Pacific Airshow touts ‘special guest’ on opening day
The Pacific Airshow began on a cloudy Friday in Huntington Beach with what show organizers called a “special guest” flying overhead.
At a bit after 11:30 a.m., former President Donald Trump’s plane flew over the space. Videos from the event featured some people cheering.
Trump, who has declared he intends to run for president in 2024, was headed to the California Republican Party Fall Convention in Anaheim, where he spoke on Friday. He is scheduled to appear at a fundraising dinner in Costa Mesa on Saturday night.
As for the air show, Friday was day one of three. The weather is forecast to stay cloudy for much of the weekend, with a chance of rain showers on Saturday morning, though those could pass by the time the show is scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m.
“Obviously, we’d rather have it be bright and sunny, but we’ll deal with what we’ve got to deal with,” said Pacific Airshow director Kevin Elliott. “The water doesn’t bother the jets, it’s visibility and clouds. As long as the base of the clouds is pretty high, there’s really no factor.”
This year’s show features the U.S. Air Force F-22 fighter jets for the first time, as well as traditional show favorites like the Air Force Thunderbirds, Canadian Forces Snowbirds, U.S. Army Golden Knights and U.S. Navy Parachute Team.
The Pacific Airshow is scheduled to run until about 4:30 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday. The show center is on the beach across from the Hilton Waterfront Beach Resort on Pacific Coast Highway, but the aerial “performance box” is more than a mile long, providing for ample viewing opportunities.
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