POINT MUGU : Air Show to Begin Today at Test Center

Air show enthusiasts and plane buffs can catch a glimpse of wing walkers, parachutists, aerobatic gliders and hangars full of planes at the Pacific Missile Test Center this weekend.

Aerial stunts will be performed today and Sunday between 12:30 and 4 p.m. at the Point Mugu Air Show, with live entertainment during the morning beginning at 8 a.m.

Air show organizers expect about 55,000 people each day, Cmdr. Gene Okamoto said.

The show, in its 28th year, will feature stunt men and women from Southern California and across the country. One local performer, Joanna Osterud of Oxnard, will perform loops in a new biplane this year, center spokesman Bob Hubbert said. The Sierra Aces, based in Santa Monica, and the Skylark North Aerobatic Team, based in Tehachapi, also will perform, he said.

The air show offers the community a chance to see the base at Point Mugu, which is normally closed to the public, Okamoto said. “It’s a community relations event to show the taxpayers what we’re doing with their dollars,” he said.