80,000 Expected for Point Mugu Air Show

More than 80,000 spectators are expected this weekend at the 1989 Point Mugu Air Show. The annual event Saturday and Sunday will showcase precision flying and aerobatic stunts by military and civilian pilots.

The renowned Air Force Thunderbirds will highlight Saturday’s schedule with a demonstration of flying skills used by Air Force tactical pilots in F-16 Falcons.

Sunday’s lineup includes a flight demonstration by the California Air National Guard and the Armed Forces West Parachute Team. Top civilian pilots will appear both days. Featured performers include Earl Cherry and the Roll Models, who defy gravity with a wing-walking act akin to 1930s barnstorming, as they perform loops and rolls at 170 m.p.h. with a rider on the wing.

Other flying acts include newcomer Team America, a three-plane act that puts on a military-style show in red, white and blue Marchetti SF-260 airplanes, and Joann Osterud in a high-performance biplane. Osterud recently completed 208 loops to break the women’s and men’s world record for outside loops.

Other stunt-flying acts will include the Sierra Aces Aerobatic Team and the Skylark North Aerobatic Team, and ex-Navy pilot Wayne Handley will perform aerial maneuvers in biplanes and gliders.

Also appearing will be the Los Angeles Police Department’s dragster and drag racer Les Shockley in his jet-engine-equipped Peterbilt truck, “Shockwave.”

Gates open at 8 a.m. each day and close at noon if parking is full. The show lasts until 4:30 p.m. both days and is free. Grandstand seats are $3. For information, call (805) 989-8786.