Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes ofwebsite accessibility
Weather Alert
Increasing chance of rain this evening
Show Less
Close Alert

Never say never: Rhode Island air show may return someday


A fighter jet performs a demonstration at the{ }Rhode Island National Guard Open House and Air Show. (WJAR File Photo)
A fighter jet performs a demonstration at the Rhode Island National Guard Open House and Air Show. (WJAR File Photo)
Facebook Share IconTwitter Share IconEmail Share Icon

Jets, stunts, lots of noise.

Now the quiet void left by the Rhode Island National Guard’s air show absence will continue for the foreseeable future.

“As far as the air show goes, it is no more for now,” Lt. Alexandra Curtis told NBC 10 News on Tuesday.

The National Guard is citing a four-year-long runway project at the airport in Quonset, and continued troop deployments, as reasons for canceling the show indefinitely.

The air show was cancelled on a yearly basis each of the past four years, after it was last held in 2018.

The National Guard cited troop deployments as the reason to cancel in 2019. The air show was canceled in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic.

A plan in 2022 to have a private company run the air show and charge a fee was eventually scrapped.

The Rhode Island National Guard hosted the Air Show and Open House since the early 1990s, though the event’s roots go back to the ‘70s.

"Most of the time it was a good experience. The troops liked it and certainly the families did. The people of the state were tremendous," said retired Lt. Gen. Reginald Centracchio, who led the Rhode Island National Guard from 1995 to 2005. "Mostly it was to see the tremendous thank you from the people of the state to see what the guard was all about."

The guard is not entirely ruling out a return someday.

"We have no plans at the moment, however I think we would all be very happy to see it return. We recognize it’s been a staple in the Rhode Island community and it’s meant a lot to each and every one of us,” Curtis said.

The National Guard is now focusing on a STEM day event held for hundreds of high school students.

It was held for the first time last year and the guard is doing it again in October.

Loading ...