The Blue Angels switched from flying the F/A-18 Hornet to the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet at the end of 2020. The number 7 pilot narrates for a year, and then typically flies Opposing and then Lead Solo the following two years, respectively. Hundreds of women representing the Navy and Marine Corps have served with the Blue Angels during the last 55 years, according to the 76-year-old unit. Blue Angels McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantoms (National Naval Aviation Museum). Jul 20, 2022, 11:56 AM. There have been female and racial minority staff officers as official Blue Angel members, in support of the Blue Angels recruiting for the Navy and Marine Corps. WebMembers of the 2013 U.S. Navy Blue Angels are: Flying Blue Angel No.1, Commander Thomas Frosch, USN (Commanding Officer/Flight Leader) Flying Blue Angel No.2, WebDonnie L. Cochran is a former United States Navy naval aviator and was the first African-American aviator to be selected to the Flight Demonstration Squadron Blue Angels in Mark Lambert, flight surgeon for the Navy flight demonstration squadron Blue Angels, visits with a resident of the nursing home care center at Spokane Veterans Administration Hospital.jpg, US Navy 080907-N-0411D-021 Aviation Ordnanceman 2nd Class Alisha Raper, plane captain for U.S. Navy flight demonstration team aircraft Blue Angel Five, gives final confirmation to her pilot, Lt. Cmdr. until 0400 est. Captain Cochran made one deployment on board the USS Ranger (CV-61). All team members, both officer and enlisted, pilots and staff officers, come from the ranks of regular Navy and United States Marine Corps units. Your work environment matters and when the values of respect, integrity, honesty, and loyalty break down, so does your performance! Naval Academy, The Sullivan Brothers and the Assignment of Family Members, Historic Former U.S. Navy Bases and Stations, The African American Experience in the U.S. Navy, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the U.S. Navy, Contributions of Native Americans to the U.S. Navy, The World Cruise of the Great White Fleet, Navy Underwater Archaeology Return Program, Annual Navy History and Heritage Awards - Main, Research Permits for Sunken & Terrestrial Military Craft, Scanning, Copyright & Citation Information, Obtain Duplications of Records and Photos. They also represent the US Marine Corps. They serve three to four years in the squadron. The Blue Angels appointed its first female jet pilot to join the squadron on Monday. A native of Belarus, she has also reported from Moscow, Russia. Greg McWherter presents Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus an autographed memento of the Blue Angels flight demonstration team in flight.jpg, US Navy 100625-N-0092J-029 Members of the U.S. Navy flight demonstration squadron, the Blue Angels, rest on the vertical stabs of an F-A-18 Hornet after performing at The Great Minnesota Air Show.jpg, US Navy 101022-N-8102J-044 Retired Cmdr. An airplane nicknamed the Tinker Toy by pilots because of its small size, the A-4 contrasted sharply with its predecessor. The Blue Angels, the Navys flight demonstration team, announced six new officers for the 2023 air show season on Monday, including the first woman demonstration pilot to fly the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. The Blue Angels select finalists to interview at the teams home base of Naval Air Station (NAS) Pensacola, Florida, during the week of the Pensacola Beach Air Show each year. He graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 2012. A fatal crash at Naval Air Station Whiting Field in 1950 ended the use of Beetle Bomb as part of flight demonstrations. Cochran later assumed command of the Blue Angels in 1994. In 1986, Captain Cochran flew the left wingman position flying the number 3 jet in the A-4F Skyhawk. (Sara Eshleman/U.S. When in a leadership role or command, you cannot accept or accommodate any behavior, comments, or actions that undermine your authority as the leader. Kevin J. Davis' flag-draped casket is carried by Naval Air Station Pensacola's Honor Guard as his fellow Blue Angels salute.jpg, US Navy 070509-N-0696M-040 Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Mike Mullen visits Sailors assigned to the Blue Angels at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Fla.jpg, US Navy 070704-N-2888Q-006 Carl Mack, executive director of the National Society of Black Engineers, receives a safety briefing from Staff Sgt. The history and Technology of Submarines (Grade 5), To the Ends of the Earth and Beyond (Grades 5-8), The Date that Lives in Infamy: Pearl Harbor (High School), Codes and Signals: Breaking the