San Francisco Fleet Week returns this week, bringing fighter jets and other aircraft to the Bay Area for an annual fall tradition that runs Oct. 4 through Oct. 12. Three separate air shows are scheduled for Friday, Oct. 9, Saturday, Oct. 10 and Sunday, Oct. 11, with the Blue Angels headlining. Plenty of other aerial performances are also planned, though the listed performers and performance times are subject to change.
Weather could complicate the weekend shows. Last Saturday, the entire Bay Area was under a heat advisory, with temperatures spiking into the 90s in San Francisco and reaching 100 degrees in Livermore. This Saturday, San Francisco will be lucky to hit a high of 60 degrees, and strong winds will make it feel even cooler while putting the prospects of a full Blue Angels show at risk.
The wind will likely be the most noticeable feature around the city and the bay Saturday. A frontal system moved through in the predawn hours, and winds behind it will be blustery. Northwest winds will blow hard all day, gusting up to 45 mph in some favorable gaps in San Francisco, the Peninsula and inland valleys. After a gloomy start with a chance of early morning drizzle in spots, sunshine should break out for the majority of Saturday.
Low clouds cut the Friday air show short, and wind is the problem for Saturday. Surface winds are forecast to be sustained at 20 to 25 mph with higher gusts over the bay Saturday afternoon. Strong winds can make some of the impressive Blue Angel maneuvers and tricks more difficult and even dangerous. A limited show is the most likely outcome.
Sunday may end up being the best chance at seeing a full show. Clouds should not be an issue, and winds will be much lighter. It will be another cool day, though, with San Francisco and Oakland topping out in the low 60s, while some inland areas that spent the week in the 90s may not eclipse 70 degrees.
It is all part of a massive weather reset underway across the entire state. Tropical Storm Rachel will bring a burst of heavy rain, gusty winds and extreme coastal flooding to much of Southern California late Saturday into Sunday. The tropical moisture will spread over the interior desert Sunday, triggering heavy rain and even some thunderstorms. Furnace Creek in Death Valley could see over a half inch of rain by the end of the weekend. The moisture will spread up the Sierra, where the season’s first snowfall is expected at high elevations by Monday morning.
