Just above the banks of Huntington Beach, a former American sub-fighting plane T-33 crossed the blue canvas of a clear sky afternoon, leaving a plume of spiral smoke in its wake.
The aeronautical scene is a familiar show in the coastal city at this time of year. The Pacific Airshow, an annual show of three -day civil and military aerobatic which boasts advanced maneuvers and air military power, attracted thousands of aviation enthusiasts in Huntington Beach and the Australian Gold Coast since its creation in 2016.
Janet Cardena, who attended all the aeronautical salons of the Pacific, said that the experience of the raw physical power of the planes made her come back.
“I am at the water’s edge and I feel the jets during their overflight, and the rumble – your body trembles like a building when there is an earthquake,” said Cardena. “Then the smell of gas … it’s incredible for me.”
However, this year, a notable force of nature and technology was missing at the show.
Due to the dead end of the budget congress and the federal closure that followed, the US military-perhaps the most important draw of the Pacific Airshow-would not be present during the weekend of October 3 to 5.
“We have been informed that American soldiers will not be able to participate in this year’s event,” said the director of the Aeronautical Fair, Kevin Elliott, in a statement. “Although it is a certainly disappointing news, we are delighted to announce that the Pacific Airshow Huntington Beach will continue as planned.”
People line the beach to watch the Grumman Albatross Water Landing plane during the Pacific Aeronautical Show.
(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
For some, the sky could just as well have come across our heads.
“When we try to bring our children here to have fun and say to myself ‘well, sorry, no aircraft of the Marine Corps’, it’s quite disappointing,” said Ryan, a former navy who chose not to share his family name for reasons of confidentiality. “I participated in the invasion of Iraq and we therefore had a lot of fixed sail planes that arrived and dropped bombs, so I tend to become a little emotional.”
The Pacific aeronautical show has already known its set of setbacks, many of which escape the control of the organizer. Last year, the spectators were subjected to a thick navy layer which obscured the sky and almost obstructed the sight of the few planes which even rose. In 2021, a black tide off Huntington Beach forced the cancellation of the last day of the weekend.
This year, the show continued, but without what many consider the main attraction. There were still a crowd of participants, fixing the sky in the anxious waiting of the irritating breath of the plane engines coming from step so far.
The Snowbirds of the Canadian Forces overlap the Huntington Beach’s throw on Friday.
(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
The British Royal Air Force and the Canadian Armed Forces have replaced the US Air Force, some of which were walked around the uniform event and on stands organizing traction challenges and recruitment efforts near food sellers.
“This is something that I miss is the scene where the F-35 and the Thunderbirds play,” said Janet Kondos, an Air Force veteran. “It’s like that, they have to do what they have to do.”
The paratroopers of the Royal Air Force sparked great applause after a coordinated parachute work demonstration which saw them floating to the shores. After a Red Bull aerobatic helicopter overturned his rotor in an unlikely way and got out of a dive at the last second, a group of children near the shore began to imitate the maneuver by making perilous jumps.
Emma McDonald, an Australian pilot who piloted an extra 300l aerobatic plane, rushed directly into the sky at an angle of almost 90 degrees almost in the middle of the program, which led the public to hold his collective breath while the plane placed. McDonald pulled the aircraft from a vertical position and switched to the flat, causing weights that have turned into cheers.
“That’s it!” “Shouted a participant. “Keep it up!”
A crowd was formed on the beach to attend the aeronautical show of the Pacific on the first day on Friday.
(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
Even if there was little American military spirit in heaven, the patriotic spirit on the ground was indelible, recalling a celebration of July 4. The children ran and played in the water, the couples with complete beach installations captured a slight buzz in the stifling heat and the American flags decorated the sand as a conquered planet.
“We have already organized the Miramar air show and they have organized a complete demonstration of the infantry of the Marine Corps where they descend from helicopters and then perform the whole attack,” said Ryan. “It would be pretty cool with our equipment here, unlike that of the Royal Air Force.”
Even if they did not have the most recent American fleets, the crowds were still able to attend a history lesson on American aviation throughout the program. A B-29 SuperForter B-29, a B-25 Mitchell bomber and a Grumman Albatross from the Vietnamese era have all made impressable appearances.
A helicopter controlled by Aaron Fitzgerald returns on Friday at the Pacific Aeronautical Show. .
(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
For some, the opportunity to be so close to some of the greatest achievements of aeronautics was personal.
“Of all the dreams I had when I was a child, it is the only thing I wanted to do, as if I wanted to pilot a apache, I wanted to drive a jet,” said Cardena. “But growing up, no woman was a pilot and therefore it is as good as possible for me – it’s as close as possible to them.”
Cardena still felt slightly disappointed by the consequences of a federal closure. She was eager to see the planes and the helicopters in which she had grown, wishing to be able to fly, but unfortunately, it was not her year.
As Cardena thought, a C-17 Royal Air Force temporarily masked the sun and covered the bathers of a gargantuan shadow while he was passing over Huntington.
