{"id":328813,"date":"2026-05-23T02:46:51","date_gmt":"2026-05-23T02:46:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/328813\/"},"modified":"2026-05-23T02:46:51","modified_gmt":"2026-05-23T02:46:51","slug":"l-a-fleet-week-kicks-off-in-san-pedro-with-plenty-to-see-and-do-san-bernardino-sun","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/328813\/","title":{"rendered":"L.A. Fleet Week kicks off in San Pedro \u2014 with plenty to see and do \u2013 San Bernardino Sun"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Attendees<\/p>\n

Attendees of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week play a game of pickleball in San Pedro on Friday, May 22, 2026. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"From<\/p>\n

From right, Lance Corporal Joseph Wiwakan teaches six-year-old Mattson Marsteller how to aim an M240 Bravo machine gun during day one of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week in San Pedro on Friday, May 22, 2026. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"Carolyn<\/p>\n

Carolyn Surratt of Texas tests her punching power during day one of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week in San Pedro on Friday, May 22, 2026. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"Seven-year-old<\/p>\n

Seven-year-old Roman Ruiz poses for a photograph with an M2A1 .50 caliber machine gun during day one of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week in San Pedro on Friday, May 22, 2026. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

A Bell UH-1Y Huey on display during day one of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week in San Pedro on Friday, May 22, 2026. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"From<\/p>\n

From right, Jose Alonzo and two-year-old Benjamin Alonzo attend day one of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week in San Pedro on Friday, May 22, 2026. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"From<\/p>\n

From left, Lance Corporal Kyle Price and Lance Corporal Joseph Wiwakan attend day one of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week in San Pedro on Friday, May 22, 2026. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"Steven<\/p>\n

Steven Diaz deadlifts 270 lbs during day one of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week in San Pedro on Friday, May 22, 2026. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"Mass<\/p>\n

Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Apprentice Samuel Blade Park, right, plays a game of pickleball on day one of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week in San Pedro on Friday, May 22, 2026. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"Six-year-old<\/p>\n

Six-year-old Mattson Marsteller tries on a CVC helmet during day one of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week in San Pedro on Friday, May 22, 2026. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"Attendees<\/p>\n

Attendees of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week play a game of pickleball in San Pedro on Friday, May 22, 2026. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"Souvenir<\/p>\n

Souvenir patches available during day one of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week in San Pedro on Friday, May 22, 2026. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"Members<\/p>\n

Members of the Seabee Divers wave to attendees of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week in San Pedro on Friday, May 22, 2026. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"Haneef<\/p>\n

Haneef Munir performs 25 chin-ups during day one of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week in San Pedro on Friday, May 22, 2026. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"Nicolas<\/p>\n

Nicolas Pena applies camouflage face paint during day one of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week in San Pedro on Friday, May 22, 2026. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

\"Seven-year-old<\/p>\n

Seven-year-old Roman Ruiz poses for a photograph with an M2A1 .50 caliber machine gun during day one of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week in San Pedro on Friday, May 22, 2026. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

Show Caption<\/p>\n

1 of 16<\/p>\n

Attendees of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week play a game of pickleball in San Pedro on Friday, May 22, 2026. (Photo by Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram\/SCNG)\n<\/p>\n

Expand<\/a><\/p>\n

The 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week kicked of on Friday, May 22, with an opening-day crowd getting a look at massive military equipment, including guns, tanks and helicopters \u2014 and, of course, three major ships.<\/p>\n

On hand to greet and educate the public about the displays were U.S. sailors and Marines, many of whom came into town on board the Navy ship USS Essex, which is a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship home ported in San Diego. The 844-foot warship, which is nicknamed \u201cThe Iron Gator\u201d and is for a wide variety of aircraft to operate from, will be docked in San Pedro\u2019s Outer Harbor through Monday, May 25, and is one of three ships available for public tours.<\/p>\n

The main expo, set up next to the docked Battleship Iowa, 250 S. Harbor Blvd., saw somewhat sparse crowds on Friday. But that\u2019s not unusual for the popular event\u2019s first day \u2014 especially since it falls on a work day. Saturday and Sunday typically draw the biggest crowds of the four-day event. And usually, thousands of people descend on San Pedro\u2019s waterfront over the course of the long holiday weekend to enjoy Fleet Week.<\/p>\n

Courtney Alexander of San Pedro was there with her family, including a 2-year-old daughter and sons aged 3 and 13. They\u2019ve been coming to Fleet Week for about three years, Alexander said, with the military equipment, vehicles and equipment being the big draw.<\/p>\n

Visiting the massive helicopters, she said, is always a must.<\/p>\n

Sgt. Gideon McConnon, who hails from Michigan and joined the U.S. Marines four years ago, was on hand to show off a Super Hughey rescue helicopter. It quickly became a popular piece of equipment to take photos in and and around for youngsters and adults alike.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s good to see the people,\u201d McConnon said of the Friday crowd, in between answering questions from the public.<\/p>\n

New this year was a pickleball tournament on Friday \u2014 which included civilians and service members playing together.<\/p>\n

On the main expo stage, there was an initial qualifying round for the popular \u201cMilitary Has Talent\u201d contest, which will culminate with the finalists competing against each other before Fleet Week is over.<\/p>\n

At the Battleship Iowa booth, meanwhile, visitors were buying up ship-themed T-shirts, mugs and hats.<\/p>\n

And while not the cheeriest subject, the California governor\u2019s office sponsored a table with everything you need to be prepared for the next earthquake. There was even a stationary truck people could sit in to experience a 7.0 shaker. Materials included hand lists of items to collect in case of an emergency \u2014 and bags all of it can be stored in.<\/p>\n

The Navy\u2019s environmental program \u2014 Stewards of the Sea \u2014 was also on hand to showcase the work the military branch is doing to help bring back endangered species and focus on environmental stewardship.<\/p>\n

Many people are surprised to learn the Navy has such a group, said public affairs officer Sergio Hernandez. Citing one instance in his own background, an aircraft carrier once went to great lengths to avoid a pod of whales up ahead.<\/p>\n

The biggest reaction the environmental program booth gets, he said, \u201cis shock that it\u2019s here. \u2018You have a what?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

The group is made up of scientists and conducts outreach, with Hernandez having a planned meeting this weekend with the staff at AltaSea, San Pedro\u2019s marine research center.<\/p>\n

Also on hand was the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, which was providing information about career opportunities.<\/p>\n

Food trucks are also prominent at Fleet Week for those who get peckish while checking out the ships and other military equipment.<\/p>\n

Day 2 of Fleet Week, meanwhile, is when things will really pick up, with Saturday\u2019s stage lineup featuring aerial demonstrations, more pickleball action, the popular Galley Wars event (12-2:30 p.m.), a hot dog-eating contest (2:30-3 p.m.), a 3 p.m. ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Battleship Iowa\u2019s \u201cLife of a Sailor\u201d exhibit, and a concert from 4 to 7 p.m. on the main expo stage.<\/p>\n

Information and schedules are available at lafleetweek.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Attendees of the 10th annual L.A. Fleet Week play a game of pickleball in San Pedro on Friday,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":328814,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[7,131,133,132,47,137,100,1438,1439,77],"class_list":["post-328813","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-long-beach","tag-california","tag-long-beach","tag-long-beach-headlines","tag-long-beach-news","tag-los-angeles","tag-los-angeles-county","tag-news","tag-port-of-los-angeles","tag-san-pedro","tag-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/328813","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=328813"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/328813\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/328814"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=328813"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=328813"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=328813"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}