The United States (U.S) on Saturday, July 4, 2026, is celebrating its 250th Independence Day, a historic milestone known as the Semiquincentennial.
Across the nation, from the National Mall to the Pacific coast, millions of Americans are gathering for a massive, coordinated birthday bash that blends historic reverence with modern, star-studded celebrations.
The theme of the year-long celebration, spearheaded by the official America250 commission and White House task forces, highlights a journey of 250 years of innovation, freedom, and democratic resilience.
In Washington, D.C., the National Mall has been transformed into “The Great American State Fair,” featuring pavilions from all 50 states and U.S. territories.
More than 30 military flyovers are set to thunder over Washington, DC, as nearly every branch of the U.S military joins President Donald Trump’s push for a sweeping 250th birthday spectacle.
The daylong air show is set to be one of the biggest visual centerpieces of the nation’s semiquincentennial celebration, bringing together military aircraft, elite demonstration teams and ceremonial jumps over Washington in a made-for-television display of patriotic pageantry.
The flyovers will begin just after 1 p.m. ET with a NASA Northrop F-5 jet and will continue about every 10 to 20 minutes over about nine hours.
Also performing flyovers will be the military’s top two flight demonstration teams — the US Navy’s Blue Angels and the US Air Force’s Thunderbirds. The US Marine Corps and Coast Guard will also participate in their own demonstrations
Trump’s new plane for Air Force One, received as a $400 million gift from the Qatari government, will fly over the city just after 7 p.m.
Celebrating the U.S 250th birthday, King Charles shared a message to Trump and the American public on Saturday.
The statement celebrated the UK and the U.S, adding that the two nations’ “shared values”.
“The story of the relationship between our two nations is one of extraordinary evolution, from overcoming conflict to forging one of the closest and most productive alliances the world has seen,” the monarch wrote, adding that the ties between the UK and the U.S are “unique and far-reaching.”
“Together, we face the challenges of today, and the opportunities of tomorrow. As I said in my address to the joint Houses of Congress, our shared roots run deep, and they are still vital,” Charles wrote.
The monarch said that as the two countries “look ahead to the next 250 years, I have no doubt we will continue to defend our shared values,” including liberty and the rule of law.
“The connection between our peoples is one that I trust will only grow stronger with time,” Charles wrote.
Former U.S President Bill Clinton has also released a statement as the U.S celebrates its 250th birthday.
In 1776, the country’s founders “embarked on a radical experiment and declared a new nation rooted in the ideal of equality,” the statement read. “At every turn, there have been forces of reaction seeking to claw back the extension of our rights and liberties to more people.”
While not mentioning President Donald Trump by name, Clinton took a swipe at “the people in charge,” including their unleashing of “masked agents on American communities,” the start of an “unconstitutional war” and the weaponization of government “to settle personal scores, prosecute enemies, stamp out free speech, and (make) the federal government a new profit center for themselves and their allies” with “the help of lifetime appointees to the Supreme Court and a compliant Congress.”
Clinton outlined his hope for the future, echoing his first inaugural address from 1993: “There is still nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what’s right with America,” he said, praising people “lining up to vote, no matter how hard some may try to prevent them,” those “bringing groceries to their neighbors,” people “donating to charities in record numbers” and immigrants, “eager to bring their talents, hard work, and dreams to our country.”
