Andrew McGowan, 5, clutched his model Blue Angel in his hands as he dozed Sunday afternoon despite the planes thundering overhead at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort.
But when his mom tried to gently pry the toy from his hands, he woke with a start and clutched it tighter.
The Blue Angels, he confided, were his favorite, but he only wants to watch them, unlike his older brother, Will, who dreams of being a pilot.
The McGowans came from Savannah for the boys' first air show along with thousands of other attendees to see the second and final day of the MCAS Beaufort Air Show.
The weekend went great, said Gary Cassevah, CEO/director of Marine Corps Community Services, and he was impressed with the turn out, which he thought was bigger than the last show, in 2011.
"This is absolutely incredible," he said. "And we were all worried about the Saturday weather, and we had the chaplain working on that all week."
Between two dry days -- at least until the show ended each afternoon -- more acreage and a four-year gap between shows instead of the usual two, Cassevah said participation was great.
After two of the Blue Angels were grounded for repairs Saturday, all seven, including one reserve plane, were up and running Sunday to wow the crowd with stunts.
Cassevah's personal favorite, however, was the F35-B because this was the first show for the new fighter jets.
"Just watching how it could hover in place -- I could just stare at that for 30 minutes," he said.
In addition to military planes and vehicles on display, some private plane owners brought their personal aircraft to show off.
Landon Throne, of Bray's Island, grinned at a little boy as he asked if Bray's Cessna O-1/L-19 had any guns.
"No, but it has rockets," he said, pointing to the wings as the boy scooted over and looked up with a "wow" face and a ready iPhone for pictures.
"One of these little kids is going to want to be a pilot one day," Thorne said. "Of course, some of the biggest kids here are 50 years old."
Thorne said he dreamed of owning one for years before buying it from a man in Florida and then flying it home to South Carolina.
"I flew in these airplanes as what they call a backseat observer in Vietnam, and so I developed an affection for this airplane," he explained.
Mary Jane McGowan got her love of planes from her father, a pilot, and instilled that love in her boys.
"Airplanes are definitely a big thing for my family, so they love this," she said as the Blue Angels finished pulling back up to the runway after their display.
But the show isn't over for the McGowan boys. As they shepherded the tired little ones towards the gate, their father, Wayne, said they have a carpet at home designed like a runway.
"I assure you, we'll be at home with the Blue Angels taxiing down the runway and taking off," he said.
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