The moment the singer holds “brave,” the clock starts.
That final note of “The Star-Spangled Banner” helps determine when a B-2 Spirit bomber appears over Pasadena on New Year’s Day — part of a tightly choreographed flyover that marks the Rose Parade, and, later, the Rose Bowl.
The mission, flown by airmen from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, requires split-second timing, extensive coordination and careful navigation through some of the busiest airspace in the country.
This year’s flyover also comes at a different moment for the Air Force’s 509th Bomb Wing, which operates the B-2 fleet. It caps one of the busiest operational years in recent memory and marks the first Rose Parade flyover under U.S. Air Force Col. Joshua D. Wiitala, the wing’s new commander.
Much of the past year has been marked by frequent deployments as the wing carried out global deterrence missions. In June, B-2 bombers were part of a major U.S. strike on nuclear facilities in Iran — the largest B-2 operational strike in US history.
“It has been a very busy and very consequential year for the 509th Bomb Wing,” Wiitala said in a recent interview. “We’re really looking forward to this flyover as a chance to just connect with the American public, connect with the Tournament of Roses team down there and just showcase what this team is capable of and celebrate what this team has accomplished this year.”
U.S. Air Force Col. Joshua D. Wiitala, commander of the 509th Bomb Wing at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, home to the world’s only B-2 Spirit stealth bomber unit. (Courtesy of Whiteman Air Force Base).That sense of pride, he said, extends far beyond the cockpit.
“We’re very proud of our team,” he added. “It’s more than just pilots. It’s more than just maintainers — it’s medics, it’s support personnel across hundreds of specialties, and really 4,000 airmen across the total force, active duty and guard, who make this mission happen.”
He said the Rose Parade offers a rare chance to connect that global mission back to Southern California, where the bombers were built and are still maintained at Northrop Grumman’s Palmdale facility.
“So there’s that local connection with the B-2, which we think is extra meaningful: being able to showcase the jet back to the people who sustain it and built it in the first place,” Wiitala said. “We love that connection with the local community here in the B-2 community. Having been able to do this for over 30 years just makes it a great event.”
Behind that familiar New Year Day’s moment, however, is an intricate operation built on planning and precision.
Pulling off a flyover requires close coordination with the Tournament of Roses, the Federal Aviation Administration and air traffic controllers across Southern California, Wiitala said – all within one of the busiest and most complex airspaces in the country.
“It’s very busy airspace, as you’d imagine, particularly during the Rose Parade,” he said. “The biggest thing is just setting everything up for success with the routing itself and all the cooperation with the FAA.”
That preparation spans extensive briefings and maintenance checks, involving not just pilots but crews across the wing – and a far larger network of airmen who ensure the aircraft is ready down to the smallest detail.
On New Year’s Day, the execution begins early. Pilots wake up around 2 a.m. Central Time to start the three- to three-and-a-half-hour flight from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri –– covering more than 1,600 miles to Pasadena.
And the margin for error is measured in seconds.
The aircraft is timed to arrive over Colorado Boulevard within a second or two of 8 a.m., aligning precisely with the start of the Rose Parade and its national broadcast.
United States Air Force B-2 Sprit flies over Colorado Boulevard during the 136th Rose Parade in Pasadena on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (Photo by Libby Cline-Birmingham, Contributing Photographer)That split-second precision applies twice.
On Jan. 1, the wing executes two tightly-timed flyovers — one for the Rose Parade and another for the Rose Bowl.
To make that possible, two B-2 bombers are deployed for the mission: one serving as the primary aircraft and the other as an airborne spare. Between them, the wing carries out both flyovers.
After the parade route, the aircraft continue on a carefully planned path that includes additional training before returning to Southern California for the Rose Bowl –– this time synced to the national anthem before kickoff.
To do that, the wing studies each singer’s pacing in advance, down to how long they hold the final word, “brave,” Wiitala said. Crews on the ground cue pilots in real time, ensuring the aircraft appears overhead at exactly the right moment.
“We actually time national anthem singers,” he said. “We know exactly how long a given singer takes to sing the national anthem, and then we specifically time how long they hold out the word ‘brave’ …so we know what our window is to arrive perfectly on time at the end of the national anthem. That timing is really critical.”
Different singers mean different rhythms, he added, requiring new timing every year.
B2 Spirit bomber flies over the stadium prior to the 111th Rose Bowl CFP quarterfinal playoff football game between the Oregon Ducks and the Ohio State Buckeyes in Pasadena on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (Photo by Keith Birmingham, Orange County Register/ SCNG)But the flyover isn’t just ceremonial, it also doubles as a training exercise.
“We’re bomber pilots, we’re on time,” Wiitala said. “ These are very valuable training events for us, just in those basic skills of flying the airplane, making sure that you’re on time when you need to be.”
For Wiitala, the mission also carries a personal milestone.
This is the first Rose Parade flyover of his tenure as wing commander.
Wiitala, who took the helm in June, said the tradition reflects something broader than spectacle: connecting the American people to the capability their Air Force provides – and to the people behind it.
“Being able to just connect the broader public to their airmen,” he said, “is the best part of it for me.”
Since the mid-1990s, the B-2 flyover has been a staple of the Rose Parade, showcasing one of the U.S. military’s most advanced aircraft to millions lining Colorado Boulevard and watching from home. With a few exceptions, including during COVID and in 2023, when the fleet was temporarily grounded for safety reviews, the aircraft has appeared nearly every year.
For Wiitala, it’s also a tradition he’s long watched from the sidelines.
Growing up in Washington, he said he used to road-trip to Pasadena during college, but had never attended the Rose Parade himself.
“I’ve been to Pasadena a handful of times in college. It was a place we would go out and visit,” Wiitala said. “But I have not been (to the parade), I’m really looking forward to it.”
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