FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. (WSVN) – Teams got in practice as a spectacle in the sky is set to soar over South Florida.<\/p>\n
Friday was practice day ahead of the 2026 Air Dot Show in Fort Lauderdale Beach.<\/p>\n
The teams could be heard in the air doing their practice runs in Fort Lauderdale and surrounding areas.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom its slow-speed handling characteristics to its high-speed maneuverability, we think the crowd is going to be a pretty big fan of the show,\u201d said Lt. Adam Wawro, an F\/A-18 pilot.<\/p>\n
The BFA 18 Super Hornets demo team is ready to roll and show off a powerhouse of military might.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe limit ourselves to a .98 Mach number, so 98% the speed of sound; I would say that\u2019s probably around 650, 700 miles an hour,\u201d said Wawro.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing on the ground and seeing us rip by that fast, you\u2019re going to feel it in your chest; it\u2019s awesome,\u201d said Lt. Hannah Pickett, another F\/A-18 pilot.<\/p>\n
The supersonic jets are just one of the acts, joined by the F-22 Raptors, which are the fastest and most maneuverable jets in the world.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe aircraft has an uncanny ability to maneuver at will, so a lot of aircraft. You have to trade things off. \u2018Do I want to go faster? Do I want to turn tighter?\u2019 And the Raptor does a fantastic job of balancing all of those things,\u201d said Capt. Nic Le Tourneau, F-22 demo team. \u201cThe best way I can think to explain it is flying a roller coaster where you get to make your own track.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Thunderbirds will also soar over Fort Lauderdale Beach over the weekend.<\/p>\n
\u201cPut on a spectacular 36-minute demonstration consisting of six of these F-16Cs that you see behind us, each one of them outputting about 29,000 pounds of thrust,\u201d said Lt. Col. Tyler Clark, a Thunderbird pilot.<\/p>\n
The Air Dot Show celebrates the United States ahead of its 250th birthday.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo showcase America\u2019s history and how proud we are to be representatives, even on a small scale here at the show, is, like you said, just such an honor,\u201d said Pickett.<\/p>\n