BELOIT — As most spectators at last weekend’s Southern Wisconsin AirFEST craned their necks toward the sky to watch the show, 4-year-old Tyler Ward and his brother, 3-year-old Tanner, were limited to hearing the planes as they cruised down the flight line.

Not that it took any enjoyment out of the experience for the Beloit siblings.

“That’s a jet!” exclaimed Tanner as he sat with his parents inside a VIP tent during Saturday’s performance.

Both boys are legally blind. They were born with achromatopsia, a genetic condition that affects how their eyes respond to light.

Their mother, Kim, likened their experience to seeing the white spots in your eyes after exiting a dark movie theater; however, the boys’ eyes never fully readjust.

Andrea Johnson, an AirFEST volunteer and a nurse at the clinic the boys attend, wanted to make the air-show experience a special one. She provided the family with VIP tickets and arranged for them to meet pilots and put their hands on show aircraft.

The experience touched performers as much as it did Tanner and Tyler.

Lt. Adrian Jope, a pilot with the U.S. Navy VFA-106 F/A-18 East Coast Demonstration Team formed a special bond with the family.

“I saw them every single day,” Jope said. “It was kind of the highlight of my day. I never would have imagined I would have hit it off so well with that family.”

Kim Ward said the experience was just as special for the boys, who love the vibrations and sounds of the planes.

“I can’t tell you what a thrill this was for them to touch the planes,” she said, adding that her sons were able to associate planes in the sky with the ones they touched on the ground.

The family’s experience at this year’s AirFEST was far different than last year, when they watched the action from beyond the gates. Kim Ward and her husband, Jim, said they are cautious with the boys because often they don’t respond well to crowds. Tanner and Tyler both must wear prescription sunglasses that simulate dusk conditions, allowing them a limited amount of vision.

If exposed to light for too long, the boys are rendered completely blind for a period of time.

Even when they aren’t exposed to light, they can see only several inches in front of them. There is a chance that their vision eventually could deteriorate completely.

The boys’ condition inspired Johnson to give them a special experience at this year’s air show.

“Knowing they had a limited amount of vision, I wanted them to experience as much as possible,” she said. “Their story just touched me.”

Jope agreed.

“I was completely moved by their story,” he said. “I have two kids of my own, and just to see what those kids were going through, I couldn’t imagine.”

Among the show participants the boys talked with was Jennifer Jones, a media coordinator with the Canadian Snowbirds, who gave the boys pins and teddy bears with the Snowbirds’ insignia.

“It’s so touching,” said Jones, who added that jet-team members frequently visit hospitals and schools. “For me, it’s the best part of the job. To be able to raise someone’s spirits, who could ask for more?”

The Wards gave their sons cameras so they could capture images from the show to view close-up later.

Jim Ward said his boys won’t soon forget the weekend’s activities.

“This is beyond beyond,” he said. “You can’t even imagine what this will mean to them.”

Kim also was grateful for the opportunities.

“I don’t know how you say thank you for giving your children a chance they’ve never had,” she said. “We’ve met the most spectacular people.”