STUART, Fla. — High-flying aircraft will be on display and ready to entertain visitors at the Stuart Air Show this weekend.
The annual event takes place Friday through Sunday at Witham Field in Martin County with a variety of aerial performers.
A full schedule of military planes, jets, helicopters and other aircraft will take flight starting Friday evening.
Some of the highlights include:
- F-22 Raptor demo team
- USAF F-16 demo team
- A-10C Thunderbolt II
- C-17 demo team
- US Navy E-2C Hawkeye demo team
- Marine Corps V-22 Osprey
- P-51 Mustang
- Coast Guard search and rescue demonstration
Visitors will also get to see a race between the Shockwave Jet Truck and an aircraft. The jet truck holds the record for fastest in the world at 376 mph.
Gates open at 4 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. both Saturday and Sunday.
WPTV is a proud sponsor and will also have Chopper 5 and Weather Pilot 5 on display at the event as well.
Thousands of people are expected to attend the event, giving a big boost to the economy.
At Spritz City Bistro, General Manager Michael Fitelson is getting ready for the crowds.
"[We] always see an increase in sales this weekend. It draws a large crowd down here. Downtown is just packed in general," Fitelson said.
Organizers said the annual air show typically brings in about $2.5 million to the local economy, but the past two years were tough due to COVID-19 and weather conditions.
"We love to try and entice people living outside of Martin County to come and spend time with us here in beautiful Martin County," said Stuart Air Show Executive Director Skylar Gorman.
General admission prices for the Stuart Air Show are $30.
Click here to learn more and purchase tickets.
Not only does the annual event entertain, but it also helps multiple area charities.
Each year the Stuart Air show donates tens of thousands of dollars to charities as well as service programs for children and veterans.
"We consider ourselves to be kind of a community foundation ourselves. We like to support the organizations locally. There's so many of them that align with our mission, which is to honor the past and inspire the future," Gorman said.
Organizers are expecting about 50,000 to 60,000 people to attend this year's event.
