Major Attraction Could Miss Mather Airshow Because of Sequester

One of the headlining acts at this year's California Capital Airshow may be a no-show because of federal budget cuts.

In February, officials from the Mather Airfield-based airshow proudly announced a 2013 show headlined by an F-22 Raptor demonstration team. 

But the next month, automatic spending cuts kicked in, putting the future of many air demonstration teams in jeopardy.

"Yes, while right now the Air Force jet teams including the Raptor Demo Team and Navy Tac Demo–both scheduled to attend this year’s show–are stood down; however, things can certainly change if sequestration is revoked in the coming months and we remain optimistic," the airshow said on its Facebook page in March. 

The official website of the F-22 demonstration team lists all 22 aircraft-demonstration events scheduled this year as canceled. An F-18 team scheduled to perform at the California Capital Airshow will also be absent as long as the sequester is in effect.

A U.S. Air Force air demonstration Facebook page said "the majority of our workload has been put on hold," but urged airshow attendees to support civilian-led air demonstrations.

"As I mentioned a few weeks ago, please don't let the lack of military support sway your decision to attend your local airshow," the page said. "There are many great civilian perfomers that put on an equally spectacular show as our F-22 Demo Team! They, and the airshows they support, need your attendance this year more than ever."

In the F-22 team's absence, the California Capital Airshow is being headlined by the Royal Canadian Air Force Jet Demonstration Team, the Snowbirds. That group's attendance was announced before the sequestration cuts went into place.

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