The Blue Angels perform the Diamond 360 maneuver at the Spirit of St. Louis Air Show, May 14, 2016. The Navy flying squadron has canceled aerial performances scheduled this month in New York and Ohio in the wake of a deadly crash that killed a pilot last week. (Andrea Perez/U.S. Navy)
The Blue Angels perform the Diamond 360 maneuver at the Spirit of St. Louis Air Show, May 14, 2016. The Navy flying squadron has canceled aerial performances scheduled this month in New York and Ohio in the wake of a deadly crash that killed a pilot last week. (Andrea Perez/U.S. Navy)
Marine Capt. Jeff Kuss, 32, of Durango, Colo., was killed last week when his plane crashed in Smyrna, Tenn., as the Blue Angels were preparing for an air show. (U.S. Navy)
The Navy’s Blue Angels flying squadron has canceled aerial performances scheduled this month in New York and Ohio as the team continues its “operational pause” following last week’s deadly crash.
The pilot, Marine Capt. Jeff Kuss, was killed Thursday in Tennessee when one of the squadron’s F/A-18s went down shortly after takeoff. The crash, which remains under investigation, occurred just days before a scheduled weekend air-show performance.
Kuss, a member of the team for about two years, had more than 1,000 hours of flight time under his belt.
The Navy announced on Tuesday the cancellation of upcoming performances at the Syracuse International Air Show for June 11-12 and the Vectren Dayton Air Show on June 18-19.
The Blue Angels are in an “operational pause prior to moving forward with its 2016 air show season,” a Navy statement said.
The Navy has offered to support those two air shows with its Tactical Demonstration Teams during the time slots of the scheduled Blue Angels performances.
The Tactical Demonstration Teams are designed to demonstrate the mobility and power of F/A-18 Hornets and Super Hornets. The so-called TACDEMO teams are composed of Fleet Replacement Squadron instructors who are flying the same jets used to train new students, the Navy said.
The Blue Angels are scheduled to perform three shows during the National Cherry Festival in northern Michigan on July 2-4. Organizers told local media the festival’s air show would proceed with or without the Blue Angels team.
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