Will the Blue Angels make a “sneak pass” at Seafair this year with their larger, new aircraft? The prank led to…
The Seafair air show this year over Lake Washington will feature the Blue Angels’ new Super Hornets making their Seattle premiere. Festival organizers are promoting the jets as “Bigger. Louder. Faster,” despite the fact that they are 25% bigger than the historic Hornets they replaced. The festival, which is set for August 5-7 after being postponed the previous two years due to COVID-19, has long been known for its spectacular acrobatics and formation flying by the Blue Angels, which can fly in formation with as little as 18 inches between wingtips.
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The Blue Angels have been granted permission to execute the popular “sneak pass” this year, as they have in previous years. This maneuver entails one of the six Super Hornets breaking out of formation and reaching a height of 50 feet over the ocean at nearly the speed of sound.
When compared to its predecessor, the F/A 18 E/F Super Hornet aircraft can produce a more potent sonic air, or pressure, wave. When a Blue Angel pilot accidentally strayed slightly off course during a practice run of the maneuver on January 21, 2021, at the Naval Air Facility El Centro in California, this was demonstrated. The airplane damaged more than $180,000 worth of property as it flew within 100 feet of structures.
