VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — While thousands of people gathered for the NAS Oceana Air Show, some fans found a different place to watch the planes take to the sky: the top deck of the LynnHaven Mall parking garage.
Trunks popped open, folding chairs came out and long camera lenses pointed toward the sky as people watched the action from above.
“It’s like my favorite airshow on the whole Eastern Seaboard,” Langworthy said.
Langworthy traveled from Maine with his son, Ian, for the air show. Their family has made the 14-hour drive to Virginia Beach every year since 1999 specifically for the event.
One year, the family found the LynnHaven Mall parking garage as another place to watch the show. Now, it has become part of their annual tradition.
“Now I do like Saturday at the show, Sunday here and it works out great,” Langworthy said. “You don’t have to deal with traffic, you can jump in the AC anytime you need to, bathroom’s in the mall.”
But the family said convenience isn't the only reason they return to the garage.
“Plus, the good viewing angles,” Langworthy said. “They do a lot of breaks right over the garage and sometimes it’s right over your head.”
For Ian, the air show became more than an annual family tradition. Langworthy said watching the show growing up inspired his son to become an aircraft mechanic. Ian has now been doing that work for seven years.
“He’s been going since he was four months old ... with the big earmuffs on of course,” Langworthy said.
For longtime air show fans and first-time spectators, the event remains a chance to watch some of the world's most recognizable aircraft take to the sky.
Beatriz Meyer, a Virginia Beach resident watching from the parking garage, had a message for the people who made the event possible.
“I just wanna say thanks to whoever made up the air show. I’m like really happy about it. And also thanks to the Wright Brothers for making the planes,” Meyer said.
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