The one-year anniversary is almost here — Air Force Elite: Thunderbirds landed on Netflix on May 23, 2025, and in two weeks it will have been a full year since the documentary changed how a new generation sees military aviation. This weekend’s Fort Lauderdale Air Show makes that timing hard to ignore.
The Thunderbirds are mid-season. They’ll be flying over Fort Lauderdale Beach on May 9–10, 2026, and a new generation of fans is finding the team through a 90-minute film that doesn’t soften what it actually costs to fly an F-16 Fighting Falcon 18 inches from another jet at near-sonic speed.
No U.S. military demonstration team had ever been the subject of a major streaming documentary before this one. The closest prior attempt was an obscure cable TV production called Reach for the Sky that barely registered outside aviation circles. This is something different entirely.
What the Documentary Delivers
Directed by Matt Wilcox and executive produced by Barack and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground Productions, the film follows the 2023 team through winter training at Spaceport America in southern New Mexico — six F-16 pilots, three of them newcomers, learning more than 30 maneuvers in 60 days. Aerial sequences were coordinated by Kevin LaRosa II, the aerial coordinator for Top Gun: Maverick. Every shot was filmed under live conditions. No reenactments. No second takes.
The maneuvers explained in detail are the ones that have always made Thunderbirds fans hold their breath: the Diamond Pass-In-Review, four jets flying 18 inches apart; the Opposing Hit, two jets closing at a combined 1,000-plus mph; the High Bomb Burst finale. The film doesn’t flinch from the human cost either — including moving interviews with the family of Maj. Stephen “Cajun” Del Bagno, who died in 2018 after losing consciousness during a training flight.
“What I saw Matt and his team do was create a human story out of a fighter jet squadron, and I could not be happier with the work that Matt put into this.” — Lt. Col. Justin “Astro” Elliott, Thunderbird 1, 2023 season
The pilots featured include Maj. Lauren “Threat” Schlichting as Training Officer, Maj. Eric “Miami” Tise as Lead Solo (Thunderbird 5), and Capt. Jacob Impellizzeri navigating the pressure of making the team. Crew chief Staff Sgt. Xavier Knapp describes overnight maintenance work in the New Mexico desert — the kind of access that makes the Formula 1: Drive to Survive comparison unavoidable, and entirely fair.
“The wingmen don’t know where the ground and the sky are. They only know where the boss is.” — Air show announcer Rob Reider, speaking to Netflix
A New Commander in the Seat
The 2023 team has since turned over — by design, as it does every two years. Lt. Col. Alexander Prevendar, a command pilot with more than 3,300 flight hours, took command as Thunderbird 1 at Nellis Air Force Base on December 5, 2025, becoming the squadron’s 41st commander. He leads the team flying over Fort Lauderdale this weekend.
Fort Lauderdale and What Comes Next
The Fort Lauderdale Air Show runs Saturday and Sunday, May 9–10, from approximately 11:45 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., with performances flown out of Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport. The lineup alongside the Thunderbirds includes the F-22 Raptor, F/A-18 Super Hornet, F-15 Eagle, Para-Commandos, and the Red Bull Helicopter. VIP Penthouse tickets are priced at $499; reserved Drop Zone Beach seating is also available.
After Fort Lauderdale, the team heads to Mountain Home AFB, Idaho, on May 16–17, then to Miami on May 23–24 — the exact one-year anniversary of the documentary’s Netflix premiere. If you haven’t watched it yet, this weekend is the right moment.
“To the 135 members of this incredible team — thank you for the legacy you carry, the mission you live, and the trust you’ve already shown me. It’s the honor of my life to step into this role.” — Lt. Col. Alexander Prevendar, incoming Thunderbird 1, December 2025
Stay in the loop
Get the latest airshow spectacle updates delivered to your inbox.