This Canadian Pilot Team Could Save 2025's SF Fleet Week

For some Bay Area residents, San Francisco Fleet Week is one of the most anticipated events of any given year. It's also one that tends to draw its fair share of visitors from other parts of California and beyond. In recent years, the event — which celebrates the Pacific Fleet via concerts, a career fair, tours of military vessels, and a parade of ships through San Francisco Bay — has historically also capped by a performance from the U.S. Navy's celebrated aerial team dubbed The Blue Angels.

However, with SF Fleet Week already under way in the Bay Area, there is reason to worry that The Blue Angels will not be making their already scheduled appearance at Fleet Week 2025, as the United States Federal Government has been shutdown due to ongoing budgetary battles in Congress. Though not a combat force, The Blue Angles are backed by the U.S. Military. With the shutdown covering most non-essential military personnel, the famed faction of daredevil pilots will not be able to participate, along with any number of other planned military participants on land and water.

Despite the scaled back nature of the 2025 event, Fleet Week may still get a first-rate air show, as our neighbors from the north have indeed offered their own version of The Blue Angels as headliners. That Canadian Armed Forces crew have been named the Snowbirds, and they may well be the saviors of Fleet Week 2025 if the government shutdown isn't sorted out by week's end.

For the time being, The Blue Angels Fleet Week performance has not officially been cancelled, and is still labeled as "on pause." So, if the shutdown were to end earlier in the week, there may still be a chance the aerial acrobats make their headlining appearance. But given the way things are going in U.S. politics at the moment, holding one's breath may not be the best course of action, with the shutdown also threatening to upend other means of air travel.

The aerial show is slated to run through the weekend, with performances slated for October 10, 11, and 12. The Canadian Snowbirds were always scheduled to take part in the event. Even with the Canadian pilots taking over the headlining slot in the Fleet Week aerial show lineup, it's worth noting that their performances tend to run a little shorter than their American counterparts, topping out at about 30-mins to the Blue Angels 40-minute gigs. Still, the Canadian faction is no less renowned for their work, performing all the flips, splits, barrel rolls, and formations you'd expect from an aerial team.

The Snowbirds will not be the only performers at this year's Fleet Week aerial show. Joining the Canadian pilots are The Patriots Jet Team, a group of civilian pilots who perform in a similar style. Also joining the fray is the Sukhoi West Aerial Team, which features a duo of pilots — Cory Lovell and Patriots Jet Team owner Randy Howell — performing aerobatic tricks in matching 400hp Sukhoi SU-26 aircraft.