FOX NFL SUNDAY Heads to Naval Base San Diego; Helmetcam, Drone Set to Cover Gronk Taking a Leap into Pacific By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director
Friday, November 8, 2024 - 5:07 pm
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
Fox Sports always goes out of its way to shine a spotlight on the U.S. military on the NFL Sunday ahead of Veterans Day and this year is no exception as FOX NFL SUNDAY is calling the Naval Base San Diego home beginning at 11 am EST. And after a week of preparation a team of 125 production professionals are set to do some fun and unique programming that has never been seen before.
This is my favorite show to work on and I always try to make it everyone else's favorite show as well, says Greg Pfeifer, Fox Sports, director, remote engineering. This year we have a couple of cool things like dropping Gronk [Rob Gronkowski] out of an MH-60 Seahawk helicopter and into the water about a half mile from the pier where our set is located. He'll be doing a simulation of how they disable a mine with a small charge.
The Fox NFL pregame show will broadcast live from Naval Base San Diego on Sunday morning beginning at 11 am EST.
Capturing that requires several cameras (including a hard camera with a 122x lens shooting from the pier). Other means of capturing his jump include a heavy-lift drone from Beverly Hills Aerials, a fixed wing plane flying at a higher altitude, and a helmetcam worn by Gronk.
We will also have two boats and one of the boats has a handheld camera operator and then the other boat has a frogman who will have an underwater camera, says Pfeifer. And then we have an ENG camera in the helicopter with Gronk and a helmetcam on Gronk, so we basically have six cameras for that shoot.
Beverly Hills Aerials provided a drone with a 42-pound payload for this weekend's Fox Sports Veterans Day tribute.
As for audio, military helicopters aren't known for their quiet ride so the production team has placed plenty of microphones in the chopper to capture Gronk getting ready and for his jump.
And AVS, who has been a great partner on this, came up with a waterproof system so he can wear the helmet camera, a microphone, and an IFB that will all be able to keep working after he jumps in the water, adds Pfeifer.
Other production highlights include a 75-foot Techno crane as well wireless cameras and hard cameras on the stage.
We also will have some cool POV cameras to show Gronk climbing up the side of the pier and those should be pretty awesome, adds Pfeifer.
Piers can sometimes be tricky to work on given that they can often have limited space and power. But the pier Sunday is a maintenance pier with plenty of power so Fox will rely on a mix of shore power that will feed a UPS. There are also two backup generators that can run the whole production, including the Game Creek Video Yogi truck which is at the center of the production.
Yogi came here straight from the World Series, says Pfeifer. We dropped steel on Sunday for the set and then the trucks were parked Monday morning. We were off and running from there.
Military facilities always have their own challenges to deal with as security is always an issue and this year the challenge was making sure the drone was cleared for use.
It took quite a bit of time to get that approved and there are a lot of anti-aircraft and ant-drone systems, he adds.
Currently in its 31st season, the show's cast features Curt Menefee, Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long, Michael Strahan, Jimmy Johnson, Jay Glazer and Gronk.
This is the time of year our entire network collectively looks forward to honoring and saluting our troops here at home and stationed across the world, says Eric Shanks, Chief Executive Officer & Executive Producer, FOX Sports. We can't wait to spotlight Naval Base San Diego as FOX NFL SUNDAY prepares to pay tribute to all those men and women who bravely sacrifice and defend the core values of our country.
Other programming highlights will include a visit to the world-Famous I-Bar, the Navy's iconic and exclusive bar, which was featured in the movie Top Gun: Maverick. The entire cast will train with Navy SEALs as part of their experience at the Naval Base
Today, we celebrate our nation's veterans for their service and stewardship of the next generation of warfighters, says Vice Admiral Brendan McLane, commander, Naval Surface Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet. We honor our heroes and their families during the FOX Sports Veterans Day Show at Naval Base San Diego with a long, proud tradition as home to the U.S. Navy.
North America Stories
18/05/2026
Despite a bumpy start to the year, the provider of event-production support and ...
18/05/2026
Daktronics has partnered with the University of North Carolina to manufacture and install 11 LED displays totaling more than 10,000 square feet and more than 14...
18/05/2026
CBS LA has announced a multi-year partnership with the Los Angeles Rams, covering exclusive local broadcasts of Rams preseason games, weekly year-round programm...
18/05/2026
Skyline Communications has announced an integration between its DataMiner xOps p...
18/05/2026
eCLUTCH, the hybrid esports platform powered by iKOMG, has announced an expansion of its distribution across Europe, MENA, Africa, and Asia, along with new cont...
18/05/2026
Behind The Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, includ...
18/05/2026
With 22 games this season, the production team looks forward to tweaking and enhancing the coverage
After 8,660 days off the air, the WNBA returned to NBC yest...
