike Wood Park, 2200 Dennis Street, in south Bossier City will have a limited number of parking spaces available this weekend for guests interested in visiting the park to watch this year’s Defenders of Liberty Air Show at Barksdale Air Force Base.

In the past, air show spectators have been allowed to park in grassy areas of the Mike Wood Park however due to the wet conditions vehicle parking will be limited to the 163 paved parking spaces inside the park.  Visitors will not be allowed to park on the grass or on any other area not specifically designated for vehicle parking.

Because of the limited number of parking spaces that will be available, a Bossier City Parks and Recreation employee will be stationed at the park entrance and will only allow a total of 163 vehicles in the park at a time.  Additional guests may enter, as determined by the employee when parking vacancies become available.  The gates to Mike Wood Park will open at 6:00 a.m. on both days of the air show.

This weekend's air show will feature the Canadian Snowbirds, the F-35 Demo Team, Tora! Tora! Tora!, the Black Daggers jump team and more. They will also have a B-52 Stratofortress, B-1 Lancer, B-2 Spirit, and more on display in addition to the special STEM Zone section for kids with fun activities and exhibits that teach science, technology, engineering, and math. The exhibits will include a tornado generator, virtual reality, drone technology and more suitable for several age groups.   

Admission and parking for the air show are free. You can access the base through the north and west gates starting at 9 am. Just a note, always make sure to follow the speed limit on base and follow all other directions. To find out more about this biannual event, click here.