Time to Ground the Blue Angels? A Navy Flyer Responds

The Seattle Times published an opinion piece entitled "Time to Retire the Blue Angels," which argued that the U.S. Navy demonstration team should not fly at Seattle's annual Seafair exposition. The author, Patrick Pilcher, wrote that he found the display "in poor taste," that the air show was a waste of money and a "display of military muscle-flexing that seems a bit outdated." Pilcher also believes that flying the jets is insensitive, since they "can be a reminder of the terror of death raining from the sky in the form of cluster bombs or other weapons" for "many recent immigrants from war-torn countries."...

The author of the Seattle Times article fails in a huge way to recognize what these flight demonstrations do for the nation. Not only the Blue Angels, but the USAF Thunderbirds, Canada’s Snowbirds, and numerous other flight demonstration squadrons and organizations show the public what their tax dollars are producing. In a time of cynicism and waste, the professionalism, training, and dedication of these men and women are, as the saying goes, some if the best this country has to offer to the world.

I want their children’s children’s children
to cower and cringe in fear whenever they hear the sounds of jet engines overhead
because their legends tell of fire from the sky.
= = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
I still ‘look up’ when I hear choppers above.

There is a shooting range across the street from where I fill up and the report doesn’t even register with me -and funny watching the reaction of some people at the sound of gunfire.

Guess mine goes back to aboard ship.

If I ‘knew’ a drill was going to take place during my ‘sleep’ time, I could sleep right through it.
BUT if an ‘alarm’ went off and I wasn’t aware it was coming, I could be on the deck heading up a ladder before the 1MC clicked off.

“You are offending and scaring the ‘immigrants’”

I would propose that we do what Germany does. For next year’s SeaFair, send the “imigrants” back to their home country for a three week vacation with free round-trip airfare.

(Well, just make the “to” airplane ride free, and then revoke their visas while they are there.)

Yeah, because we all know flying 6” from your wing man is a totally legitimate aviation maneuver that every pilot should master, which these show teams are just there to demonstrate for our, uh, education. The announcer said so.

My mother always taught me to not make a fool of myself by talking about things that I obviously know nothing about. My wife and I have lived on a airport with our two airplanes for 25 years. We started out flying hang gliders and ultralight airplanes. Before we got married my wife socialized with both Thunderbird and Blue Angel pilots. Truth be told, she found out that in most cases the pilots did have very high opinions of themselves which is helpful for doing their jobs but can make them unpleasant to be around if you are an attractive person of the opposite sex.

Apparently, the first thing that needs to explained to you however is that big things look much smaller when they are far away then when they are up close. For instance, the airplanes that the Blue Angels fly in formation may appear to be 6 inches apart to you while watching from the ground but I can assure you as someone who has flown in formation with other pilots that our airplanes and the blue angels airplanes are much further than 6 inches apart. Compounding this, in the case of the Blue Angels, the maneuvers are carefully choreographed so that they appear to be closer together than they actually are from the perspective of the target audience.

Flying in formation has for many decades been known to be very useful practice technique both for developing skill sets and camaraderie within groups. It is also not as dangerous as you seem to perceive it to be. Safety is always an overriding concern in aviation training. If you doubt this you might consider taking some form of pilot training and then reporting back.

OK, I researched it and I stand corrected. Minimum separation in Blue Angel formations is 18 inches. You consider this a safe and necessary maneuver, perhaps. But do you know it’s forbidden to other Navy pilots? Along with a great many other maneuvers that are routine for Blue Angels, but will otherwise get you grounded? Sorry, I am not buying the “training” line.

Well my friend you have got me. And this is very top secret stuff. The admirals don't want anyone to figure this out. So don't be surprised if you see a couple of black helicopters flying near your house in the next few days.

The 26 pilots who have died in the last 65 years in the Blue angels were sacrificed because aliens living at area 51 have demanded that our pilots fly high powered supersonic jets 6 inches apart at full speed and in formation before they will give our pilots the keys to their space craft.

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