The United States Navy’s Flight Demonstration Squadron, The “Blue Angels” will be the featured air show performers at the SUN ‘n FUN International Fly-In and Expo Presented by the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association, coming up April 1-6, 2014 on its campus at Lakeland Linder Regional Airport in Lakeland, Florida.
“After a year of sequestration and no military participation at airshows, SUN ’n FUN is honored to host the first appearance of the Blue Angels in the southeast in 2014,” said SUN ’n FUN President & CEO John R. “Lites” Leenhouts. “It is exciting for us to offer our guests the stellar precision that represents the piloting skills of all naval aviators.”
The Blue Angels’ mission, according to the U.S. Navy, is to enhance Navy and Marine Corps recruiting efforts and to represent the naval service to the United States, 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.
The Blue Angels’ C-130, affectionately known as “Fat Albert,” begins each demonstration by exhibiting its maximum performance capabilities during a 10-minute performance. Shortly thereafter, you will see the graceful aerobatic maneuvers of the four-jet Diamond Formation, in concert with the 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.”