POINT MUGU : Annual Air Show Takes Off Today

Against the roar of jet engines and the unmistakable smell of aviation fuel, a dozen or so hot shot Navy and civilian pilots on Friday polished their acts to prepare for today’s 32nd annual Point Mugu Air Show.

The two-day show this year, billed as a demonstration of the workaday world of naval aviation, will not feature the flight demonstration teams such as the Navy’s Blue Angels or the Canadian Air Force’s Snowbirds due to scheduling conflicts.

But Friday’s practice show, played out before a crowd of about 5,000 county firefighters, police officers, Navy families and schoolchildren, had necks craning and jaws dropping as the Navy’s sleek fighter jets, the F/A-18 Hornet and F-14 Tomcat, were put through their paces by Ventura County-based pilots.

The fastest and loudest jets flown Friday were from the Navy’s newest aviation unit, VX-9 Detachment, Point Mugu, which was formally commissioned Friday morning in a formal Navy ceremony attended by three admirals.

But by midafternoon, when members of the new squadron took to the skies, low clouds rolled in off the ocean and obscured most of their flight demonstration--including dogfights, strafing and bombing runs.

“That’s what happens when you’re next to the ocean,” said Navy spokesman Alan Alpers. “It can be sunny one moment and foggy the next.”

About an hour after the clouds rolled in, the weather cleared, leaving the rest of the acts, mainly civilian aerobatic pilots, to soar across blue skies.

For today, National Weather Service meteorologist Michael Most forecast morning low clouds which are expected to burn off by 10 a.m. over the Point Mugu area. The rest of the day should be mostly sunny, with scattered clouds. High temperatures will be in the mid-70s, he said.

Also showing off their skills were the pilots of the Channel Islands Air National Guard who, with their giant C-130 Hercules transport planes, demonstrated how the Guard fights fires from the air.

Earlier in the day, at a solemn ceremony, Point Mugu’s oldest tenant command, Squadron VX-4, was formally disbanded before a crowd of about 100 people, three admirals and scores of officers.

Members of VX-4, who evaluate and test weapons for Navy aircraft, formally eulogized their 42-year-old squadron and celebrated the birth of their new unit, VX-9 Detachment Point Mugu.

The new detachment, now part of a squadron based at Point Mugu’s sister base at China Lake, will focus on the F-14D Tomcat, the latest model of the two-seat Navy jet fighter, said Capt. Daniel McCort, the unit’s commander.

Earlier this year, the former squadron’s six F/A-18 Hornets were transferred to China Lake.

“We are deeply proud of the service this squadron has provided,” McCort said. “It has pulled its weight and has saved lives. It leaves an honorable legacy.”

For a list of air show events today and Sunday, please see the schedule at right.