Operation America Strong / We Are The Mighty
Look! Up in the sky!
In the next few weeks, residents of various cities around the country will get to see a pretty awesome sight. The United States Navy’s Blue Angels and the United States Air Force’s Thunderbirds will be carrying out flyovers over selected cities.
Operation America Strong was announced Wednesday by President Donald Trump during his daily press briefings on the coronavirus outbreak. The purpose is to honor the health care workers that have been working tirelessly around the clock at great risk to their own health during the coronavirus outbreak that has closed down much of the country, as well as unite Americans around the world.
Trump said, “I’m excited to announce that in the coming weeks, the Air Force Thunderbirds – are incredible – and the Navy’s Blue Angels, equally incredible, will be performing air shows over America’s major cities. What we’re doing is we’re paying tribute to our front-line health care workers confronting COVID. And it’s really a signal to all Americans to remain vigilant during the outbreak. This is a tribute to them, to our warriors. Because they are equal warriors to those incredible pilots and all of the fighters that we have for the more traditional fights that we win and we win.”
The Thunderbirds have already been flying in honor of health care workers at various locations over the state of Colorado and at the United States Air Force Academy Commencement. Some cities will see one unit or the other, while select cities will get to see a joint flyover.
While set dates have not been announced, a DOD memo did state the cities which have been initially selected to see a flyover.
U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds
San Antonio, TX
Oklahoma City, OK
Phoenix, AZ
San Diego, CA
Los Angeles, CA
San Francisco, CA
Portland, OR
Seattle, WA
U.S. Navy Blue Angels
Miami, FL
Tampa, FL
Tallahassee, FL
Jacksonville, FL
Norfolk, VA
Virginia Beach, VA
Joint Flyover of Both Teams
Washington, DC
Baltimore, MD
New York, NY
Newark, NJ
Trenton, NJ
Philadelphia, PA
Atlanta, GA
Dallas, TX
Houston, TX
Austin, TX
As dates are set, we will update this list. ‘Merica strong!
This article was originally published on April 24, 2020, by We Are The Mighty.
Katie McCarthy is the managing editor for Coffee or Die Magazine. Her career in journalism began at the Columbus (Georgia) Ledger-Enquirer in 2008, where she learned to navigate the newsroom as a features reporter, copy editor, page designer, and online producer; prior to joining Coffee or Die, she worked for Outdoor Sportsman Group as an editor for Guns & Ammo magazine and their Special Interest Publications division. Katie currently lives in Indiana with her husband and two daughters.
