Madison, Wisconsin Sees Regional Airport Closure After Hydraulic Issue Forces Return

One of the United States Navy Blue Angels touched down at Dane County Regional Airport earlier this week when the pilot reported hydraulic issues with the aircraft, resulting in the temporary closure of two runways.

The aircraft landed uneventfully and was quickly tugged off the active runway 36. The story made the rounds, as any aerial demonstration team rumor does, with some exaggeration, possibly due to a layman's interpretation of "emergency" in an aviation context. 

Few details have come to light regarding the exact details of the hydraulic problem, likely pointing to a relative non-issue. The Blue Angels completed the transition from the Legacy F/A-18A to -18D's to the more modern F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. The changeover was completed in November of 2020, with the intention of switching to 18 early-block aircraft specially overhauled for the Blue Angel's mission. The change resulted in a series of routine changes and updates, owing to the slightly different performance margins of the model. While new to the Angels, their aircraft are hand-me-downs from prior Navy service: Older, downright vintage Super Hornets, low-rate initial production units formerly used as trainers, testers, or mothballed aircraft out of frontline service.

Their modifications for showtime-spec resulted in the addition of smoke trail dispensers, additional joystick spring pressure, and improved avionics to help reduce aerial workload while flying routines. The updates from the legacy hornet inherent to the Super should theoretically reduce airframe fatigue and boost mission readiness overall, perhaps something that didn't quite work out in Madison. 

Most pilots are familiar with small issues or resurgent gremlins in their favorite plane, so for the time being, the emergency landing can be written off with a shrug until further issues develop. 

FMI: www.blueangels.navy.mil