Pacific Airshow
{{Short description|Airshow in California}}
{{Promotional|date=November 2024}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2015}}
{{Infobox recurring event
| name = Pacific Airshow
| image = Pacific Airshow Huntington Beach 2023.jpg
|caption=Thunderbirds flying over Pacific Airshow Huntington Beach 2023.
| status = Active
| frequency = Annual
| country = United States of America and Australia
| first = Huntington Beach 2016
Gold Coast 2023
| prev = Huntington Beach October 4–6, 2024
Gold Coast August 16–18, 2024
| next = Huntington Beach Oct 3 - 5, 2025
Gold Coast ‘26: August 14 - 16, 2026
| activity = {{plainlist|
- Military Demonstrations
- Civilian Aerobatic Displays
- Activations and Exhibits
- Performer Signing Sessions
}}
| website = {{URL|pacificairshow.com}}
}}
Pacific Airshow is an annual airshow held in Huntington Beach, California, and Gold Coast, Queensland. Pacific Airshow is the most attended Airshow in both the United States and Australia.
The event has a focus on military aviation, previously featuring aircraft from the United States Air Force, United States Navy, United States Marine Corps, United States Army, Royal Air Force, Royal Canadian Air Force and Royal Australian Air Force.
Spanning over three days, the Airshow features the best in military demonstrations from teams, including past performances by the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds, U.S. Navy Blue Angels, F-22 Raptor Demo Team, Royal Air Force Red Arrows, Canadian Forces Snowbirds and the Royal Australian Air Force Roulettes.
The Huntington Beach event has become a popular fall event for residents and visitors from as far away as Australia, Europe and Asia while delivering a more than $105 million economic impact to the City of Huntington Beach, California.{{cite web |title=Jet Ready Southern California! Pacific Airshow is Back, and Premium Tickets are Here |url=https://pacificairshow.com/news/2021-tickets-on-sale |publisher=Pacific Airshow}}
History
The first Pacific Airshow took place in 2016 in Huntington Beach, California, attracting hundreds of thousands to Huntington Beach for a display of aviation skill and military might soaring over the beach in Southern California.{{cite news |last=Connelly |first=Laylan |date=2023-05-11 |title=Huntington Beach settles lawsuit with Pacific Airshow over day canceled because of oil spill |url=https://ocregister.com/2023/05/11/huntington-beach-settles-lawsuit-with-pacific-airshow-over-day-canceled-because-of-oil-spill |access-date=2023-05-13 |newspaper=Orange County Register |language=en-US}} There has since been seven editions of Pacific Airshow Huntington Beach (Pacific Airshow Huntington Beach 2020 cancelled due to COVID-19) and two editions of Pacific Airshow Gold Coast, with the inaugural event being held in 2023.
Awards
In seven event years, Pacific Airshow has been recognized as the Civilian Air Show Site of the Year by the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds in 2018, 2019 and 2022.{{cite web |date=2023-08-10 |title=Pacific Airshow Gold Coast |url=https://pacificairshowaus.com |access-date=2023-08-19 |publisher=Pacific Airshow Gold Coast |language=en-AU}}
Pacific Airshow has been named among the Top 3 Air Shows by USA Today’s 10 Best Airshows twice, Top 5 Air Shows once and Top 10 Air Shows once.