Blue Angels

Friday evening, August 28, 2015, David and I attended an event to Meet and Greet U.S. Navy and Marine Corps Blue Angels and their support staff at the Yankee Air Museum at Willow Run Airport in Ypsilanti, Michigan.

C-130, affectionately known as Fat Albert for the Blue Angels, piloted by Major Dusty Cook – with his autograph right above the cockpit. : )

Flying, to me, has always been an expression of freedom. So I became an FAA-licensed private pilot in 1984. The same year, when I was offered a job from Chrysler to work in Detroit, Michigan, I asked for and was granted a delay to start at Chrysler until August so that I could see the air show in Oshkosh before leaving Wisconsin. And I have always wanted to see the Blue Angels’ performance since. Never in my wildest dreams did I think that I would be invited to meet them in person! Once again, I felt like a little kid, gathering autographs of the pilots and asking questions and getting answers.

Blue Angels, autographed by actual pilots at the Meet & Greet Event before the Show.

Just a few of the highlights of what I learned are listed here:

This year, for the first time in its history, a female pilot – Captain Katie Higgins, USMC, C-130 pilot – is part of the show.
During the selection process as a Blue Angel pilot, candidates spend time with current Blue Angels, getting to know each other. The final selection is based on unanimous concurrence of the group. They are in the show for 2-3 years with the group.
They have no substitute pilots. So if one were to fall ill, for instance, the rest performs the show without that pilot.

Early Sunday morning, August 30, 2015, we came back to Willow Run Airport to watch the all-day Air Show. In advance, we had treated ourselves to the Officers’ Club tickets for $240/person. They came with many amenities and privileges, including best-viewing seats in a roomy area that was blocked off from the rest so that we could enjoy the show in comfort in every conceivable way. I even learned for the first time that there was such a thing as an air-conditioned port-a-potty for our exclusive use. That was REALLY nice on a hot summer’s day!

Once the show started, I was intrigued by everything I saw. Rob Reider, the Air-Show host, was amazing. His explanations about each of the airplanes helped understand the background of what we were seeing. He was like a living encyclopedia of WWII history and aviation. The majority of the show featured a large selection of WWII planes, vehicles, and re-enactments of WWII battles. I had forgotten that there were to be a lot more to Air Shows than just the Blue Angels.

The Thunder Over Michigan Facebook Page has a lot of cool videos and photographs.

Here are some photographs taken at the Thunder Over Michigan Air Show, August 2015.

B-29, named Fifi. This is the same type of aircraft that bombed Tokyo during WWII. I remember my parents talking about the attacks. No doubt a very scary experience for them.

David, my most favorite U.S. Air Force veteran : )

David in front of a replica of Memphis Belle. During WWII, the real Memphis Belle was the first bomber to complete 25 missions (as indicated in the number of bombs on the fuselage, above David’s head) and shot down 8 German planes (as shown in the number of swastikas, again on the fuselage). The actual Memphis Belle is on display at the National Museum of the US Air Force near Dayton, Ohio.