Spy Games of World War II and Vietnam, Damage Control Mission Brief: (Blue Navy) A Study Based on the Battle of Okinawa, Damage Control Mission Brief: (Green Navy) A Study Based on the Battle of Okinawa, Family Art Workshop: Kites and Observation, Talk: The Washington Navy Yard During the Civil War, A Conversation with Historians Dr. Regina Akers and Dr. Eddie Valentin: From Benjamin Drummond to Doris Miller: Race, Identity, and the Struggle Against Discrimination in the U.S. Navy, Virtual Book Talk: When Giants Ruled the Sky: the Brief Reign and Tragic Demise of the American Rigid Airship, with John J. Geoghegan and Curator, Gordon Calhoun. Higgins flew the teams C-130 Fat Albert transport plane from 2014 to 2016. The "Blue Angels" currently fly a total of 11 jets: 9 single She previously worked with the House Foreign Affairs Committee as an American Political Science Association Congressional Fellow and spent four years as a general assignment reporter for The Record newspaper in New Jersey and the USA Today Network. From 1952 to 1954, the Blue Angels flew a single TV-2 Shooting Star. There are 25 women on the team now. The squadron selected three F/A-18 demonstration pilots, a C-130 demonstration pilot, and a supply officer to replace outgoing team members. Captain Cochran flew over 24 missions and earned an Air Medal. July 18 (Reuters) - The U.S. Navys famed Blue Angels aerial demonstration team on Monday named the first female pilot in the squadrons history, the organization said. Presented here are historical images of some of these classic propeller-driven aircraft and thunderous jets flown by the Blue Angels. Each year, the Blue Angels selects finalists from an applicant pool and interviews them during the week of the Pensacola Beach Air Show. The Blue Angels select finalists to interview at the teams home base of Naval Air Station (NAS) Pensacola, Florida, during the week of the Pensacola Beach Air Show each year. They also represent the US Marine Corps. The "Blue Angels" currently fly a total of 11 jets: 9 single-seat F/A-18E Super Hornet, two 2-seat F/A-18F. Only six are used during demonstration flights (normally single-seat versions) and the rest are used as spares, if one of main aircraft is unserviceable and cannot be repaired before the show begins. The most recent minority Blue Angel pilot was LCDR Keith Hoskins on the 2000 team. Blue Angels C-130 "Fat Albert" takes off using JATO rockets during performance at Naval Air Station Jacksonville Air Show, 28 October 2006 (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class David Didier), Hill Goodspeed, Historian, National Naval Aviation Museum, June 2021, DANFS - Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, Permitting Policy and Resource Management, The 9/11 Terrorist Attacks: 20 Years Later, "Ex Scientia Tridens": The U.S. (Paul Archer/U.S. WebList of Current Pilots. Marine Corps C-130 demonstration pilots are required to have 1,200 flight hours and be an aircraft commander. The US Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron Lt. Amanda Lee will join the elite Blue Angels flight demonstration team this fall as its first female fighter pilot. The team makes selections at the conclusion of that week. We had an overwhelming number of applicants from all over the globe this year, Capt. Blue Angels. The famed squadron selected two F/A-18E/F demonstration pilots, an events coordinator, a C-130J Super Hercules pilot, an aviation maintenance officer and a flight WebCurrent Blue Angel Pilots L Lieutenant Amy Tomlinson Lieutenant Ben Walborn Lieutenant Commander Frank Weisser Lieutenant Jim Tomaszeski Lieutenant Robert Kurrle, Jr M -LT Griffin Stangel, of Madison, Wisconsin, is an F/A-18 pilot currently assigned to the Flying Eagles of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 122. The Blue Angels select finalists to interview at the teams home base of Naval Air Station (NAS) Pensacola, Florida, during the week of the Pensacola Beach Air Show The venerable transport aircraft that made headlines with its role in the Berlin Airlift, the R5D Skymaster was among the aircraft used by the Blue Angels as a logistics aircraft transporting ground-support personnel to show sites. In September 1985, he was the first African-American pilot selected to fly with the United States Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, The Blue Angels. In January 1986, the navy announced that the Blue Angels would be transitioning from the A-4F to the F/A-18 Hornet. -LT Scott Goossens, of San Francisco, California, is an F/A-18 Pilot currently assigned to the Flying Eagles of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 122. Applicants "rush" the team at one