FORT LAUDERDALE-HOLLYWOOD INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, FLA. (WSVN) - The U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels have returned to South Florida to perform at the Fort Lauderdale Air Show this weekend.
Fort Lauderdale Beach’s skies will be filled with action on Saturday and Sunday during the air show.
“We are back on May 8 and 9,” said Fort Lauderdale Air Show spokesperson Chris DiRato, “looking to put on a great show on Fort Lauderdale Beach with, of course, the featured performer, the U.S. Navy Blue Angels, and hopefully, the weather will cooperate, and everybody will come out and see some of our military might in action.”
U.S. Navy Blue Angels Cmdr. Ben Walborn described some of the maneuvers spectators can expect at the show.
“You have the diamond, which is the four aircraft flying showcase in a tight formation, flying that all Navy and Marine Corps. pilots are capable of doing,” Walborn said. “Then, you have the two solo pilots, myself and number six, who will showcase the high-performance capability of the F/A-18E Super Hornet.”
However, for 2021, spectators can expect new additions to the show’s lineup.
“Blue Angels are the featured headliner, and they will be supported by the F-16 Viper demo teams, the C-17 Globemaster demo team,” DiRato said. “We have the Geico Sky Typers, Mike Wiskus — aerobatic performer — and also the Red Bull helicopter team, as well as the Red Bull Air Force team, which are very, very exciting to see.”
Walborn said showcasing the Navy’s capabilities is more than a job.
“I remember watching the Blue Angels back in Reading, Pa., where I grew up,” Walborn said. “It kind of inspired me to want to go pursue a career in naval aviation in the Navy there, and then, being able to showcase my love of naval aviation and pass that on to other folks, the other 6-, 7-, 8-year-olds that can possibly be out there for some inspiration what to do in life. It got me, and that’s why I love doing it. I love flying. I love flying off aircraft carriers, defending this great country.”
Flight performances will begin at 11:30 a.m., and the Blue Angels will take to the sky from 2:15 p.m. to about 3 p.m.
“What a better venue than the beach of Fort Lauderdale and the ocean as the backdrop and the stage up in the air,” DiRato said. “It’s a great place to be.”
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