Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Keeping up with the jet set
A rundown of this year’s top air shows.
When it comes to air shows in Florida, the bigname Blue Angels and Thunderbirds are the top draws. In 2017, the spring is front-loaded with shows featuring the top-notch aerobatic teams from the Navy and Air Force.
In fact, the Air Force Thunderbirds will be making all of their Florida stops in the spring, starting with their traditional flyover Feb. 26 for the Daytona 500. The real shows, though, begin with the TICO Warbird Air Show in Titusville on March 11-12.
The TICO Warbird AirShow (www.valiantaircommand.com) is celebrating its 40th year, and, in addition to the Air Force headliners on Saturday and Sunday, will have a Friday night show that features a sunset aerobatic team performance and concludes with fireworks. The show at Space Coast Regional Airport is hosted by the Valiant Air Command Warbird Museum featuring civilian and military demonstration flights, more than 40 aircraft on display and even rides available on some of the aircraft including the “Tico Belle” C-47. Also on hand will be World War II re-enactors, historic military vehicles and tanks, a collectible car show, entertainment and food vendors.
Advance tickets for the Titusville show cost $20 for 13 and older, $5 for children 6-12 and free for 5 and under. Parking is free.
Up next for the Thunderbirds will be the Melbourne Air & Space Show on April 1-2 and a final stop in Florida up in the Panhandle for the Gulf Coast Salute at Tyndall Air Force Base on April 22-23.
The Melbourne show (www.airandspaceshow .com), which is once again being held at Melbourne International Airport, has landed both the Blue Angels and Thunderbirds in the past, but also tries to bring secondary headliners. This year, the Thunderbirds will be joined by the French Air Force’s Patrouille de France jet demonstration team.
Advance tickets for the Melbourne show, which is sponsored by Northrop Grumman, cost $18 for 13 and older, $10 for children 6-12 and free for 5 and under. Parking is also additional: $15 if you purchase online or $20 the day of the show.
“We’re thrilled Patrouille de France will be with us,” said Bryan Lilley, president of the Melbourne Air & Space Show. “The team is based at Salon Air Force Base in France and will spend the month of April in the U.S. performing at only two air shows.”
That other show is also in the Sunshine State when the Thunderbirds’ naval counterparts, the Blue Angels, make their Florida debut at the Sun’n Fun Fly-In at Lakeland Linder Regional Airport on April 8-9.
The Sun’n Fun Fly-In (www.flysnf.org/sun-nfun-intl-fly-in-expo) is actually a weeklong event that draws thousands of airplanes to Lakeland each year. It’s also among the most expensive with daily admission of $37 for adults and $15 for those ages 11-17. while 10 and under are free. It’s a massive air show though, with more than 200,000 people expected to attend. It features daily air shows Tuesday-Friday and the headlining air shows Saturday and Sunday including a night show on Saturday with fireworks. This is the 43rd year of Sun’n Fun, and the week will include the arrival of an honor flight carrying World War II and Korean War veterans from Washington, D.C. It’s the only spring stop for the Blue Angels.
That team, which has their home base in Pensacola, will make three more stops in the state stretching into November.
Those stops include three traditional appearances: the mid-summer Pensacola Beach Air Show on July 8, the NAS Jax Air Show on Nov. 4-5 and the Homecoming Air Show at NAS Pensacola on Nov. 11-12.
Air shows held at military bases are free.
Several other big shows are planned for the year, even if the two big-name teams aren’t on their dockets. In spring, Tavares will celebrate their moniker “America’s Seaplane City” with Seaplane-A-Palooza on April 1-2. In May, South Florida has two big shows planned with the Fort Lauderdale Air Show featuring the Canadian Snowbirds performance squad on May 6-7 and the inaugural Miami Beach Air & Sea Show on May 27-28 of Memorial Day Weekend.
In the fall, Charlotte County still plans to hold the three-day Florida International Air Show from Oct. 13-15 and the Treasure Coast will host the Stuart Air Show on Nov. 3-5.