The U.S. Navy Blue Angels perform at the Air Dot Show in Cocoa Beach, Florida, April 12, 2026.
A sunny, windy day on Cocoa Beach provided a beautiful backdrop for the second day of the Air Dot Show on Sunday, April 12. That is, an air show, headlined by the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels.
Huge crowds showed up on the barrier island, concentrated in the main show area in Cocoa Beach. I was at the house of some friends a bit south of that area, but we still had a very cool view from the beach. I shot photos with my Nikon Z8 and a 200-500 zoom lens – an older lens that requires an adapter to work with the Z-mount. It’s also heavy as heck, so my arms got a workout shooting thousands of photos.
Among the other aircraft featured: the B-52 Stratofortress, the F-16, and a plane and helicopters demonstrating refueling in the air from the 920th Rescue Wing. These are some of my favorite images from the day.
Click on any photo to start a slide show of larger images.
