Officials at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base announced they are cancelling the annual Ohio Freedom's Call Tattoo scheduled for June 28. The cancelation is due to funding limitations associated with the federal budget sequestration.
In a statement released by Wright-Patt, Colonel Cassie Barlow, commander of the 88th Air Base Wing, said the cancelation was driven by recent Air Force sequestration rules that restrict the use of appropriated tax dollars for things like military air shows, open houses and community outreach events. Sponsors' donations covered much of the Tattoo costs, but enough tax dollars were still required to complete the event that officials decided to cancel it.
Base officials instead plan to stage a Fourth of July celebration with a fireworks display on the evening of June 28 of this year. The fireworks will be paid for with monies generated from the Base Exchange, on-base restaurants, and other recreation activities. They say they will not use tax dollars for that event and say more details will be announced later.
The Air Force Tattoo has been held each year since 2005, except when it was canceled last year because of storms.