18/05/2026
(L-R) Midori Francis and Natalie Erika James attend the Saccharine premiere during the 2026 Sundance Film Festival at The Ray Theatre on January 22, 2026, in ...
18/05/2026
The Australian Defence Force uses L3Harris T4 and T7 robots for explosive ordnan...
18/05/2026
Continued investment across Europe and Germany is expanding local teams and improving access to stock, regional expertise, and specialist broadcast support.
CV...
17/05/2026
Back to All News
Oasis Premieres on Netflix June 19
Entertainment
17 May 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
Summer, sunshine, the beach, parties. T...
16/05/2026
Boris FX Continuum Pairs AI Precision and Advanced Creative Controls
Jessie Electa Petrov May 16, 2026
0 Comments
The 2026.5 release adds automatic de...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/05/2026
Seattle Sounders FC and Seattle Reign FC, in partnership with RAVE Foundation an...
15/05/2026
Dan Brumm has served as sound designer on Bluey, the Australian children's t...
15/05/2026
The Professional Audio Manufacturers Alliance (PAMA) and Shure Incorporated are accepting applications for the 6th annual Mark Brunner Professional Audio Schola...
15/05/2026
Netflix has announced an expanded NFL schedule for 2026 and beyond under a four-year partnership extension with the NFL through the 2029-30 season. Each season,...
15/05/2026
Ateme is supporting TVRI (Televisi Republik Indonesia) with a contribution and d...
15/05/2026
Concacaf has announced the launch of a new website and mobile app built on Deltatre's FORGE platform. Concacaf.com and the mobile app, available on iOS and ...
15/05/2026
Eutelsat has announced the launch of QBC Business Economic Channel by Qatar Media Corporation, broadcasting in 4K/UHD via Eutelsat's 7/8 West video neighbo...
15/05/2026
Major League Soccer has announced four original content series timed to the 2026...
15/05/2026
The Alliance for IP Media Solutions (AIMS) has announced it will exhibit and present at InfoComm 2026, taking place June 13-19 at the Las Vegas Convention Cente...
15/05/2026
InfoComm 2026 will take place June 13-19 (exhibits June 17-19) at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The show will include sessions and exhibits covering broadcas...
15/05/2026
Tracy McGrady's Ones Basketball League (OBL) and FuboTV Inc. have announced ...
15/05/2026
Disguise has partnered with Creative Technology (CT) to deliver visual playback ...
15/05/2026
Sony Electronics has announced two new products for professional imaging: the Alpha 7R VI full-frame mirrorless camera and the FE 100-400mm F4.5 GM OSS super-te...
15/05/2026
In-venue and creative video staffers at the professional and collegiate level ha...
15/05/2026
Ratings Roundup is a rundown of recent rating news and is derived from press rel...
15/05/2026
For sports organizations, the most valuable assets are often the most sensitive:...
15/05/2026
The NFL's broadcast partners released their 2026 regular season schedules ye...
15/05/2026
Besides drawing on experience with boxing, the production integrates specialty c...
15/05/2026
Daniel Roher attends the Tuner Premiere during the 2026 Sundance Film Festival at Eccles Theatre on January 22, 2026 in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Neilson Bar...
15/05/2026
86% of media planners would move more linear TV budget to CTV if they had show-level targeting and reporting - and 65% would also shift dollars from programmati...
15/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/05/2026
Clear-Com will showcase new communications solutions and major platform updates at InfoComm 2026 (Booth N7005), June 17-19, in the North and Central Halls of t...
15/05/2026
Following an outstanding inaugural year in 2025, Rise AV is proud to announce the return of its flagship leadership initiative, Elevate. The programme continues...
15/05/2026
Berklee Announces Lineup for Inaugural AI Music Summit The three-day event puts musicians at the center of the future of music creation, ethics, and the indus...
15/05/2026
Lightware returns to InfoComm 2026 with a focused showcase of scalable USB-C connectivity, next-generation AV-over-IP solutions, and technologies that help over...
15/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/05/2026
Delivering a live, arena-scale production of a massively popular band is no small feat. Between expansive in-arena LED walls and a global live stream fed to onl...
15/05/2026
Connection is the heartbeat of any strong community, and with live streaming becoming more accessible in the modern era, it's much easier for faith-based or...
15/05/2026
Powered by GX 3 media servers, optimised IP-VFC workflows and on-site engineering expertise, the production delivers high-performance visuals for one of the wor...
FOX NFL SUNDAY Heads to Naval Base San Diego; Helmetcam, Drone Set to Cover Gronk Taking a Leap into Pacific By Ken Kerschbaumer, Editorial Director 
