Too bad the Fort Lauderdale show is canceled this year due to fuel costs and the economy in general.
But it would have paled compared to Valiant Shield - the largest joint exercise in recent history held near Guam in the Pacific in 2006. A friend recently sent me some pictures.
The photo (click to enlarge) shows the B-2 "Stealth" bomber and 16 other aircraft from the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps as they fly over the aircraft carriers USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63), USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), and USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72). The exercise included 28 Naval vessels, nearly 300 aircraft and approximately 22,000 service members from the Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. Missing from the photo - the nuclear powered submarines
Credit: Official U.S. Navy photo by Chief Photographer’s Mate Todd P. Cichonowicz.
For perspective on size check out the other picture of the USS Ronald
Reagan in foreground.
Credit: Official U.S. Navy photo by Photographer’s Mate 2nd Class (AW/SW) Aaron Burden.
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