Blue Angels - Show Routine

Show Routine

The following is the show routine used on 17 May 2008:

• Fat Albert (C-130) – high performance takeoff (Low Transition)
• Fat Albert – Parade Pass (Photo Pass. The plane banks around the front of the crowd)
• Fat Albert – Flat Pass
• Fat Albert – Head on Pass
• Fat Albert – Short-Field Assault Landing
• FA-18 Engine Start-Up and Taxi Out
• Diamond Take-off (Either a low transition with turn, loop on takeoff, a half-Cuban 8 takeoff, or a Half Squirrel Cage)
• Solos Take-off (Blue Angel #5: Dirty Roll on Take-Off; Blue Angel #6: Low Transition pitch up)
• Diamond 360: Aircraft 1, 2, 3 and 4 are in their signature 18" wingtip-to-canopy diamond formation.
• Opposing Knife-Edge Pass
• Diamond Roll: The whole diamond formation rolls as a single entity.
• Opposing Inverted to Inverted Rolls
• Diamond Aileron Roll: All 4 diamond jets perform simultaneous aileron rolls.
• Fortus: Solos flying in carrier landing configuration with No.5 inverted, establishing a "mirror image" effect.
• Diamond Dirty Loop: The diamond flies a loop with all 4 jets in the carrier landing configuration.
• Minimum Radius Turn (Highest G maneuver. No.5 flies a "horizontal loop" pulling 7 Gs to maintain a tight radius)
• Double Farvel: Diamond formation flat pass with aircraft 1 and 4 inverted.
• Opposing Minimum Radius Turn
• Echelon Parade
• Opposing Horizontal Rolls
• Left Echelon Roll: The roll is made into the Echelon, which is somewhat difficult for the outside aircraft.
• Sneak Pass: the fastest speed of the show is about 700 mph (just under Mach 1 at sea level) Video
• Line-Abreast Loop – the most difficult formation maneuver to do well. No.5 joins the diamond as the 5 jets fly a loop in a straight line
• Opposing Four-Point Hesitation Roll
• Vertical Break
• Opposing Pitch Up
• Barrel Roll Break
• Section High-Alpha Pass: (tail sitting), the show's slowest maneuver
• Low Break Cross
• Inverted Tuck Over Roll
• Tuck Under Break
• Delta Roll
• Fleur de Lis
• Solos Pass to Rejoin, Diamond flies a loop
• Loop Break Cross (Delta Break): After the break the aircraft separate in six different directions, perform half Cuban Eights then cross in the center of the performance area.
• Delta Breakout
• Delta Pitch Up Break to Land