Look to the skies on March 18 when the 2023 Bluebonnet Airshow takes off in Burnet. Plenty of action will be happening on the ground, too. The show is hosted by the Highland Lakes Squadron of the Commemorative Air Force.

Gates open at 9 a.m. that Saturday on Kate Craddock Field at the Burnet Municipal Airport, 2302 S. Water St. (U.S. 281). The aerial show takes off at around noon with the Liberty Jump Team presenting the colors as they leap from That’s All Brother, a C-47 military transport aircraft.

The local CAF squadron will unveil the Texas Zephyr, a World War II-era C-47 that it received as a donation to replace the Bluebonnet Belle, a Douglas C-47 Skytrain that crashed during takeoff in 2018. All 13 people on board survived.

“The Texas Zephyr won’t be flying yet, but it will be part of a ground demonstration,” Kirk Noaker, the squadron's executive director, told The Picayune Magazine in a recent interview about the event. The Picayune is a sister publication of 101HighlandLakes.com.

The 501st Legion Stormtroopers stormed last year's Bluebonnet Airshow. They'll back in 2023 at the March 18 event. Photo by Martelle Luedecke/Luedecke Photography

The air show will feature a long list of planes, including bombers and fighters, and other air acts, such as the A-10 C Thunderbolt Demonstration Team. Visitors can get an up-close look at many of the vintage aircraft on the ground and enjoy 1940s-era music by The Dillard Sisters, vendors, food trucks, and a pyrotechnics show. Check out a full lineup on the event's website.

The Highland Lakes Squadron expects another record-breaking crowd based on numbers from 2021 (4,100 people) and 2022 (5,600). Admission is $20 for ages 18-59, $15 for ages 60 and older and military members with identification, $10 for ages 6-17, and free for kids 5 and younger. You can purchase tickets in advance online.

editor@thepicayune.com

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