The event comes months after drones came crashing out of the air during a Sky Elements drone show in Florida, severely injuring a boy.
IRVING, Texas — As the City of Irving prepared for its annual Sparks and Stripes celebration, Parks and Recreation Director Joseph Moses said the event would be one to remember.
“We got great weather out here,” Moses said. “We’re going to have great music. We have a great party band that’s going to kick us off tonight and then a local country singer Coffey Anderson is going to be here tonight.”
The event will feature a series of aerial surprises, including a drone show by Coppell-based Sky Elements. Chief pilot and general counsel Preston Ward said the company is planning a 525-drone show, including a special twist.
“Tonight, there’s going to be 119 drones that actually have pyrotechnics attached to them and then we’re also attempting a Guinness World Record for the largest aerial image of a cowboy hat,” Ward said.
Coordinating such a large-scale show is no easy feat, he added.
“It’s very complex,” Ward said. “The animation of the drone show is the hardest part. It takes hours and hours to put that together. Then we come out here, set it up, have to make sure all the drones are cooperating, make sure we have our safety distances, make sure everything’s going to be as safe as possible, then we fly the show.”
Late last year, a boy in Florida was severely injured during a Sky Elements drone show.
A preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board said the company did routine checks and rebooted the system, removing two drones that were not responding properly ahead of the show. As for how the collision in the sky happened, the report reads, “Show video confirmed that the aircraft did not liftoff in uniform layers and as they illuminated and moved to their first frame of animation, they shifted position and altitude, which resulted in a collision with other aircraft and a loss of control. After the collisions occurred numerous aircraft could be seen falling from the sky and impacting the ground.”
In response, Sky Elements has implemented new safety protocols.
“We’ve developed a whole slew of new safety protocols that involve both the protocols on the ground for having two pilots and other thing to make sure that we have double checks in place, as well as some of the aerial systems,” Ward said. “We’ve added additional things like additional geo fence that’s a bubble. So, if a drone varies by more than a couple of feet, we make sure that it’s not going to be in the sky anymore and we know exactly where those are.”
Sky Elements has done more than 335 shows in 2025 already, without incident. The company is looking forward to a successful show in Irving, setting another world record.
“A drone show really gives the city the ability to tell a different story in the sky,” Ward shared. “You can have images that are very critical to that community and tell that community story, so it adds a whole bunch of variety and it lets the city see something different.”
Moses said the event is an opportunity to bring the city’s diverse community together.
“With Irving being such a diverse city and so many different cultures here, what other time to come together and celebrate than the 4th?” Moses said. “Where else are you gonna get fireworks off the water and hear some great music, some great food, and just, you know, have a good time with your family.”