It has been announced that Sun N Fun 2020 has been cancelled. Read the post here or in its entirety below:

“For over 45 Years, SUN ‘n FUN has brought millions of aerospace professionals, businesses, supporters and enthusiasts together each spring to celebrate the incredible wonder and limitless opportunities of flight.

In 2014, we proudly unveiled that the annual SUN ‘n FUN event would become the primary fundraiser for the Aerospace Center for Excellence (ACE), our STEM-based learning campus created to Engage, Educate, and Accelerate the Next Generation of Aerospace Professionals. At SUN ‘n FUN, serving our local Lakeland, Florida as well as the global aviation community has always been our ultimate mission.

This year, we will serve those same communities by assisting in the defeat of the COVID-19 pandemic. We recognize and acknowledge that this threat has changed the world we live in, and that it is our responsibility to join the fight to bring it to as swift an end as humanly possible.

We stand with our local, state, and national leaders in supporting public health practices that will bring this outbreak to a halt as quickly as possible. Even now, most of our staff are working from home in compliance with social distancing directives, with those that must come in adhering to strict isolation and sanitation policies.

Unfortunately supporting these initiatives will mean that the 2020 SUN ‘n FUN Aerospace Expo will be unable to proceed as originally planned. Regardless of the financial impact, for the safety of all, we will move our 46^th event to join with the 47^th in April of 2021.

The annual SUN ‘n FUN Aerospace Expo provides over $2 million annually for STEM education programs, flight training and aerospace-related college scholarships, and hands-on learning facilities. Based on the SUN ‘n FUN Expo Campus, this year-round institution reaches over 50,000 students annually, and provides free resources for educators to assist them in delivering high-quality STEM learning material.

To continue providing these critical resources, our team is working hard on bringing the spectacle and excitement of SUN ‘n FUN to you in the digital world! We will be utilizing the latest technology to host exciting events and content online in new and innovative ways. While we are of course disappointed that our traditional show must wait until 2021, we are invigorated and excited to announce several things to look forward to in the coming weeks in our brand new “SUN ‘n FUN at Home” Series.

We are in the process of a complete overhaul of our website, www.flysnf.org, in order to bring you a brand new digital experience. Here you will find ongoing updates and information on upcoming events, as well as details for current ticket holders and event partners.

We need your help to continue our mission, so please, visit the website and keep in touch with us on our social media channels. We’re already working on making 2021 the best event ever, and we’ll look forward to welcoming you back here next spring to celebrate the return of the SUN ‘n FUN Aerospace Expo!”

To all of the faithful followers of warbirds, various warbird museums/collections/shows in Florida have enacted various states of closures, limitations or are open. This list is not inclusive of all locations, I will list what I know of and will update this list as possible.

Again, best thing to do is call before travelling to visit.

MacDill AFB Airfest: Cancelled.
Sun N Fun 2020: Has been postponed until early May 2020.
Vero Beach Airshow: Postponed, with no date announced.
Warbirds Adventure: Currently open.
Fantasy of Flight: The museum “lite” is currently close until the winter season.
Valiant Air Command: The museum is closed until 26 March.
Air Force Armament Museum: Closed at this time.
National Naval Air Museum: Access has been limited after the shooting, but the museum is now closed.
Stallion 51: Lots of people like to stop by and they are very accommodating to visitors, not sure if this is still the case.
American Aero Services: Lots of people like to stop by and they are very accommodating to visitors, not sure if this is still the case.

UPDATES: (16 March)
Florida Air Museum: Closed at this time.
Deland Naval Air Museum: Closed at this time.

Hopefully, the next couple of weeks find everyone well. It gives me some time to post a backlog of sites I have visited.

The Valiant Air Command will be attending Sun N Fun 2020 with their C-47 “Tico Belle” and TBM Avenger. The C-47 “Tico Belle” was used during D-Day, as well as other WW2 operations.

The Valiant Air Command’s TBM Avenger was recently returned to airworthy flight status.

Returning to Sun N Fun, will be the “Class of 45” duo featuring Jim Tobul and his “Korean War Hero” F4U-4 Corsair and Scott “Scooter” Yoaks  QuickSilver P-51. If you have not seen them perform, plan on attending. They will be part of the Wednesday evening show.

Lewis Air Legends will be returning to Sun N Fun 2020 with their de Havilland Mosquito, Grumman F7F Tigercat, North American B-25 Mitchell and Grumman F8F Bearcat, of course maintenance and weather permitting. These aircraft will be flying on Wednesday and Thursday, during the Warbird airshow slot, which is expanded to an hour each of those days!

photo credit: Lewis Air Legends

Last weekend, the Liberty Foundation was in Florida doing a tour with the B-17 “Ye Olde Pub” and P-51. The B-17 and P-51 are owned by the Erickson Collection, which is based in Madras Oregon but leased to the Liberty Foundation. Both ground tours and flights were available.

The paint scheme on the B-17 pays honor to an event from WW2 and has been covered in a book called “A Higher Calling” by Adam Makos.

On December 20, 1943, two enemy pilots met in the skies over Germany – an American, Charlie Brown – and a German, Franz Stigler. What transpired would be called: “WWII’s most incredible aerial encounter.” The unlikely encounter between one of German’s leading fighter aces and the rookie crew of an American bomber in the frigid skies of Germany in December 1943 – upon engaging the already damaged American Plane, Stigler had mercy on his enemies and escorted them to safety.