Due to concerns over the rapid spread of the Coronavirus (Covid-19), many Airshows inside and outside the US are being postponed or cancelled. This is because one of the recommendations of the WHO (World Health Organization) is to avoid agglomeration of people.
The USAF has announced that it is suspending all public outreach activities, such as for the airshow, until at least May 15th. According to the Air Show Stuff website, both the Thunderbids and the solo demonstration teams (For example: F-22 Raptor Demo Team, F-35 Demo Team and F-16 Viper Demo Team), will be suspending their presentations until this given.
Below is the USAF statement in this regard:
“The Air Force is committed to maintaining the full trust of Americans, and our community involvement is key to those connections. However, due to the uncertainty surrounding COVID-19 and to protect our airmen, their families and the communities that us, the Department of the Air Force is suspending all outreach activities and of community events through May 15. This includes, but is not limited to, civilian and civilian sponsored air shows, band performances, and community engagements and meetings (lectures, facility community meetings, base tours, Pentagon visits, etc.). We will continue to funeral viaducts on a case-by-case basis. The Air Force will continually assess the situation and provide updates as needed.”
Below is the list of Airshows already canceled or postponed by the organization:
March 3-14: 2020 MCAS Yuma Airshow (Yuma, AZ) – Cancelled
March 14: NAF El Centro Airshow (El Centro, CA) – Cancelled
March 14: Fiesta of Flight (Laughlin AFB, TX) – canceled from
March 21-22: LA County Airshow (Lancaster, CA) – canceled from
March 21-22: Luke Days Air and Space Expo (Luke AFB, AZ) – canceled from
March 28-29: MacDill Air Fest (Tampa, FL) – postponed indefinitely from
March 28-29: March Field Air and Space Expo: Thunder Over the Empire (Riverside, CA) – postponed indefinitely
May 1-3: Leaseweb Manassas Airshow (Manassas, VA) – Canceled
Outside the USA, the same must be done with the European Airshows such as Farnborough and RIAT, which take place in the United Kingdom, since in Europe the focus of Covid-19 is very high.
FIDAE postponed until further notice:
Here in South America, the FIDAE that would take place between March 31st and April 5th, has been suspended until further notice. The announcement came through the Chilean President, Sebastián Piñera, during an interview with Meganoticias Prime.
