Surprise! The Blue Angels 75th anniversary show moves to Pensacola Beach in November
Emma KennedyPensacola News Journal
The Blue Angels turned a heartbreaking loss into a community win Thursday when they announced the Blue Angels Homecoming Air Show will be held on Pensacola Beach instead of NAS Pensacola due to the ongoing surge of COVID-19 in the community.
Navy officials also canceled last year's base show due to COVID restrictions, but rather than a cancellation this year, community leaders decided to carry out the 75th anniversary show on the beach instead.
Visit Pensacola, Escambia County, the Santa Rosa Island Authority and Kia Auto will combine to fund the $175,000 the show will cost, hosting the same multi-day event from Nov. 5 through 6 that spectators are accustomed to seeing during the traditional beach show.
Visit Pensacola Board Chairman D.C. Reeves said it will be the same format as the July beach shows, just in November.
"We all looked at each other, the county, Visit (Pensacola), SRIA and Kia Auto and understood that this is the no-brainer of all no-brainers," Reeves said. "We know how important the Blue Angels are to this community and how important this show is to our military, and we were all determined in that moment ... to get it across the finish line."
Reeves said the plan to pivot happened within a week when NAS Pensacola commander Capt. Tim Kinsella approached Visit Pensacola to say it was likely the show couldn't carry on traditionally with community transmission rates being as high as they have been in the latest COVID-19 surge.
Details about popular events such as Breakfast with the Blues haven't yet been finalized, Reeves said, but those events should be announced in the coming weeks.
Both the base homecoming and beach shows were canceled in 2020 due to coronavirus concerns, but the July beach show continued this year with strong crowds.
Reeves said while it’s not an ideal situation, holding the show on the beach will also provide a much-needed boost to beach businesses that will not only be in a shoulder tourist season, but that are also still recovering from the pandemic and Pensacola Bay Bridge closure.
"Our job at Visit Pensacola is to attract tourists to our community and to fill hotel rooms and restaurants and our job is to get a return on investment by attracting tourists, so it’s an easy decision," Reeves said. "What better way to do that than to fund a second air show on the beach with direct economic impact for the community."
Surprise! The Blue Angels 75th anniversary show moves to Pensacola Beach in November
The Blue Angels are moving the Homecoming Show to Pensacola Beach in November!
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