Blue Angels headline Wings Over Wayne air show

The event is free and open to the public, with gates opening each day at 8 a.m., the show starting at 10 a.m. and the event keeping visitors entertained and educated until the base closes at 5 p.m. Parking is also available at no cost.

An opening ceremony is planned at 10 a.m. on May 20, according to the Wayne County Travel and Tourism office.

“We are excited to be opening our gates to the public for our 2023 Wings Over Wayne Air, Space, and Technology Expo,” said Maj. Nathan Johnson, 2023 Wings Over Wayne director. “Our theme, ‘First in Flight, First to Fight,’ connects our historical roots here in North Carolina to our rich heritage beginning with WWII and each conflict since to our ongoing combat air power capabilities now.”

The free air show will feature ground static displays with various military and civilian aircraft.

There will be aerial performances from the F-22 Raptor Fighter Demonstration team, Swamp Fox P-51 Mustang, Ace Maker T-33 Shooting Star, Vampire Airshows de Havilland DH-115, and Tora! Tora! Tora!, which will recreate the aerial attack on Pearl Harbor, featuring their Japanese Zero aircraft.

There will also be a combined arms demonstration featuring the F-15E Strike Eagle, F-16 Fighting Falcon and the A-10 Warthog.

Specific schedules are being updated online at www.wingsoverwayne.com.

“Our show will feature the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels as well as world-class civilian aerobatics,” Johnson said. “There will be an extensive combat scenario with our Combined Arms Demonstration and large pyrotechnics display with the Tora! Tora! Tora! performers. We also have some new and different things planned, like Third Strike Wingwalkers and Manfred Radius’ aerobatic glider.”

This year, the Wings Over Wayne Air, Space and Technology Expo will feature a STEM hangar that will include more than 30 booths, robotics and activities from NASA, NASCAR and Caterpillar.

“From the kids’ zone to the 500 knot fast jets to the Extreme Exotics sports car rides down the runway, there’s sure to be something exhilarating and inspiring for the whole family,” Johnson said.

The 40,000-square-foot STEM hangar will feature exhibitors in science, technology, engineering and math from across the country, according to the Wayne County travel and tourism office. G-Force Robotics is helping to organize the educational and hands-on event with a large emphasis on robotics and virtual reality. Displays from government, industry, education, entertainment and defense will be curated inside the hangar.

“We’re also very excited about our STEM hangar that will include over 30 activities like virtual reality and robotics,” Johnson said.

The U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds headlined the 2019 Wings Over Wayne air show. The show, held every other year during odd-numbered years, was not held in 2021 due to the pandemic.