Commander Of A Fighter Squadron Sings Demonstration Team's Praises

The Blue Angels are a well-known recruiting tool for the U.S. Navy, but one Navy fighter squadron commander says that the team brings a lot more to the table than just recruiting and public relations.

In an op-ed piece published in the Pensacola News Journal, Philip Walker, the commanding officer of a fighter squadron, says the team's pilots and support crew are "experts in their occupational specialty and have superior knowledge on current Navy issues and programs." He relates an instance in which a retired Navy senior chief who had been part of the Blue Angels team diagnosed a problem with one of his squadron's F/A-18C aircraft. He says that the Blue Angels team supplemented combat squadrons during the Korean conflict.

Walker says that the Blue Angels are a "component of the nation's strategic message of deterrence and assurance." The team, he says, provides the Navy with "depth in talent, professionalism, and combat capable aircraft," while serving as a "strategic communications tool" sending a message to both adversaries and allies, and is "an important component of U.S. military prestige and power across the globe."

FMI: www.blueangels.navy.mil