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The Honolulu Advertiser

Updated at 2:30 p.m., Saturday, April 21, 2007

Blue Angels to roar above Kane'ohe Bay in October

Advertiser Staff

The Blue Angels, the Navy's high performance flight demonstration team, will thunder through the skies above Marine Cops Base Hawai'i in Kane'ohe on Oct. 13 and 14.

The Blue Angels' performance will be a part of the overall 2007 Kane'ohe Marine Corps-Navy Air Show, "The Blues on the Bay."

The Flight Demonstration Squadron is among the most popular aviation acts in the world, entertaining 15 million people last airshow season. Since they were formed in 1946, they have performed for more than 400 million people.

The F/A-18 Hornets are 56 feet long, more than 40 feet from wingtip to wingtip, and weigh 56,000 lbs. at take-off. A Hornet can hit speeds of 1,200 miles per hour (Mach 1.7+).

Blue Angels' pilots hold their Hornets in formations just inches apart while performing complex maneuvers.

Their support aircraft, a U.S. Marine Corps C-130, also shows off with a spectacular Jet-assisted take-off, reaching 1,500 feet at a 45-degree angle in just seconds. Known as "Fat Albert," it carries 25,000 pounds of cargo, 45,000 pounds of fuel, and transports the squadron's support and maintenance

crew to each show site.

The Blue Angels' mission is to enhance Navy and Marine Cops recruiting and to represent the Naval service to the United States civilian community, its elected leadership and foreign nations. The Blue Angels serve as positive role models and goodwill ambassadors for the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps.

A Blue Angels' flight demonstration exhibits the choreographed refinements of Navy-trained flying skills. It includes the graceful, aerobatic maneuvers of the four-plane Diamond Formation, in concert with 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 gates are tentatively set to open to the public at 10 a.m. on both days.