The streaking of jet engines could be heard across the area over the weekend as planes and airships of all types participated in the Pacific Airshow in Huntington Beach over the weekend.
Even the dark clouds of Saturday afternoon did not stop the show, even if they put the flying on hold for a moment as the weather cleared.
“Every year we try to outdo ourselves,” said Kevin Elliott, Executive Director of the Pacific Airshow said in a statement.
Large crowds rolled into Huntington Beach for what Elliott called the greatest lineup yet, “featuring world-renowned military and civilian aviators performing for three days in Huntington Beach.”
Now in its seventh year, attracting 3 million live spectators, the three-day spectacle in the sky featured over five hours of programming each day, showcasing a wide selection of aircraft pushing the boundaries of speeds and skills, the airshow said in its statement.
Rain showers pushed spectators under umbrellas and into the “chalets” set up by sponsors along the beach flightline Saturday afternoon. When the rain broke, however, spectators were thrilled with subsonic displays of the nation’s top tech warfighters, the F-22 Raptor and the F-35A.
Some locals had the opportunity to visit the Joint Forces Training Base to watch the great birds take off and land and residents throughout the area got glimpses of the most modern flying technology as the planes made their way back and forth from the Los Alamitos Army Airfield to Huntington Beach and back.
Spectators pointed and cheered, some with reverence, as military pilots zoomed up and down, dropped flares, and performed incredible maneuvers that seemingly stopped these ultra-fast fighter planes in mid-air, prompting incredulous cheers from crowds on the beach.
Jason Boswell, a local who attends every year, said “I love watching them (advanced technology fighter jets). “It’s simply awesome technology.”
The U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds, F-22 Raptor Demonstration Team and Canadian Forces Snowbirds performed as headliners alongside F-15 combat pilot Tom “Lark” Larkin and the 122d Fighter Squadron F-15s from the Louisiana Air National Guard.
Additionally, the Red Bull Air Race World Champion Matt Hall was joined by Australian aerobatic pilot Emma McDonald for her United States debut, flying their MX and Extra 300 aircrafts. The U.S. Army Golden Knights and U.S Navy Parachute Teams helped kick-off the show followed by appearances by the Opener Blackfly and Red Bull Bo-105 Helicopter, flown by Aaron Fitzgerald.
The full list of 2023 Pacific Airshow performances included:
U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds
Canadian Forces Snowbirds
U.S. Army Golden Knights
U.S. Navy Parachute Team
U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptor Demo
U.S. Navy F-35C Demo
U.S. Navy EA-18G Growler Demo
U.S. Navy F/-18 Super Hornet Demo
U.S. Air Force F-35A Demo
U.S. Air Force Heritage Flight – P-51D Mustang – Steve Hinton Jr
U.S. Air Force KC-135
U.S. Air Force F-15 x 4 159th FW Louisiana
U.S. Air Force B-52 Flybys
FedEx B757 Flybys
Lyon Air Museum C-47 “Willa Dean”
Ace Maker T-33 2-ship
Matt Hall & Emma McDonald MX and Extra 300
Mike Goulian – Extra 330
Sammy Mason – Edge 540
Tom Larkin – SubSonex Mini Jet
Red Bull – Bo-105 Helicopter – Aaron Fitzgerald
Jet Waco- Jerrod Lindemann
Opener Blackfly
OC Fire Authority water drops 2 Bell 212s plus CH-47
The Pacific Airshow is continuing to redefine the airshow experience.
