France joins U.S. to mark 250th anniversary with Statue of Liberty flyover
French jets swept past the Statue of Liberty as Stephanie Ramos sang the anthem, casting America’s 250th birthday as a Franco-American spectacle.
A French Air Force formation crossed above the Statue of Liberty on Thursday as ABC News correspondent Stephanie Ramos sang the national anthem, giving America’s 250th-anniversary observance a distinctly Franco-American frame. The Patrouille de France sent eight Alpha jets over Manhattan and New York Harbor, turning Liberty Island into the day’s most visible stage.
France’s presence at the ceremony reached back to the monument itself. The Statue of Liberty was a gift from France to the United States, and the flyover made that history hard to miss as the country begins marking the semiquincentennial with public rituals, television specials and cultural programming.
ABC and Disney are extending the celebration into prime time and beyond. Disney Entertainment Television announced a 24-hour “Disney Celebrates America” multiplatform broadcast beginning Friday, July 3, 2026, at 10 p.m. ET and running through Saturday, July 4. ABC also plans a primetime special tied to America’s 250th anniversary as part of its July 4 coverage.
The French government and cultural institutions are pairing their own commemorations with the milestone, including Liberty-themed programming and “Liberty Lights,” described as a first-of-its-kind artistic illumination of the Statue of Liberty produced in close partnership with the French consulate general in New York. Together, the flyover and the broadcast plans show how the anniversary is already being organized around two intertwined ideas: patriotic display at home and the long symbolic bond between France and the United States.
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