SAN DIEGO - For the next three days, the sound of military firepower will be heard over the skies of San Diego as the annual Miramar Air Show takes flight at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar.

The Blue Angels return as the featured performers, which has a special meaning this year for Capt. Brandon Cordill, a Marine aviator with the Blue Angels.

"Because it's the centennial for Marine aviation and it's here at Miramar, a Marine base, it's extra special," he said.

Also on the performing list this year are the Patriots Jet Demonstration Team, which came to the air show four years ago with four planes. This year they've added two more planes.

"This is a special airfield to come to and it's one of the bigger shows in North America, so it's a treat to come here," said Rob Mitchell, the pilot of Plane 5 in the Patriots Team.

Also back are crowd favorites, like the Oracle stunt plane and the Red Bull aerobatic helicopter. 

"This kind of started out as a challenge when a guy said you can do aerobatics in a helicopter and I said, no, you can't, but it got the idea going," said Chuck Aaron, who makes a helicopter do things it was never designed to do. 

Proceeds from the three-day show benefit Marine Corps Community Services, dedicated to helping Marines and their families with qualify of life issues. 

"The air show supports all the programs we simply don't have funding for," said Nicole Wright of MCCS.

The program gets underway Friday with two shows on Saturday and concluding Sunday. Each day's performance will end with the Blue Angels.

For more information on the 2012 Miramar Air Show, which runs Oct. 12-14, visit http://miramarairshow.com.