The Kansas City Chiefs will visit Whiteman Air Force Base on Saturday, April 29, for an exclusive Draft Event presented by Heartland Coca-Cola and invite interested media to cover the day's activities.
The Chiefs Community Caring Team, including Chiefs Players and Ambassadors, Chiefs Cheerleaders, Warpaint, KC Wolf and others will be on-site to host the event for upwards of 4,000 Whiteman-based military members and their families, as well as an exclusive number of Chiefs Season Ticket Members. The event will include autograph stations, football-themed activities and games, including Play 60 activity stations for youth, merchandise, inflatable games, as well as food and drink stations.
In addition to the activities, Whiteman will have a number of United States Air Force aircraft on static display for photo opportunities, including a B-2 Spirit stealth bomber, an A-10 Thunderbolt II close air support plane, a T-38 Talon supersonic jet trainer, a Black Hawk utility helicopter and an Apache attack helicopter, weather permitting.
As part of the day's festivities, a handful of service members have been selected to announce the Chiefs Draft picks live on the NFL's family of media platforms – NFL Network, NFL.com and NFL Mobile. Each pick will be announced with a static aircraft display serving as the backdrop, weather permitting.
Whiteman Air Force Base is home of the 509th Bomb Wing and the Missouri Air National Guard's 131st Bomb Wing, which together fly and maintain the nation's only fleet of B-2 Spirit stealth bombers. The base is also the home of the 442d Fighter Wing of the Air Force Reserves and the Army National Guard's 1- 135th Attack/Reconnaissance Battalion. Located two miles South of Knob Noster, Missouri, Whiteman Air Force Base was activated on August 6, 1942 as Sedalia Glider Base. It was ultimately renamed in honor of 2nd Lieutenant George Whiteman, who was killed during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.
Below are important details for media members interested in covering events at Whiteman Air Force Base as part of the 2017 NFL Draft.
RSVP:All media outlets, and their individual representatives, interested in covering the event must contact 509th Bomb Wing Public Affairs at 509.bw.pa@us.af.mil or (660) 687-5727 no later than Tuesday, April 25and provide appropriate information as part of base-required background checks.
Documents:All members of the news media planning to cover the event need to bring two forms of identification to the base. One of them should be the driver's license provided for your background check. The other ID can be another government-issued ID, such as a passport, or can be a work-related photo ID.
Date:Saturday, April 29
Location:Whiteman Air Force Base
Media Entrance will be at the Arnold Gate on the north end of the base The closest address using Google Maps is:|
98 SE State Highway J Knob Noster, MO 65336
Parking:All media vehicles will park in a dirt parking area to the east of the Arnold Gate, where Whiteman Air Force Base officials will pick media up for transport onto the base. No vehicles will be allowed to park on-base. Note that all camera gear and other equipment will be subject to search before being permitted onto the base.
Schedule:11 a.m. – All media should be at parking area outside Arnold Gate to board transportation to event location
12 p.m. – Approximate time for first announced pick of the day at B-2 display
1 p.m. – All media should meet at drop-off point to board transportation back to parking area
Opportunities:There will be a number of unique video and interview opportunities at Whiteman Air Force Base. A non-exhaustive list of interview and video opportunities includes:
- Current Chiefs players on-site
- Kansas City Ambassadors on-site
- Chiefs Cheerleaders on-site
- Members of the Chiefs executive team
- Whiteman Air Force Base leadership speaking on stage
- Airmen and women who are announcing the draft picks on NFL media platforms
- Other attendees, including military families
Thank you for your interest in covering the Chiefs Draft Event at Whiteman Air Force Base presented by Heartland Coca-Cola on Saturday, April 29. Questions can be directed to Chiefs Corporate Communications Manager Luke Shanno at (816) 920-4351 or Whiteman Air Force Base Public Affairs at (660) 687-5727.
