Marine Air Ground Task Force (MAGTF) Demo 2026 MCAS Cherry Point Air Show (Saturday)

The Marine Air Ground Task Force (MAGTF) Demonstration brings the heat at the 2026 MCAS Cherry Point Air Show. Recorded on Saturday, May 9. The MAGTF is a combined strike force with the mission of taking over a hostile environment. Through a combination of close air support and ground troop insertion, you can see just how the USMC would capture an objective in this scenario. In this performance, the CH-53E does the troop insertion, and the MV-22B Osprey does the extraction. They did not fly the CH-53K King Stallion this year. The AH-1Z Viper and UH-1Y Venom provided air support and escorted the Stallions and Ospreys. Both H-1s, the CH-53s, and the MV-22s were all from MCAS New River in Jacksonville, NC. The demo also featured the AV-8B Harrier II+ at its final public air show in the US. The Harriers from the VMA-223 "Bulldogs" fly along side two VMFAT-501 "Warlords" F-35B Lightning II. The Bulldogs are based at MCAS Cherry Point, and the Warlords are stationed at MCAS Beaufort in Beaufort, SC. No F/A-18s this year. The KC-130J Super Hercules that did the refueling pass is from the VMGR-252 "Otis" stationed at MCAS Cherry Point. Aircraft featured (in order of appearance): CH-53E Super Stallion F-35B Lightning II AV-8B Harrier II+ AH-1Z Viper UH-1Y Venom MV-22B Osprey KC-130J Super Hercules Enjoy!