A slew of Trump administration officials on Thursday blasted critics of a military flyover that sent tents, chairs, and umbrellas flying Wednesday as Navy Blue Angels jets screamed low over Pensacola Beach.
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell told the fliers, "Carry on, patriots."
Defense Secrerary Pete Hegseth declared, "The flyovers will continue until morale improves."
President Donald Trump's son Eric professed himself unmoved by reports of terror.
"Can’t stand the manufactured outrage by the low-T mainstream media," he wrote. "This was undoubtedly the highlight of these people’s day…"
The flyover was the annual "Breakfast with the Blues," opening Pensacola Beach Air Show Week — the 80th-anniversary celebration of the Blue Angels, which draws as many as 250,000 spectators over the multi-day event.
"I literally thought we were going to be taken out by Blue Angels, but it was amazing," beachgoer Ashley Korn told WEAR News.
The Blue Angels reportedly have opened a safety review with a spokesperson telling WEAR News, "The safety of our hometown community, spectators, and our pilots is our highest priority."
Robert Flurry, a physician based in Pensacola, had warned community members on Facebook about the event.
"Those F/A-18 Super Hornets are incredibly loud — reaching up to 115 decibels during low passes! This can easily cause temporary or permanent hearing damage, especially in little ones," he wrote.
U.S. Air Force veteran David Greenidge, who served with the 4th Tactical Fighter Wing, put the noise even higher — at 130 decibels. Greenidge wrote on X that children in the crowd were clutching their heads and crying after the flyover.
"The decibel level of F 18 hornet at 50 feet doing a low pass is around 130 dB," Greenidge explained. "The threshold of pain for human hearing is 110 dB. There were children clutching their heads and crying after this."
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has twice intervened to kill similar safety reviews in recent months, raising questions about the fate of this one. In March, Army Apache helicopters flew low over Kid Rock's Nashville-area home, and Hegseth shut down the investigation and lifted the pilots' suspensions.
"No punishment. No investigation, Carry on, patriots," the defense secretary wrote, CNN reported. Weeks later, he took Kid Rock up for a ride with Army Apache pilots.
On July 4, Apache pilots again flew low over a crowded South Carolina beach. Their suspensions were lifted within hours after Hegseth intervened.
"We'll fix this. Carry on, Patriots," Hegseth wrote again on X following the incident, according to ABC News
The Blue Angels are scheduled to perform Thursday again and hold a full dress rehearsal Friday, with the main air show set for Saturday.
