A show of air power at the Rose Parade

I'm not yet ready to resume this blog's regular programming as I promised yesterday.  Instead, I'm going to share something I saw as part of my travels over New Years, the B-2 stealth bomber flying over southern California.  First, it flew over the Rose Parade.

Here's my angle of an awesome Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit, dropping down toward Colorado Blvd in Pasadena, CA. There's no better way to kick off the new year than watching this marvel fly over. I apologize for the overcast and darkness, it's usually very clear for this occasion. For the record, the Parade was held on the 2nd, instead of the traditional January 1, due to a 'never on Sunday' policy. So at upload time, this was recorded just one hour prior.

The plane then cruised over the surrounding area, which is where my mother and I saw it about 1:30 P.M. flying over my sister's house in the western San Fernando Valley.  It circled overhead three or four times before flying back east to Pasadena to pass over the Rose Bowl.

B-2 Stealth Bomber returns for a fly by over the pre-game at The Rose Bowl after previously flying over The Rose Parade earlier this morning.

While I had seen pictures of the B-2 stealth bomber before, I had never seen one in person until Monday.  It was an awe-inspiring sight.  I felt very lucky to have been able to look at it in (relative) peacetime.

The U.S. Air Force wasn't just represented in the air.  The United States Air Force Total Force Band marched in the parade as well.


"Off we go, into the wild blue yonder!"  It's almost enough to make me wish I had been accepted into the U.S. Air Force Academy instead of going to U.C.L.A. -- almost.

I'll have more from my travels as the month goes on, including more about the competitive marching bands and drum corps in the Rose Parade, but that will come after the weekend.  Expect a driving update tomorrow and an entertainment feature on Sunday first.