Boeing has delivered the first Super
Hornet test aircraft for the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angel flight
demonstration squadron. The unpainted aircraft now enters the flight
test and evaluation phase at Naval Air Station Patuxent River in
Maryland. Boeing expects to deliver a total of 11 aircraft for the
squadron in 2020.
The flight demonstration squadron has
flown Boeing or Boeing-heritage aircraft for more than 50 years,
starting with the F-4J Phantom II in 1969, and then moving to the
A-4F Skyhawk. The team currently operates the F/A-18A-D Hornet.
Boeing converts F/A-18 Hornets and
Super Hornets into Blue Angels at the company’s Cecil Field
facility in Jacksonville, Fla. Major modifications include the
addition of an oil tank for the smoke-generation system, fuel systems
that enable the aircraft to fly inverted for extended periods of
time, civilian-compatible navigation equipment, cameras and
adjustments for the aircraft’s center of gravity.
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