Members of the Blue Angels team also visit more than 50,000 people in schools, hospitals, and community functions at air show cities.

[5][6] The mission of the Blue Angels is to showcase the pride and professionalism of the United States Navy and Marine Corps by inspiring a culture of excellence and service to the country through flight demonstrations and community outreach.

[7] The Blue Angels perform at both military and non-military airfields, and often at major U.S. cities and capitals; locations in Canada are also often included in the air show schedule.

Some of the maneuvers include both solo aircraft performing at once, such as opposing passes (toward each other in what appears to be a collision course) and mirror formations (back-to-back, belly-to-belly, or wingtip-to-wingtip, with one jet flying inverted).

Control sticks are tensioned with 40 pounds (18 kg) of force to allow the pilot minimal room for non-commanded movement of the aircraft.

Navy and Marine Corps F/A-18 demonstration pilots and naval flight officers are required to have a minimum of 1,250 tactical jet hours and be carrier-qualified.

The application and evaluation process runs from March through early July, culminating with extensive finalist interviews and team deliberations.

[20] Annual winter training takes place at NAF El Centro, California, where new and returning pilots hone skills learned in the fleet.

To compensate for the lack of G-suits, Blue Angel pilots have developed a method for tensing their muscles to prevent blood from pooling in their lower extremities, possibly rendering them unconscious.

On 15 June, Voris led the three Hellcats (numbered 1–3), specially modified to reduce weight and painted sea blue with gold leaf trim, through their inaugural 15-minute-long performance.

The team thrilled spectators with low-flying maneuvers performed in tight formations, and (according to Voris) by "keeping something in front of the crowds at all times.

[35] The name had originated through a suggestion by Right Wing Pilot Lt. Maurice "Wick" Wickendoll, after he had read about the Blue Angel nightclub in The New Yorker magazine.

On 7 June at Birmingham, Alabama, four F8F-1 Bearcats (numbered 1–4) flew in diamond formation for the first time which is now considered the Blue Angels' trademark.

The team's SNJ was also replaced by another Bearcat, painted yellow for the air combat routine, inheriting the "Beetle Bomb" nickname.

Team headquarters shifted from NAS Corpus Christi, Texas, to NAAS Whiting Field, Florida, on 10 September 1949, announced 14 July 1949.

The squadron (due to a shortage of pilots, and no available planes) and its members were ordered to "combat-ready status" after an exhibition at Naval Air Station, Dallas, Texas on 30 July.

In August, "Blues" leader LCDR Ray Hawkins became the first naval aviator to survive an ejection at supersonic speeds when a new F9F-6 he was piloting became uncontrollable on a cross-country flight.

[48] The Blue Angels began relocating to their current home at Naval Air Station (NAS) Pensacola, Florida that winter,[49] and it was here they progressed to the swept-wing Grumman F9F-8 Cougar.

In December, the team left its home base for its first winter training facility at Naval Air Facility El Centro, California[50] In September 1956, the team added a sixth aircraft to the flight demonstration in the Opposing Solo position,[51] and gave its first performance outside the United States at the International Air Exposition in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Later that year, they embarked on a European tour to a dozen sites, including the Paris Air Show, where they were the only team to receive a standing ovation.

The Blues transitioned to the two-seat McDonnell Douglas F-4J Phantom II in 1969, nearly always keeping the back seat empty for flight demonstrations.

[citation needed] In 1971, the team which wore the gold flight suits for the first show,[54] conducted its first Far East Tour, performing at a dozen locations in Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Guam, and the Philippines.

The power and aerodynamics of the Hornet allows them to perform a slow, high angle of attack "tail sitting" maneuver, and to fly a "dirty" (landing gear down) formation loop.

The prestige of wearing the Blue Angels uniform carries with it an extraordinary honor – one that reflects not only on you as an individual, but on your teammates and the entire squadron.

In 1992, the Blue Angels deployed for a month-long European tour, their first in 19 years, conducting shows in Sweden, Finland, Russia (first foreign flight demonstration team to perform there), Romania, Bulgaria, Italy, the United Kingdom, and Spain.

In 1998, CDR Patrick Driscoll made the first "Blue Jet" landing on a "haze gray and underway" aircraft carrier, USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75).

LCDR Kieron O'Connor and LT Kevin Colling were returning from a practice flight before an air show when their F/A-18B crashed in a wooded area of south Georgia.

[76][77] Between 2 and 4 September 2011 on Labor Day weekend, the Blue Angels flew for the first time with a fifty-fifty blend of conventional JP-5 jet fuel and a camelina-based biofuel at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland.

Katie Higgins, 27, became the first female pilot to join the Blue Angels, flying the support aircraft Fat Albert for the 2015 and 2016 show seasons.

[88] In response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, the Blue Angels flew over multiple US cities as a tribute to healthcare and front line workers.