Blue Angels In Famous Diamond Formation
Photo Source: Image Said To Be In Public Domain

While the Blue Angels really have nothing do to with war they are the demonstration team for the Navy Air Wing. They are probably the most famous of any air demonstration team. They were the first in the world to be officially declared a military demonstration team. Chester W. Nimitz, chief of Naval Operations, ordered their formation. They were formed in 1946, right after World War II. I am sure that most of you have at least seen them on the news over the years. They are U.S. Navy fliers that perform some very precise and dangerous formations while flying at very fast speeds. They are famous for their diamond formation where they fly with only 18 inches between the wingtips of each plane. Wow! Here is what the U.S. Navy says about the mission of the Blue Angels, "The Blue Angels’ mission is to enhance Navy and Marine Corps recruiting efforts and to represent the naval service to the United States, its elected leadership and foreign nations. The Blue Angels serve as positive role models and goodwill ambassadors for the U. S. Navy and Marine Corps."

1946 Blue Angels Flying Grumman Bearcats
Photo Source: U.S. Navy

In the beginning, when they were first formed, they flew in three plane formations, but this changed and became four. In each show a total of six planes are used but only four are usually in the air at one time, unless the solo act is on where Blue Angles #5 and #6 are either in the air one at a time or together. Planes #1 through #4 are part of the diamond formation and only perform together. To heighten the excitement of the performance, the solo fliers fly just under the speed of sound when they execute their maneuvers. The show never fails to thrill the audience. Over the years some deaths have resulted while maneuvering. The first was in 1990 when a mid-air collision claimed two Blue Angels during practice. In 1999 two more Blue Angles crashed and died during practice. The last one to die was this year, in April 2007. His plane just fell out of the sky and crashed. As of the writing of this article, there is an ongoing investigation to the cause of the crash. Maybe I should mention this, unlike other jet pilots, the Blue Angel pilots don't wear the pressure flight suit. These suits guarantee that enough blood gets to the brain so a pilot doesn't black out during maneuvers. The problem is that the suit keeps inflating and deflating making the maneuvers to hard to perform. The Blue Angel pilots are trained to use their stomach muscles to accomplish this, If a pilot forgets to pull in his stomach, a blackout will result. Blue Angels have died in combat and one was injured when he had to eject.

1952 Blue Angels Fly Panther Jets
Photo Source: U.S. Navy

The first plane that was flown by the Blue Angels was the Grumman F6F Hellcat. The leader of the group was Lt. Cmdr. Roy "Butch" Voris. The Hellcat didn't last very long and in two months they were in a different plane, the F8F Grumman Bearcat. It wasn't until 1947 that the diamond formation, their most famous maneuver, was introduced by Lt. Cmdr. Robert Clarke. In the late 1940s, the Blue Angels got their first jet planes, the F9F Panther, but these were taken away from them to be used in the Korean War where, incidentally, some Blue Angels were sent to perform combat missions. One of their pilots was killed in combat over Korea and another was shot down over Vietnam and has been listed as missing all these years.

1974 Blue Angles Flying A4 Skyhawks
Photo Source: U.S. Navy

In 1951 the team was reorganized and got the newer faster version of the Grumman Panther, the F9F-5. At this point they were based in Corpus Christi, Texas. They stayed there until 1954 when their base of operations was moved to Pensacola, Florida, where they received the swept wing Grumman F9F-8 Cougar. They kept the Cougar for a few years and in 1957 it was replaced with the Grumman F11F-1 Tiger which remained with them for twelve years. It was a popular plane with the group. In 1969 they received the F-4J Phantom II. In 1974 they were upgraded to the A-4F Skyhawk II. Even though they had been flying for years they were reorganized again, so that they could get their own commanding officer and flight leader, he was Cmdr. Tony Less. In 1986 the group again received newer planes. They were given the Boeing F/A-18 Hornets which was the first dual-role fighter/attack aircraft. The Blue Angles group is not only composed of officers and pilots, there is a contingent of enlisted men that support the group.

First Blue Angel Team
Photo Source: U.S. Navy

In 1954, one of the Blue Angels, LT. Cmdr. Hawkins, was the first naval pilot to survive an ejection at speeds faster than sound. In 1986 the team celebrated its 40th anniversary. It has been in existence today for about 61 years. They even were the first foreign air demonstration team to perform in Russia, that was in 1992.

Row 1 left: 4 Planes In Tight Formation Row 1 Right: Stunt Cargo Plane Row 2 Left: Diving in Formation Row 2 Right: Close Pass At Fast Speed Photos Source: U.S. Navy

So how popular are the Blue Angels? According to their website they have performed for over 427 MILLION people since 1946. In 2006 alone 15 million people watched their shows. Each pilot serves a two year tour with the Blue Angles and is returned to the fleet afterwards. The speeds the planes fly at during a show are from 120 mph to 700 mph. The Blue Angels have been flying the same planes for over 20 years. If they were cars, they would be gone by now. There are 11 jet planes in the squadron, numbers 1 through 6, 2 two-seat (#7) jets and 3 spare jets. This doesn't count prop planes. All Blue Angel's planes can be made combat ready in about 72 hours.

Bonus, CLICK HERE to download the Blue Angel's Screen Saver.