Blue Angels
The US Navy’s flight demonstration squadron, flying since 1946 and now on the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet: a six-jet show of diamond formation work and opposing solos, with a C-130J called Fat Albert in support.
Blue Angels: how the team came to be and what it flies today
Nimitz orders a navy team
The Blue Angels were created on 24 April 1946 on the orders of the Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Chester Nimitz, who wanted to keep naval aviation in the public eye after the war. Lieutenant Commander Roy “Butch” Voris was chosen as the first flight leader and officer-in-charge. The team flew its first public display on 15 June 1946 at Craig Field in Jacksonville, Florida, in Grumman F6F-5 Hellcats, and within weeks had taken the name Blue Angels. The Hellcats lasted only until August 1946, when the team moved to the F8F-1 Bearcat. It is generally described as the second-oldest formal aerobatic team in the world, after the Patrouille de France.
Korea, jets and supersonic Tigers
The team entered the jet age in August 1949 with the Grumman F9F-2 Panther. When the Korean War began in June 1950 all of its pilots volunteered for combat; the team was stood down on 9 November 1950 and its pilots formed the nucleus of Fighter Squadron 191 aboard USS Princeton. The 1950 flight leader, Commander John Magda, was killed in action in March 1951. The Blue Angels were re-established on 25 October 1951, flew the F9F-5 Panther and then the swept-wing F9F-8 Cougar, and in 1957 became a supersonic team with the Grumman F11F-1 Tiger, which they kept until 1968.
Phantoms, Skyhawks and a formal squadron
The McDonnell Douglas F-4J Phantom II arrived in 1969 and was replaced in December 1974 by the much smaller Douglas A-4F Skyhawk II, a fuel and cost decision taken during the oil crisis. On 10 December 1973 the team was formally commissioned as the Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron. In November 1986 it moved to the F/A-18 Hornet, which it flew for more than three decades. The same year LCDR Donnie Cochran became the first African-American Blue Angels pilot; he later commanded the squadron. Lieutenant Amanda Lee, announced in July 2022, became the first woman to fly as a demonstration pilot.
Twenty-one dead in eighty years
The price of close-formation flying has been heavy. Wikipedia’s count is twenty pilots and one crew member killed while assigned to the team, most of them in training rather than in front of crowds. The worst single event was a mid-air collision between two F-4Js over Lakehurst, New Jersey, on 26 July 1973, which killed three men and ended the season. In 2007 LCDR Kevin Davis died when his Hornet crashed during the Beaufort air show, and in June 2016 Captain Jeff Kuss of the US Marine Corps was killed on take-off while practising for a show at Smyrna, Tennessee.
Super Hornets and Fat Albert today
The squadron converted to the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet in 2020. Six single-seat F/A-18Es fly the demonstration, with two-seat F/A-18Fs as spares, and the transport and support role is filled by a C-130J Super Hercules acquired from the Royal Air Force and nicknamed Fat Albert. Home is Naval Air Station Pensacola in Florida, with winter training at Naval Air Facility El Centro in California. The team’s 158 sailors and marines put on about 60 shows a year; Commander Adam “Gilligan” Bryan leads the 2025 and 2026 seasons.
Blue Angels in numbers
The team
- Formation
- 6 jets
- Four-ship Diamond plus two solos
- Spare two-seat F/A-18F
- C-130J Fat Albert in support
- 158 sailors and marines
The No. 7 jet is a two-seat spare used for media and familiarisation flights.
The aircraft
- Flown
- Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet
- F6F-5 Hellcat (1946)
- F8F-1 Bearcat (1946–1949)
- F9F Panther (1949–1955)
- F9F-8 Cougar (1955–1957)
- F11F-1 Tiger (1957–1968)
- F-4J Phantom II (1969–1974)
- A-4F Skyhawk II (1974–1986)
- F/A-18 Hornet (1986–2020)
- F/A-18E/F Super Hornet (2020–)
Home
- Based at
- NAS Pensacola
- Home base at NAS Pensacola, Florida
- Winter training at NAF El Centro, California
The display
- Aircraft in the display
- 6
- Livery
- Blue with gold trim and lettering
Every type Blue Angels has flown
| Aircraft | Years | Number | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grumman F6F-5 Hellcat | 1946–1946 | First display aircraft, June to August 1946. | |
| Grumman F8F-1 Bearcat | 1946–1949 | ||
| Grumman F9F-2 and F9F-5 Panther | 1949–1955 | First jet, August 1949; team stood down for Korea 1950–1951. | |
| Grumman F9F-8 Cougar | 1955–1957 | Swept-wing Panther development; arrived winter 1954–55. | |
| Grumman F11F-1 Tiger | 1957–1968 | First supersonic type. | |
| McDonnell Douglas F-4J Phantom II | 1969–1974 | ||
| Douglas A-4F Skyhawk II | 1974–1986 | ||
| McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet | 1986–2020 | ||
| Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet | since 2020 | 6 | F/A-18E Nos 1–6 fly the show; two-seat F/A-18Fs serve as No. 7 and spare. |
| Lockheed Martin C-130J Super Hercules | since 2020 | 1 | Fat Albert, ex-Royal Air Force, replaced the earlier C-130 retired in May 2019. |
What Blue Angels is known for
- First public display on 15 June 1946 at Craig Field, Jacksonville, Florida (Wikipedia).
