Key Points: Ahead of the Fort Lauderdale Air Show (May 3-4), Blue Angels lead pilot Cdr. Adam Bryan described the intense demands of the flight demonstration team, spending roughly 300 days a year away from home for training and about 65 shows.
-The team undergoes rigorous practice from November to March (~150-170 flights) to perfect their F/A-18E/F Super Hornet routines.
-Bryan affirmed the Navy’s plan to fly the Super Hornet until at least 2040 and stated there are no current plans for the Blue Angels to switch aircraft, calling a potential move to the F-35C impractical for their demonstration role.
We Asked: No F-35 for Blue Angels
FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA – Just in time for their performance last weekend at the annual weekend air show, the United States Navy’s Blue Angels Flight Demonstration Squadron landed in Fort Lauderdale on Wednesday, 30 April.
The early arrival of the seven Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornets is normal, as it gives the team two days to rehearse the flight routine that will take place 3-4 May in the skies above the waterfront at the main beachfront.
Blue Angels In Flight. Image Credit: Author.
After Wednesday’s fly-in, 19FortyFive spoke with Commander (Cdr) Adam Bryan, the team’s lead pilot who flies aircraft no. 1 in the lineup of seven Super Hornets.
Bryan graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 2005 with a Bachelor of Science in Economics.
He began flying the previous model, the F/A-18C, in 2007, transitioned to the F/A-18E/F in 2016, and was selected to command the Blue Angels in November 2024.
Blue Angels Going to the F-35?
Bryan complemented the Super Hornet’s performance: “The Navy would continue flying the F/A18E/F at least until 2040.” When asked if there were any plans for the team to transition to another aircraft, he answered that there were no discussions along that line at present.
When asked about the chances of the team potentially switching to the F-35C carrier-capable version of the stealthy aircraft, he said that was not really an option. “Using the F-35C for this kind of an assignment would not be very practical,” he explained.
Blue Angels: Always in the Air or On The Road
While being assigned to the Blues would seem like a cushy assignment to the casual observer, Bryan detailed just how arduous it is to be part of this very public face of US Naval Aviation.
“We are away from home roughly 300 days of the year, and we fly around 65 shows in a 12-month period,” he said. There is also “quite a bit of training” involved in preparing for the team’s shows every year and regular turnover of the squadron’s composition.
F/A-18 Hornet. Image taken at National Air and Space Museum on October 1, 2022. Image by 19FortyFive.
F/A-18 Hornet. Image taken at National Air and Space Museum on October 1, 2022. Image by 19FortyFive.
“We replace about half the team’s officers and a third of the maintainers every year,” he continued.
“We start [practicing] every year in mid-November and train in Pensacola for two months. After the holidays, we fly out to El Centro, California, and spend another two and a half months. The team will fly 15 times a week in training. So, after about 150 to 170 training flights, we feel confident enough to put on a demonstration that is both safe and offers entertainment for the public.”
What he says he likes about the job is “not only working with some of the best pilots in the world but also with 160 of the best sailors and Marines in the world.”
Family Ties
Bryan is not only an Annapolis graduate, but he has family ties to the US Navy that go back to the Second World War. His grandfather, as he explained, flew the Dauntless dive bomber and the Voight F4U Corsair carrier fighter during the war, one of the influences in his life that inspired him to join the Navy and become a naval aviator.
All of the Blue Angels “relish being part of a team that is always striving for perfection,” he said about the rewards of being a Blue Angel. When asked what his favorite destination to fly to out of all the places the team has visited is, he answered, “Believe it or not, it is when I come home—when we fly into Pensacola, and we can see the entire [Blue Angels support] team out on the beach on a Sunday.
Blue Angels. Image Credit: Author.
What does a man who flies a Navy fighter jet do for fun? “I like to be at home and see my children,” he answered. “I am away from them so much of the time. It is always fabulous to be with them when I come home.”
About the Author:
Reuben F. Johnson is a survivor of the February 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine and is an Expert on Foreign Military Affairs with the Fundacja im. Kazimierza Pułaskiego in Warsaw. He has been a consultant to the Pentagon, several NATO governments and the Australian government in the fields of defense technology and weapon systems design. Over the past 30 years he has resided in and reported from Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Brazil, the People’s Republic of China and Australia.
David Collishaw
May 5, 2025 at 7:56 am
F35 is not that capable an airframe, nor is the f22. Neither are capable of the dogfighting skills used in air displays
It is neither agile nor airworthy enough for a display team. They would need a hundred to keep a dozen on the flight line.
the skin would degrade and delaminate faster while the fancy headsets would worthless.