Pyrotechnics Being Added To July 3 Drone Show

Drone show. Photo courtesy Milwaukee County.

The July 3 drone show is returning to Milwaukee’s lakefront this summer, but with a fiery twist.

The drone show is returning for a second year, but this time it will incorporate pyrotechnics, according to the Milwaukee County Parks department.

Parks canceled the annual July 3 fireworks show in 2024 due to a stated lack of support from the local philanthropic community. It returned in 2025 with a drone show sponsored by Michael F. Hupy, senior partner of the law firm Hupy & Abraham, along with a handful of local foundations and donors. Hupy is again funding the show, but as part of a matching grant effort.

“The 2026 July 3 drone show will once again feature Milwaukee’s most iconic landmarks, dazzling patriotic displays and fun surprises that are sure to bring some oohs and ahs to everyone who will be spectating from the crowd,” said Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley during an announcement in McKinley Park Thursday.

The 45-minute show will be put on by Northern Lights Drone Shows, based in Racine. It will involve three waves of 15-minute synchronized drone performances, creating “patriotic imagery and Milwaukee landmarks” in the sky over Lake Michigan, Parks Director Guy Smith said. The primary viewing area will once again be McKinley Beach and the surrounding parkland including McKinley Park, Back Bay Park and Lake Park. Parks is also working to coordinate additional food and drink vendors to make the drone show an all day event, Smith said.

Sup. Sheldon Wasserman, who represents the lakefront area on the Milwaukee County Board, said, “Nobody’s done this before in the state of Wisconsin, from what I’ve heard, very few companies can even do this because this is the cutting edge of fireworks and the cutting edge of drones… we have something cool coming.”

The Milwaukee Parks Foundation helped raise funding for the annual show, which will cost approximately $250,000 in total — significantly less than a fireworks show, Smith said. It’s also considered a more inclusive and environmentally friendly option, relative to the gunpowder and loud booms of a fireworks display.

Along with Hupy the event is sponsored by Carroll University‘s Aviation and Drone Technology Department, Northwestern Mutual, the Brewers Community Foundation and philanthropists David Herro and Jay Franke, said Rebecca Stoner, Milwaukee Parks Foundation director.

Herro and Franke have also committed to a $50,000 challenge grant. The foundation is soliciting public donations to match the grant and cover the full cost of the show. Hupy announced Thursday his law firm would commit $10,000 toward the matching funds. Donations can be made online.

Last year, residents who attended the drone show expressed annoyance at all the advertisements emblazoned across the sky through synchronized drone swarms. Smith said the department heard their feedback and would “scale back the advertising aspect” this year. However, they won’t disappear from the show entirely, he said. 

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