Maricopa salutes veterans with parade, historic aircraft flyovers

By Elias Weiss
Nov 8, 2025

The skies above Maricopa thundered this morning as two rare World War II-era aircraft groups performed a coordinated flyover to kick off the city’s annual Veterans Day Parade.

Residents lined Porter Road waving flags and cheering as the Arizona Stearman Squadron opened the morning with a formation of vintage biplanes at 9 a.m., followed several minutes later by the PB4Y-2 Privateer, a restored four-engine Navy patrol bomber that once scoured the seas for enemy submarines.

It was the parade’s eighth straight year.

The Stearman biplanes, built by Boeing during World War II and used by both the U.S. Army Air Corps and Navy for pilot training, were later sold as military surplus and used for crop-dusting before being lovingly restored by collectors. Today’s flyover featured aircraft maintained by the Arizona Stearman Squadron, a formation-certified group of pilots who appear at air shows throughout the western U.S.

Following them, the PB4Y-2 Privateer, a Navy-modified version of the B-24 Liberator, made a rare public appearance. This particular aircraft, known as T121, is the only airworthy Privateer of its kind still flying. It once served the U.S. Coast Guard and later fought wildfires as an aerial tanker before undergoing years of restoration led by SAC Holdings in Phoenix. The aircraft’s sponsor, Joe Shoen of U-Haul fame, maintains the Privateer as a tribute to WWII veterans.

On the ground, the Maricopa Veterans Day Parade celebrated service members from all branches. Army veteran Roman Benavente, a retired Finance Command Sergeant Major who served in Germany, Korea and Indiana, and lives in Province, led the procession as grand marshal. He was joined by honorees Steve Day (Coast Guard), Craig Houk (Army) and Terry Oldfield (Navy).

Hundreds of spectators lined the route from Bowlin Road to Honeycutt Avenue, waving American flags as floats, youth groups and civic organizations passed by. The two-hour celebration concluded with a free lunch for veterans and their families.

“Today is about acknowledging the sacrifices of those who served,” Benavente told InMaricopa. “We should ensure that we honor them on this day… and thank them, so their sacrifices didn’t go in vain.”

Monica D. Spencer contributed reporting.

Photo gallery by David Iversen:

Scenes from the 2025 Veterans Day parade in Maricopa. Nov. 8, 2025. [David Iversen]

Elias Weiss

Elias Weiss earned his journalism degree from the University of Arkansas and began reporting for the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. He later led the Chatham Star-Tribune to a 2019 Best Weekly Newspaper award before working as an investigative reporter for Phoenix New Times and The Daily Beast. In 2023, he became managing editor at InMaricopa, winning top state awards for investigative and narrative reporting. In 2024, he took over as Editorial Director. Elias often discusses politics on KFNX. He currently works with Fox News