March 27, 2019 Louisville, KY. We’re just a little over two weeks from the Kentucky Derby Festival’s Opening Ceremonies: Thunder Over Louisville! This year’s event, set for Saturday, April 13, will include a packed air show, with non-stop military and civilian air acts. The Derby Festival tonight released the full list of performers scheduled for this year’s show – which includes F-15s, F-16s, A-10s, F-18s, a B-52, and C-130 along with warbirds, civilian acts and parachute teams.
“Thunder has one of the top air shows in the country, and this year’s line-up is one you don’t want to miss,” said Mike Berry, Kentucky Derby Festival President and CEO. “A big thanks to the Kentucky Air National Guard, Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport and Bowman Field. Without their support, we couldn’t put on an air show of this caliber – or have a place to put all those planes.”
Some of the acts performing include the U.S. Navy F/A-18 Tac Demo Team, the U.S. Army Golden Knights, and the 123rd Kentucky Air National Guard. New to the Air Show this year is Trojan Thunder, a six ship team of T-28 Trojans, who fly overhead in aerial formations with a backdrop of noise from the nine-cylinder Curtiss-Wright engines; as well as the Swamp Fox P-51 Mustang.
Other acts scheduled to perform include Billy Werth, Matt Younkin’s Twin Beech 18, KC Flight Formation Team with their red, white and blue smoke, Lee Leet and many more. The complete list of air acts can be found online at ThunderOverLouisville.org.
Thunder Over Louisville was first held at Cardinal Stadium in 1990. Air acts were added to the event in 1991, when it moved to the Waterfront. That year, eight planes and skydivers took part in the pre-show leading up to the fireworks. The Air Show was officially added to the Festival’s schedule in 1992 and has since become one of the top air shows in the country.
Thunder Over Louisville – the Derby Festival’s Opening Ceremonies – is one of the more than 70 events produced by the Derby Festival in the spring. The 2019 Thunder Over Louisville, themed “The Wonderful World of Thunder,” is set for Saturday, April 13, and will be the 30th annual production.
Presenting sponsors of the 2019 show are Horseshoe Southern Indiana, LG&E, Meijer, and UPS, along with Papa John’s Thunder Funders. Thunder on the Ground Sponsor: Ford Motor Company. Official Hotel: The Galt House. Official Sound Sponsor: Logan Lavelle Hunt. Command Center Sponsor: Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport.
