Pilot Ray Kinney climbs out of his P-40 Warhawk, painted like the plane of legendary Flying Tiger Tex Hill at HAMM Saturday. Herb Nygren Jr

One of the biggest air shows in the state is coming to East Texas for the Fourth of July weekend.

The skies will be filled with 30-plus civilian and military historic aircraft at Cedar Creek Lake.

“It’s pretty cool to watch,” said Randy Ball, event originator and MIG-17F pilot. “The skies will be really busy. Bring out your blankets and lawn chairs.”

The 9th annual Thunder Over Cedar Creek Lake Air Show, which Ball said is the third largest in Texas, will be hosted Saturday by the Cedar Creek Veterans Foundation.

The Historic Aviation Memorial Museum out of Tyler Pounds Regional Airport will display the aircraft from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday by the museum’s courtyard. At 6:30 p.m., engines rumble and take off for the air show at Cedar Creek Lake.

Aircraft fans can expect to see an array of war aircrafts, such as three Tora, Tora, Tora, Japanese bomb fighters involved in the Pearl Harbor attack. Also the B17 Texas Raider, restored and known to be one of the most active and visible planes riding the skies today, along with the C47, also nicknamed the “work horse,” can be seen at the museum and will perform above the waters at the Cedar Creek Lake.

“It’s loud and it’s fast,” said Chuck Gardner, volunteer rider pilot at Cavanaugh Flight Museum in Addison. “A lot of airplanes are coming out.”

This will be Gardner’s first time to perform at this air show and will fly a restored North American P-51 Mustang, with a 1,600 horse powered Merlin engine used during the Korean War. He first started flying at the age of 30 and worked his way up to flying World War II aircrafts and sales rides for those wanting to experience the sky life.

“I like to share it with other people, so I can see them smile and have a good time,” Gardner said. “It’s a beautiful bubble canopy ride, so you can see the whole sky.”

Other ex-military war aircrafts, such as the A-26 Invader, USMC B-25, Twin Beech 18, T6, T-33, P-40 Warhawk will dazzle the audience Saturday night.

More than 40,000 people attended the air show last year, making it one of the top air shows of 2012, Ball said. This year the Cedar Creek Veterans Foundation will donate all proceeds from the event to support The Fisher House Foundation, Hope for the Warriors and the Navy and Marine Corp Relief Society.

The funds given to The Fisher House Foundation provide a “home away from home” for the military families to be close to their loved ones during his or her hospitalization for an illness, disease, or injury, according to the Fisher House website.

“Every dime goes to the organizations. We have no pay stubs,” Ball said.

The air show’s very first lift off began when Ball flew his MIG-17F, in 2004, above Cedar Creek lake, fascinating many.

“Airplanes have always been a passion for most people,” Carolyn Verver, museum board president, said. “I don’t think you have to be a person that hangs around in an airport a lot or is involved to enjoy seeing them fly.”

Flights above the Tyler skies will be available for $425 per seat for half an hour, in the B-17 plane with a maximum of eight seats per flight.

The P-51 Mustang also will be open for rides, offering a 30-minute flight for $1,995, hosting only one seat per flight.

“(It’s) really a neat experience for people who want to feel what it’s like to fly,” Gardner said. “The show will be nice and cool over the lake, and we will be making a lot of noise.”

For flight reservation information about the B-17 aircraft, contact the Historic Aviation Memorial Museum at 903-526-1945, or for the P-51, contact Chuck Gardner at 972-822-8091.