San Francisco Fleet Week to go on without U.S. Navy as shutdown continues

San Francisco Fleet Week announced that the United States Navy would not be able to participate at this year’s celebrations due to the ongoing government shutdown.

In a statement Wednesday morning, organizers said that they received word from Naval officials that due to the lapse in federal appropriations, the Navy’s ships, sailors and Marines are not able to attend. The partial government shutdown began on Oct. 1.

“While we share their disappointment, we fully understand and respect the circumstances and look forward to welcoming them back in 2026,” said the San Francisco Fleet Week Association.

Lewis Loeven, the association’s executive director, told CBS News Bay Area’s Gianna Franco and Reed Cowan that the festival is “resilient” and that events celebrating the Armed Forces are still going on.

“We’ve designed Fleet Week to be a community event. It is not a military event, it’s a community event that celebrates the men and women serving in the military, and as such we have a lot of community events that are still happening,” Loeven said.

At a news conference Wendesday morning, Mayor Daniel Lurie said, “Whether or not we have a government shutdown or not, I want us to honor our Armed Forces and our pilots. Let’s support our businesses and let’s go San Francisco.”

While the Blue Angels have been grounded during the shutdown, organizers said this year’s airshow will feature the Royal Canadian Air Force Snowbirds Demonstration Team and the Patriots Jet Team, a civilian-owned team featuring former Blue Angels and U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds pilots.

“Any other city would look at the airshow that we have put together as a first-class airshow,” Loeven said.

Air shows are scheduled for Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

The ARC Gloria of the Colombian Navy sailed into San Francisco Bay on Oct. 8, 2025 as part of Fleet Week.

CBS

On the water, the ARC Gloria, the Colombian Navy’s flagship, sailed into San Francisco Bay Wednesday morning. Described as one of the most recognizable training vessels in the world, the Gloria has docked in Alameda and will be docked at Piers 15 and 17 in San Francisco beginning Thursday.

Additional details about Fleet Week can be found at the event’s website.

Tim Fang

Tim Fang is a digital producer at CBS Bay Area. A Bay Area native, Tim has been a part of the CBS Bay Area newsroom for more than two decades and joined the digital staff in 2006.

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