Heads up! The sky’s the party in Huntington Beach this weekend
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What’s that loud noise? It’s either the sound of planes soaring into the region for the three-day Pacific Airshow, or the cacophony of back-slapping among Huntington Beach civic leaders who are happy to welcome the economic boon the show delivers to town.
My colleague Matt Szabo, who covers Surf City for us like a beach blanket, was at Joint Forces Training Base Los Alamitos yesterday afternoon where the media was invited to meet and greet the United States Air Force Thunderbirds, which headline the show. Planeside interviews were held with the pilots, he said afterward, and he was impressed with their professional and friendly demeanors.
Things are looking up for this 10th anniversary of the show, which takes off Friday. According to earlier reporting by Szabo that followed his coverage in May of the dramatic publicity push that included the landing of a Goodyear Blimp near Lifeguard Tower 11, spectators can also expect to see the NASA 5-F Formation Team, Air Force F-35A demo team, the U.S. Navy EA-18G Growler Airshow Team and the U.S. Navy F/A-18 West Coast Rhino Demo, among others.
It has, as many will remember, been a bumpy ride for the event organizer and the city sinced the October 2021 oil spill led to the closure of the final day of the weekend extravaganza and led to lawsuits that reverberated throughout the city. It was especially dicey when the city, in 2023, made a controversial $7-million settlement with the Pacific Airshow/Code Four operator Kevin Elliott that was suspected by many to be far more in favor of Elliott than for the good of the residents.
That pall still hangs over Surf City. Just this past July 30, an Orange County judge ordered Huntington Beach to cooperate with state officials who had been seeking to investigate that deal.
And there have been other challenges. In 2024, the show battled a heavy marine layer on its first day that didn’t lift until late afternoon. And last year, Szabo reported, the show lost the participation of U.S. military planes due to a government shutdown. Also, on the very day before the 2025 show started, the California Fair Political Practices Commission announced it had fined current Mayor Casey McKeon and four other Huntington Beach elected officials, for failing to disclose VIP passes they received to the 2022 Pacific Airshow.
But hey! It’s a different year and a milestone anniversary for the popular show. As Elliott said during the news conference he staged on the sand near the Goodyear Blimp in May, human connection is hard to come by these days and he believes the show is an opportunity to at least temporarily connect with one another.
“While aviation is super inspiring and electrifying, when you marry that with one of the most beautiful beaches and the camaraderie of all of us being together, that’s where Pacific Airshow’s magic really comes from,” he said.
It looks like it will be sunny and in the upper 80s in Surf City this weekend. Let the party in the sky begin.
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🫘 Take your need for a caffeine fix over to the Casa Libre that has opened at Mercado González in Costa Mesa and try one of its single origin coffees roasted from beans grown in Mexico.
🎡 Round up the family and enjoy a spin on the recently-opened Spectrum SunWheel, which replaced the former Giant Wheel at Irvine Spectrum Center.
📽️ Check out the lineup for the upcoming Newport Beach Film Festival (Oct. 15-22) and reserve your tickets here. This is expected to be the last time the festival will use the Regal Edwards Big Newport as one of its venues, as the venerable movie house is poised to make way for a high-rise residential complex.
🥁 Love a parade? Tustin Tiller Days are being celebrated this Friday through Sunday at Columbus Tustin Park, complete with a parade that steps off at 10 a.m. Saturday in Old Town Tustin.
KEEP IN TOUCH
Thanks for reading this week’s newsletter! Please feel free to reach out with comments or questions at carol.cormaci@latimes.com.