Featured Performer



Captain Greg McWherter is the U.S. Navy Blue Angels Flight Leader / Commanding Officer



Hold onto your hats! Here come the Blues! Returning to Dayton in 2012, the celebrated US Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron is eagerly sought after by air show venues all over the world. Performing at 35 show sites during the season, the Blue Angels have been seen by over 400 million spectators since their first demonstration in 1946.

Thrilling audiences for over 60 years, the Blue Angels fly six powerful F/A – 18 Hornets during their tightly choreographed, high-energy demonstration.  The 110-member Squadron is led by Blue Angel #1 Commander Greg “Boss” McWherter along with 15 officers and 94 enlisted personnel.  Typically 45 members of the team will travel to each show site.  Hosting the team in Dayton will be GE Aviation Systems of Vandalia, Ohio.

A Blue Angels flight demonstration exhibits choreographed refinements of skills possessed by all naval aviators. It includes the graceful aerobatic maneuvers of the four-plane Diamond Formation, in concert with the fast-paced, high-performance maneuvers of its two Solo Pilots. Finally, the team illustrates the pinnacle of precision flying, performing maneuvers locked as a unit in the renowned, six-jet Delta Formation.

The team is stationed at Forrest Sherman Field, Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida, during the show season. However, the squadron spends January through March training pilots and new team members at Naval Air Facility El Centro, California.