{"id":64340,"date":"2026-03-31T20:03:09","date_gmt":"2026-04-01T00:03:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/?p=64340"},"modified":"2026-03-31T21:01:34","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T01:01:34","slug":"guide-to-sun-n-fun-2026-airshow-festival","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/2026\/03\/31\/guide-to-sun-n-fun-2026-airshow-festival\/","title":{"rendered":"Guide to SUN ‘n FUN 2026 Airshow Festival"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The 52nd Annual SUN ‘n FUN Aerospace Expo<\/strong> is ready to take flight in Lakeland!<\/sup> Whether you’re a seasoned pilot or a family looking for a high-octane weekend, 2026 is shaping up to be one of the biggest years yet as the festival celebrates “The Red, White & Blue at 52.”<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n

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\ud83d\udcc5 Event Essentials<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    \n
  • Dates:<\/strong> April 14\u201319, 2026<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Location:<\/strong> Lakeland Linder International Airport (3875 Pipkin Rd, Lakeland, FL)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Gates Open:<\/strong> 8:00 AM daily (Parking lot opens at 7:00 AM)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
    \n\n\n\n

    \u2708\ufe0f Airshow Highlights & Schedule<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    The 2026 lineup features an incredible mix of military power and civilian artistry.<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Key Performers<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
      \n
    • USAF Thunderbirds:<\/strong> The headlining jet team performing multiple days.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • USAF F-22 Raptor Demo:<\/strong> A mind-bending display of stealth and power.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • USN F-18 Rhino Demo:<\/strong> High-speed passes and vertical climbs.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Titan Aerobatic Team:<\/strong> Precision formation flying in classic T-6 Texans.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      Specialized Shows<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
        \n
      • Opening Night Concert (Tuesday, April 14):<\/strong> Kick off the week with country stars Cooper Alan<\/strong>, Thomas Mac<\/strong>, and Angie K<\/strong> (included with admission).<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • The Composite Airshow (Wednesday, April 15):<\/strong> A unique, music-driven aerial performance from 5:00 PM \u2013 9:15 PM, ending with a laser encore.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Night Airshow & Fireworks (Saturday, April 18):<\/strong> A fan favorite featuring aircraft with pyrotechnics, a massive firework display, and a laser show.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
        \n\n\n\n

        \ud83c\udf9f\ufe0f Tickets & Parking<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

        Buying online is highly recommended to save money and speed up entry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Ticket Type<\/strong><\/td>Online Price<\/strong><\/td>Gate Price<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><\/thead>
        Daily Adult Admission<\/strong><\/td>$50<\/td>$50*<\/td><\/tr>
        Weekly Adult Admission<\/strong><\/td>$180<\/td>$180*<\/td><\/tr>
        Youth (Ages 13-17)<\/strong><\/td>$20<\/td>$20<\/td><\/tr>
        Daily Parking<\/strong><\/td>$12<\/strong><\/td>$20<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
        Weekly Parking<\/strong><\/td>$55<\/strong><\/td>$80<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

        > Note:<\/strong> Kids 12 and under are FREE<\/strong>.<\/sup> Florida residents can look for special BOGO offers for Saturday and Sunday.<\/em><\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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        \ud83d\ude80 New & Notable for 2026<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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        • SUN \u2019n FUN Express:<\/strong> A brand-new daily shuttle service for fly-in guests, running from the airport to popular shopping and dining spots in Downtown Lakeland<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • STOL Invitational:<\/strong> Head over to “Paradise City” (the grass strip) to see world-class Short Take-Off and Landing pilots compete in extreme bush-plane maneuvers.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • America\u2019s 250th Celebration:<\/strong> Look for special patriotic tributes throughout the grounds as the festival begins the countdown to the nation’s semiquincentennial.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
          \n\n\n\n

          \ud83d\udca1 Pro-Tips for Your Visit<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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          • Stay Hydrated:<\/strong> Florida in April can be scorching. Bring a refillable water bottle (clear plastic) and wear plenty of sunscreen.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Hearing Protection:<\/strong> It gets loud\u2014especially when the F-22 or Thunderbirds are in the air. Earplugs are a must for kids.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Download the App:<\/strong> The SUN ‘n FUN mobile app provides real-time schedule updates, a GPS-enabled map of the grounds, and performer info.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Arrival:<\/strong> Traffic on Pipkin Road<\/strong> and County Line Road<\/strong> gets heavy by mid-morning. Aim to arrive before 9:00 AM to beat the rush.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

            The 52nd Annual SUN ‘n FUN Aerospace Expo is ready to take flight in Lakeland! Whether you’re a seasoned pilot or a family looking for a high-octane weekend, 2026 is… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":64341,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_robots_follow":"","_seopress_robots_imageindex":"","_seopress_robots_snippet":"","_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"7254","_seopress_robots_breadcrumbs":"","_seopress_robots_freeze_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_custom_modified_date":"","_seopress_robots_canonical":"","_seopress_social_fb_title":"","_seopress_social_fb_desc":"","_seopress_social_fb_img":"","_seopress_social_fb_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_fb_img_height":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_title":"","_seopress_social_twitter_desc":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img":"","_seopress_social_twitter_img_attachment_id":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_width":0,"_seopress_social_twitter_img_height":0,"_seopress_redirections_value":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled":"","_seopress_redirections_enabled_regex":"","_seopress_redirections_logged_status":"","_seopress_redirections_param":"","_seopress_redirections_type":0,"_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","inline_featured_image":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"wpai_generated_summary":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":true,"token":"eyJpbWciOiJodHRwczpcL1wvaTAud3AuY29tXC9sYWtlbGFuZGdhemV0dGUuaW5mb1wvbmV3c1wvd3AtY29udGVudFwvdXBsb2Fkc1wvMjAyNlwvMDNcL2Rvd25sb2FkLTItOS53ZWJwP2ZpdD0zMDAlMkMxNjgmc3NsPTEiLCJ0eHQiOiJHdWlkZSB0byBTVU4gJiM4MjE2O24gRlVOIDIwMjYgQWlyc2hvdyBGZXN0aXZhbCIsInRlbXBsYXRlIjoiaGlnaHdheSIsImZvbnQiOiIiLCJibG9nX2lkIjoxNjMwNDA2NjF9.OGZB8vCX-ApJKqb7PbImgoYrELI9jwg6rcrS4dl00DwMQ"},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false},"categories":[7254],"tags":[14264],"class_list":["post-64340","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sun-n-fun","tag-guide-to-sun-n-fun-2026-airshow-festival"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64340","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64340"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64340\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":64342,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64340\/revisions\/64342"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/64341"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64340"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64340"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lakelandgazette.info\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64340"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}