NIAGARA FALLS | This year’s edition of Thunder Over Niagara Open House, which had been due to host one of the top airshow line ups in North America, has been cancelled.

Originally scheduled for the 19th-20th June at Niagara ARS, NY, the show had been due to feature the US Navy Blue Angels and USAF F-16C Viper Demo Team, as well as the Canadian Forces Snowbirds and CF-188A Hornet in the flying display. The latter two acts would have likely operated from Canada to avoid travel restrictions, and the show was due to be their only early-season appearance in the United States this year.

Lt. Col. Ben Canetti, the airshow’s director, said on Facebook: “We have received tremendous support within the community and NY State gave us their approval to host the event. With that being said, Air Force Reserve Command decided today it was not in their best interest to host the event during the current environment.

“I am truly sorry for the performers, staff, volunteers and most of all the entire Western New York community. At this time we do not have a future date or know what this means for the show in the near future. Hopefully at some point we will rebound from this and bring it back with the same exciting lineup we’ve all become accustomed to. We as the staff have been working this for over a year and are truly saddened like you, so again, we are sorry for the bad news.”

Thunder Over Niagara was last held in 2011, 2015 and 2018.

EL CENTRO | The Blue Angels and Thunderbrids have joined forces for an incredible 12-ship formation, known as the Super Delta, during joint training sessions at El Centro.

Photo: US Department of Defense

Six F-16CJs of the Thunderbirds joined together with the six new F/A-18E Super Hornets of the Blue Angels for the first time on Tuesday to perform a flypast over Imperial Valley, passing over the Blue Angels’ new C-130J Hercules support plane on the ground below.

The Blue Angels said that they will “virtually debut a full flight” on most major US news networks during the Memorial Day weekend on the 29th-31st of May. Although not confirmed, this suggests the two teams may perform a similar flyby during Memorial Day events, due to be broadcast on live television.

Photo: US Department of Defense

The Thunderbirds recently arrived at El Centro, the Blue Angels’ winter training base, for one week of joint training. The two teams very rarely appear at airshows together, but the camp is designed to help the two teams trade lessons learned and best practices ahead of the new airshow season. Described by the Department of Defense as an annual event, the tradition began only last year.

Last year, the two teams performed joint flypasts as part of Operation America Strong, which saw them fly over cities across the US to honour front line workers during the coronavirus pandemic. However, on that occasion, the two teams flew in a pair of six-ship formations some distance apart from each other.

Countries will multiple military aerobatic teams have often combined their teams into a single performance to mark significent events. In 2014, the two aerobatic teams of the Swiss Air Force performed a specially-choreographed, jaw-dropping 15-minute show, featuring 15 aircraft, to mark the air arm’s centenary. The Russian Knights and Swifts regularly combine to perform loops and flypasts in a single formation before the two teams perform their individual routines, and last month, the two aerobatic teams of the Indian Air Force staged a 20-minute combined demonstration for the first time, featuring nine fast jets and four helicopters.

Following last week’s announcement that the USAF F-35A Lightning II Demo Team’s show season will be cut back by more than a third, an update to Air Combat Command’s airshow calendar indicates which airshows have been dropped from the schedule.

Nine shows have been dropped due to a fleet-wide shortage of engines, which are apparently exceeding their design limits when in use. This has led to a shorter engine life and more calls for replacement parts and repairs. The reduction in airshow flights will avoid exacerbating the problem, and help ensure that the fleet’s operational readiness is not affected.

These are the nine shows which will no longer be featuring the Demo Team this year:

COCOA BEACH AIRSHOW, COCOA BEACH, 17th-18th APR | The F-35A Lightning II has been replaced with the F-22A Raptor. The airshow is also due to be headlined by the Thunderbirds.

HANGAR 24 SBD AIR FEST, REDLANDS, 15th-16th MAY | The airshow was due to be headlined by the F-35, but the event has been cancelled entirely.

OREGON INT’L AIRSHOW, HILLSBORO, 21st-23rd MAY | The airshow was due to be headlined by the F-35, but the event has been cancelled entirely.

GREAT TENNESSEE AIRSHOW, SMYRNA, 5th-6th JUN | The F-35A Lightning II has been cancelled with no replacement scheduled. The airshow is due to be headlined by the Thunderbirds.

DEKE SLAYTON AIRFEST, LA CROSSE, 12th-13th JUN | The F-35A Lightning II has been cancelled with no replacement scheduled. The airshow is due to be headlined by the Blue Angels.

OWENSBORO AIRSHOW, OWENSBORO, 14th-15th AUG | The F-35A Lightning II has been replaced with the F-16C Fighting Falcon. The airshow is due to be headlined by the Blue Angels.

VOLARIA AERONAUTICS FESTIVAL, MONTREAL, 18th-19th SEP | The F-35A Lightning II has been cancelled with no replacement scheduled. The airshow is due to be headlined by the Canadian Forces Snowbirds and CF-118A Hornet.

CENTRAL FLORIDA AIR & SPACE SHOW, SANFORD, 16th-17th OCT | The F-35A Lightning II has been cancelled with no replacement scheduled. The airshow is due to be headlined by the Thunderbirds.

BLUE ANGELS HOMECOMING, PENSACOLA, 5th-6th NOV | The F-35A Lightning II has been cancelled with no replacement scheduled. The airshow is due to be headlined by the Blue Angels.

Additionally, the team’s schedule still includes the Planes of Fame Airshow in Chino this May, despite the event having been postponed to October. It is not clear whether any of the ACC demonstration teams will participate in the rescheduled show.

Airshows still due to feature the F-35 Demo Team are the Atlanta Airshow, Gig Harbor Wings & Wheels, the Tri-City Water Follies, Arctic Lightning Airshow, Thunder Over Michigan, Chicago Air & Water Show, Canadian International Air Show, California Capital Airshow, Great Pacific Airshow and Los Angeles County Airshow.