- First jet team season in August 1949 on the F9F-2 Panther; supersonic from 1957 on the F11F-1 Tiger (Wikipedia).
- Whole team volunteered for Korea in 1950 and formed the core of VF-191 aboard USS Princeton (Wikipedia).
- LCDR Donnie Cochran became the first African-American pilot in 1986 and later commanded the squadron (Wikipedia).
- Captain Katie Higgins became the first woman to fly Fat Albert in 2015; Lieutenant Amanda Lee became the first woman demonstration pilot, announced in July 2022 (Wikipedia).
- Wikipedia cites an estimated 505 million spectators since 1946.
Who leads Blue Angels
- Cmdr. Adam “Gilligan” Bryan · Commanding officer and flight leader, 2025 and 2026 seasons
Blue Angels, year by year
Admiral Chester Nimitz orders the creation of a navy flight exhibition team.
First public display, in F6F-5 Hellcats, at Craig Field, Jacksonville.
Team converts to its first jet, the F9F-2 Panther.
Team stood down; pilots form the core of VF-191 for the Korean War.
Blue Angels re-established.
Supersonic F11F-1 Tiger replaces the F9F-8 Cougar.
Conversion to the F-4J Phantom II.
Two F-4Js collide over Lakehurst, killing three; the season is cancelled.
Team formally commissioned as the Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron.
A-4F Skyhawk II replaces the Phantom.
Conversion to the F/A-18 Hornet.
Captain Jeff Kuss killed at Smyrna, Tennessee, during practice.
Conversion to the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and the ex-RAF C-130J.
Cmdr. Adam Bryan takes command for the 2025 and 2026 seasons.
The cost of flying this close
Display flying is among the most demanding flying there is. These are the accidents on record, with the findings as published.
Grumman F8F-1 Bearcat. Lt. Ross Robinson killed when a wingtip failed during a performance and the aircraft entered an unrecoverable spin. 1 killed.
Grumman F9F-5 Panther. Lt. Bud Wood killed in a collision with another team Panther near Corpus Christi, Texas. 1 killed.
Cmdr. Robert Glasgow, newly arrived as leader, killed on an orientation flight. 1 killed.
Grumman F11F-1 Tiger. Lt. Anton Campanella killed when his Tiger crashed into the sea near Fort Morgan, Alabama, on a test flight. 1 killed.
Grumman F11F-1 Tiger. Lt. George Neale killed after an emergency near Apalachicola, Florida; his parachute failed. 1 killed.
Grumman F11F-1 Tiger. LCDR Dick Oliver killed at the Canadian International Air Show, Toronto. 1 killed.
Grumman F11F-1 Tiger. Lt. Frank Gallagher killed after stalling in a practice Half Cuban Eight. 1 killed.
Grumman F11F-1 Tiger. Capt. Ronald Thompson killed when he struck the ground during a practice formation loop. 1 killed.
Grumman F11F-1 Tiger. Lt. Bill Worley killed in a practice double Immelmann. 1 killed.
McDonnell Douglas F-4J Phantom II. Lt. Larry Watters killed when he struck the ground during inverted practice at NAF El Centro. 1 killed.
McDonnell Douglas F-4J Phantom II. Two Phantoms collided over Lakehurst, New Jersey, killing LCDR Skip Umstead, Capt. Mike Murphy and ADJ1 Ron Thomas; the rest of the season was cancelled. 3 killed.
Douglas A-4F Skyhawk II. Lt. Nile Kraft killed when he struck the ground in practice. 1 killed.
Douglas A-4F Skyhawk II. Lt. Michael Curtin killed after a low roll during arrival manoeuvres at NAS Miramar. 1 killed.
Douglas A-4F Skyhawk II. LCDR Stu Powrie killed in winter training at NAF El Centro after a dirty loop. 1 killed.
Douglas A-4F Skyhawk II. LCDR Mike Gershon killed in a collision with the lead solo at the Niagara Falls show. 1 killed.
McDonnell Douglas F/A-18B Hornet. LCDR Kieron O’Connor and Lt. Kevin Colling killed during circle and arrival manoeuvres near Valdosta, Georgia. 2 killed.
McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet. LCDR Kevin Davis killed when the No. 6 jet crashed during the MCAS Beaufort air show; eight people on the ground were injured. 1 killed.
McDonnell Douglas F/A-18C Hornet. Capt. Jeff Kuss, USMC, opposing solo, killed just after take-off while practising a Split-S for the Great Tennessee Air Show at Smyrna. 1 killed.
Everything people ask about Blue Angels
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Around Blue Angels
Every fact, checked
- Blue Angels — Wikipedia
- Blue Angels Announce Commanding Officer for 2025-2026 Show Seasons (DVIDS, 16 April 2024)
- The Team — U.S. Navy Blue Angels (official site)
Verified 2026-10-02.