or more airshows, paid out of their own finances, and sit in on team briefs and post-show activities and social events. The famed squadron selected two F/A-18E/F demonstration pilots, an events coordinator, a C-130J Super Hercules pilot, an aviation maintenance officer and a flight surgeon to replace outgoing team members, according to the unit. In August 1947, the Diamond Formation was introduced, soon followed with the Diamond Loop and the Diamond Barrel Roll. What this meant for the 1986 team, they would get an extra year on the team. Official U.S. Navy Photograph. During the Korean War, the Blue Angels were disbanded in 1950 but returned a year later. Supply Officer: Marine Maj. Frank Zastoupil, of Kingwood, Texas. F/A-18 demonstration pilots: Navy Lt. Cmdr. New National Museum of the U.S. Navy-October 2020, New National Museum of the U.S. Navy - October 2022, Exhibits: New National Museum of the U.S. Navy, Exhibits: New National Museum of the U.S. Navy - Main, The American Revolution and the French Alliance, The Forgotten Wars of the Nineteenth Century, Civil War: Securing the Seas for Union Victory, Education Resources (Lesson Plans and Class Activities), Education Resources (Lesson Plans and Class Activities) - Main, Sailor's Life at Sea & Poetry (Grades 4-6), DIVE! Mariner that equal opportunity wont be in our vocabulary in future generations.. The team makes selections at the conclusion of that week. Most, but not all, pilots and officers originally announced for the 2020 and 2021 seasons in July 2019 will be retained. Navy). 2 pilot Lt. Cmdr. Commanders have halted this unnamed persons activities with the Blue Angels while the team continues to conduct winter training at Naval Air Facility El Centro for the upcoming show season, Tucker said. WebThe Blue Angles pilots are there hanging out with the people, signing autographs, and telling stories. Squadron, The Blue Angels, announced officers Strategic He is an aviation maintenance officer assigned to Pre-Commissioning Unit John F. Kennedy and graduated from Elon University in 2008. He served in the Marine Corps and the Pennsylvania Army National Guard. WebU.S. He graduated from the University of North Dakota in 2012. WebThe "Blue Angels" are the United States Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron. Graduated from Savannah State College in June 1976, earning a degree in civil engineering technology and commission in the United States Navy. A second plaque was later added which bears the inscription: |IN HONOR OF COMMANDER DONNIE COCHRAN, U.S. NAVY THE FIRST BLACK NAVAL AVIATOR TO COMMAND THE BLUE ANGELS FLIGHT DEMONSTRATION TEAM. This story has been shared 119,201 times. Cochran completed flight school, earned his Navy Wings of Gold in 1978 after completing basic jet training in the T-2C Buckeye, and advanced jet training in the TA-4J Skyhawk. The closest the diamond will fly to each other is 18 inches during the Diamond 360 The Blue Angels will complete the 2022 season with a homecoming show in Pensacola, Fla., in November. F8F Bearcat "Beetle Bomb" (National Naval Aviation Museum). In November 1994, Cochran assumed command as the first African American commanding officer and flight leader of the Blue Angels at a ceremony at National Naval Aviation Museum at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. Navy), Lt. Amanda Lee, assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 106s Rhino Demo Team, maneuvers an F/A-18E Super Hornet at the 2022 Oregon International Air Show in Hillsboro, Ore., May 21, 2022. With these fantastic new additions to the Blue Angels team for 2022, we are all well equipped to head into our next show season. Lt. Amanda Lee of Mounds View, Minn., will be the first woman F/A-18E/F demonstration pilot for the squadron. Greg Jones of Cary, N.C., was selected as the new Blue Angels maintenance officer. By the time Captain Cochran completed his first deployment he and VFP-63 Detachment 5 had completed an around-the-world deployment during a nine-month cruise. Naval Air Forces, is strapped into an F-A-18 Hornet, assigned to the U.S. Na.jpg, US Navy 110215-N-IR859-069 Vice Adm. Allen G. Myers, commander of U.S. Blue Angel No.4 serves as the demonstration safety officer, due largely to the perspective he is afforded from the slot position within the formation, as well as his status as a second-year demonstration pilot. She's home:Welcome home: New Fat Albert C-130 J Super Hercules arrives in Pensacola, "Not being able to fly across the country and execute our mission definitely affects some of ourbest practices, if you will, and some of the training when it comes to the refinement from the demos," Kesselring said Friday. All Rights Reserved. 