President Donald Trump on April 22 confirmed that the U.S. Navy and Air Force will soon be conducting air shows over American cities to pay tribute to healthcare workers on the frontlines of the CCP virus pandemic.
Trump said Wednesday that the Thunderbirds and Blue Angels will perform military flyovers over American cities and in some regions that “aren’t major cities,” as part of a plan formulated by military officials, named “Operation America Strong.”
“We’re paying tribute to our frontline healthcare workers confronting COVID, and it’s really a signal to all Americans to remain vigilant during the outbreak,” the president announced during the White House Coronavirus Task Force briefing.
“This is a tribute to them, to our warriors, because they’re equal warriors to those incredible pilots, all of the fighters that we have for the more traditional fights that we win,” he continued.
“The Thunderbird and Blue Angel crews … wanted to show support to the American medical workers, who just like military members in a time of war, are fiercely running toward the fight. I want to see those shows.”
Trump did not specify when the air shows will take place, or where they will be conducted. However, The Washington Post reported that the flyovers will be held over areas where people do not typically congregate, in keeping with social distancing measures.
The president also announced plans for a July 4 event and military air show as part of Washington D.C.’s Independence Day celebrations. Last year’s event on the National Mall cost $2.5 million, according to The Hill.
“We’re going to be doing it again on July 4,” Trump told reporters.
“On July 4 we’ll be doing what we had at the Mall, as you know doing it last year was a tremendous success, I would imagine we’ll do it—hopefully I can use the term forever,” Trump said. “It was a great success.”
He said this year’s Independence Day gathering on the National Mall will “probably have 25 percent of what we had last year.”
The president said social distancing would be encouraged at the event, to prevent the spread of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, commonly known as the novel coronavirus.
“So ideally it would be wonderful if we could have it as it was last year,” Trump said. “Eventually we will have that. I think it’s important to know, eventually we are going to have that.”
From The Epoch Times
