At this year’s Pacific Airshow, deep-pocketed attendees hoping to bypass dreaded traffic will be able to opt for a short, scenic helicopter ride to Huntington Beach.
Code Four, the air show’s operator, has partnered with the aviation company Maverick Helicopters to provide passenger service to and from Surf City for the first time in the event’s nine-year history.
“We wanted to bring more aviation elements to the beach,” said Kevin Elliot, the chief executive officer of Code Four. “If you take the magic of the air show and the magic of the beach, that’s the secret sauce that makes the Pacific Airshow so special.”
Elliot said the helicopter transport service is part of a broader effort to showcase urban air mobility vehicles and other “new and emerging technology” in transportation.
“In the future, you’re not only going to be able to take a helicopter, but also potentially be able to take a drone taxi and actually arrive at the air show that way,” he said.
Flights are scheduled to take off from Long Beach and John Wayne airports every half hour or so on each day of the event, and will land in the parking lot between Huntington Street and Pacific Coast Highway. Attendees can also book charter flights from any Southern California airport. The 10-minute ride offers sweeping views of the coastline and Catalina Island.
Tickets went on sale Friday, Sept. 19, at a discounted “launch” rate of $179 for a one-way trip. Prices will increase to $200 starting Monday, Sept. 22. A flight booking comes with a 25% discount on any air show ticket.
The three-day air show, planned for Oct. 3-5, attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors to Surf City every year.
Maverick Helicopters, also the exclusive helicopter provider for the Electric Daisy Carnival, or EDC, in Las Vegas, is offering its Airbus 130 models for the air show, said Ben Villalobos, the company’s vice president. Each helicopter can carry up to seven people — six adults and a child — depending on weight, he said.
The Pacific Airshow is geared up for a long-term run in Huntington Beach after the City Council approved a contract on Sept. 3 that subsidizes it for up to 25 years. The contract came out of a controversial settlement agreement between the city and Code Four that paid the operators $4.9 million in cash along with a host of perks, after officials canceled the last day of the 2021 air show due to an oil spill.
Huntington Beach councilmembers have said the air show is an important economic driver and the benefits to the city should outweigh the costs.