2023 Stars and Stripes. Benjamin Walborn, was added to the squad recently to take the fifth spot in the Blue Angels' flight pattern. With its sleek lines and afterburner, the F11F Tiger proved one of the most popular show aircraft flown by the Blue Angels. The Blue Angels name was introduced a month later. Shortly after arriving at VF-124 in 1985, Captain Cochran applied for and was selected as a Blue Angels pilot. The officer selection process requires pilots and support officers (flight surgeon, events coordinator, maintenance officer, supply officer, and public affairs officer) wishing to become Blue Angels to apply formally via their chain-of-command, with a personal statement, letters of recommendation and flight records. Svetlana Shkolnikova covers Congress for Stars and Stripes. Lee is assigned to the Gladiators of Strike Fighter Squadron 106. Its because of women like Capt. He graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 2017. The team operated both the short-nose and long-nose versions, and when the F-4 Phantom II replaced the Tiger after the 1968 show season, the F11F Tiger marked the end of an era as the last Grumman-built aircraft flown by the team. His next assignment was as an instructor pilot at the F-14 Replacement Air Group Squadron (RAG) VF-124. Brian Kesselring, commanding officer and flight leader of the Blue Angels. The Blue Angels on Monday announced their official officer and pilot lineup for the 2021 air show season. After leaving the Blue Angels, Cochran served as the commanding officer of the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps Unit (NROTC), at Florida A & M University with cross-town enrollment with Florida State University from August 1996 until July 1999. [citation needed]. Over the course of 75 years, the more than 500 million people who have seen the Blue Angels perform at air shows around the world have witnessed the power and grace of some of the Navys all-time classic aircraft. A member of the Navys aerial acrobatic team, the Blue Angels, has been suspended pending the findings in an ongoing investigation that kicked off in late January, according to Navy officials. Anthony Walley, ^2 Pilot of the U.S. Navy flight demonstration team, the Blue Angels, speaks with students in the Omniplex theater at the St. Louis Science Center.jpg, US Navy 071110-N-5328N-910 Blue Angels No. Blue Angels Douglas A-4 Skyhawk (NA 330-CFD-DN-SC-85-00472) F/A-18 Hornet Flown by the Blue Angels for over three decades, longer than any other U.S. Navy Lt. Amanda Lee was named the first-ever female F-18 fighter pilot to become a Blue Angels team member Monday. Todd Royles, of Willow Grove, Pennsylvania, Navy Lt. Henry Cedeno, of Juana Diaz, Puerto Rico, Navy Lt. Monica Borza, of Virginia Beach, Virginia, Navy Lt. Kristin Toland, of Sedalia, Missouri, Navy Lt.j.g. Over the years, two former Blue Angels were killed in action. The number 3 pilot moves to the number 4 (slot) position for his second year. Dan Martin signs an F-14 Tomcat toy, for a child.jpg, US Navy 031017-N-6213R-030 Ground crews stand by as the United States Navy's precision flight demonstration team Blue Angels perform.jpg, US Navy 040320-N-6060O-361 During Naval Air Station Lemoore's annual air show, pilots assigned to the U.S. Navy's flight demonstration team, the Blue Angels, give a final salute ending their show.jpg, US Navy 040320-N-6060O-378 Lt. Craig Olson, a pilot assigned to the U.S. Navy flight demonstration team, the Blue Angels, signs autographs for excited fans after the annual air show on board Naval Air Station Lemoore, Calif.jpg, US Navy 040320-N-6060O-379 Lt. Craig Olson, a pilot assigned to the U.S. Navy flight demonstration team, the Blue Angels, signs autographs for excited fans after the annual air show aboard Naval Air Station Lemoore, Calif.jpg, US Navy 040327-N-7559C-001 The Commanding Officer for the U.S. Navy's flight demonstration team Blue Angels, CDR Russ Boss Bartlett, of Nantucket, Mass., talks to his crew chief.jpg, US Navy 040514-N-0295M-045 Draftsman 2nd Class Jeffrey Ballge photographs one of the Blue Angel's six F-A-18A Hornets.jpg, US Navy 040606-N-7559C-001 Aviation Structural Mechanic 1st Class Mario Delacruz, from El Paso, Texas, wipes brake dust from the tire rim of a Blue Angels F-A-18A Hornet.jpg, US Navy 041024-N-8253M-010 Pilots assigned to the U.S. Navy flight demonstration team, the Blue Angels, march down the ramp following their performance at the 2004 N'Awlins Air Show.jpg, US Navy 041106-N-4779D-045 A crew chief assigned to the U.S. Navy flight demonstration team, the Blue Angels, salutes the pilot of his F-A-18A Hornet as he prepare for takeoff.jpg, US Navy 041107-N-8683B-110 Lt. Cmdr.
