Pentagon announces July 4th flyovers across northeast

The Pentagon has announced that as part of the federal government’s July 4 celebration, military aircraft will conduct flyovers of major East Coast cities, including Boston, New York, Philadelphia and Baltimore.

Additionally, the agency will provide “musical and ceremonial support to this year’s celebration in Washington, D.C.,” according to a Department of Defense (DoD) press release.

The Pentagon’s statement describes the flyovers as “an opportunity for DoD to demonstrate the capabilities and professionalism of the United States Armed Forces.”

“Flying hours are a sunk cost for the Department of Defense, and these aircraft and crews would be using these hours for proficiency and training at other locations if they were not conducting these flyovers,” the statement added.

Military planes will also flyover Mount Rushmore as part of the festivities, the agency said.

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) had said at the beginning of the month that she was working with the Trump administration to plan some kind of flyover at Mount Rushmore for the holiday weekend. The flyover is expected to be on July 3.