The faces of 5-year-old Liam de la Cruz and his 3-year-old brother, Luke, lit up after they got an up-close look at the pilot’s seat of a T-6 Texan turboprop at the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar Air Show on Saturday.
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“I like everything at the air show,” Liam said, drawing a laugh from his father, Janjazon de la Cruz, who happens to be a U.S. Navy chief petty officer stationed at Point Loma, and his mother, Louella.
“I love how they open the airplanes, they actually show them how it works and all the pilots are out here,” Louella said.
The de la Cruz family was part of the huge crowd that turned out for the second day of what’s called “America’s Air Show.” Dating to 1997, the annual event features impressive displays of military vehicles, aircraft, troop movements and pyrotechnics.
Saturday is typically the largest day for attendance during the weekend-long event, with air show officials anticipating a crowd of 300,000 on Saturday and roughly 700,000 for all three days.
Under clear skies and temperatures in the mid- to high 80s, many came with plenty of water to stay hydrated throughout the six-hour showcase of exhibits and demonstrations — both in the air and on the ground.
More than a few savvy visitors brought umbrellas to shade themselves and their little ones from the sun.
Aaron Zeeb of Del Mar also equipped his 6-year-old son, Koa, with noise-muffling earphones — a smart move, as fighter jets screeched across the skies throughout the day.
“He got a little scared last year,” Zeeb said. “But he loves planes, he loves the military and he loves to see soldiers.”
MCAS leadership considered this year’s air show to be special because it coincides with the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States.
Photos: Miramar Air Show: Day 2 Highlights
“For two and a half centuries, Americans have answered the call to serve and the military is here today as part of that legacy,” U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Robert B. Brodie, commanding general of the Third Marine Aircraft Wing, said.
The Marines showed off their tactical precision with a simulated, high-intensity battlefield assault in a demonstration by the Marine Air-Ground Task Force, or MAGTF. Brodie called it “the crown jewel” of the Miramar Air Show.
“It’s a full-throttle demonstration of how the Marine Corps actually fights,” Brodie said.
With infantry, armor and air assets working together, fighter jets scream overhead and assets such as tilt-rotor MV-22 Ospreys and heavy-lift helicopters insert Marines in air-to-ground deployment. It all culminates, Brodie said, “in a signature wall of fire, which is a massive pyrotechnic display spanning the entire flight line.”
The aerial acrobatics of the U.S. Navy Blue Angels are another headline attraction.
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Rancho Bernardo resident Cliff Levy may not be a military veteran but he’s a Miramar Air Show vet. He estimates he’s come 10 times over the years, and he credits the Blue Angels for bringing him back.
“There’s no experience like it,” the 72-year-old retiree said. “It’s really the adult Disneyland.”
Carving through the sky in close formation, the Blue Angels’ F/A-18 Super Hornets displayed a combination of power, skill and coordination. Flying just feet apart at hundreds of miles an hour, the pilots wowed the crowd with intricate maneuvers.
“It’s the most amazing demonstration of precision flying,” Levy said, “and it happens right in front of your face.”
Photos: Opening day of the Miramar Air Show
Among some of the aircraft on display that attendees can walk right up to is an F-15C, courtesy of the California Air National Guard’s 194th Fighter Squadron out of Fresno.
“Very cool, very nice,” said 13-year-old David Franchiliso, who wants to become a pilot. “There are a lot of buttons,” he said after getting an up-close look, “very confusing.”
One of the pilots showing people around the jet was 41-year-old Lt. Col. Chris Lacroix, who grew up in Oceanside.
“This is my hometown air show,” Lacroix said. “I came here as a kid. When I came to the air show in like 2004, these guys were here, told me about the guard, I applied and now I’m back.”
A steady stream of people walked through the massive C-5 Galaxy cargo plane, out of Travis Air Force Base. It has a maximum takeoff weight of 840,000 pounds and wingspan of about 250 feet.
“With over 100,000 pounds of fuel, too, it’s a lot of weight,” said pilot Cole Sheive, a first lieutenant with the 22nd Airlift Squadron. “But once you’re up in the air, it flies pretty nice. It’s pretty smooth.”
Jonathan Carr, who drove about 120 miles from his home in Alhambra, came away shaking his head.
“I didn’t realize it was cavernous,” he said.
Carr came with his wife, Meaghan, and their 4-year-old son Logan. When asked how he liked the show, Logan, perched atop his father’s shoulders, beamed a big smile and gave an enthusiastic thumbs-up with his left hand.
The air show continues on Sunday. Gates open at 8 a.m. and admission and parking are free. More information can be found at miramarairshow.com.
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