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Blue Angels bring first female pilot to Smyrna


The Blue Angels fly in a diamond formation with smoke generators to make a low-level pass. The performance team is scheduled to highlight the air show at the Smyrna airport on June 10-11. PHOTO COURTESY OF BLUE ANGELS

The Great Tennessee Air Show returns to Smyrna/Rutherford County Airport on June 10 and June 11 with the first female pilot of a Navy Blue Angels fighter jet joining the event.

The Smyrna airport, once Sewart Air Force Base, has been hosting air shows since the 1970s.

The precedent-breaking pilot is Navy Lt. Amanda Lee, from Mounds View, Minn. Lee enlisted in the Navy as an Aviation Electronic Technician. She joined the six-person Blue Angels fighter jet demonstration squad in September of 2022, and has more than 1,400 hours and more than 225 carrier landings since then.

Lee

Lee, who uses the call sign “Stalin,” made her historic Blue Angels debut as the Left Wing pilot in the No. 3 jet last March. She is currently assigned to the “Gladiators” of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 106 and recently completed a deployment aboard the USS Harry S. Truman.

Other female pilots have worked with the Blue Angels team, which is more than 50 years old, including Marine Maj. Katie Higgins, who flew the team’s C-130 Fat Albert transport plane for three years beginning in 2014. Lee is the first female to serve as a fighter jet demonstration pilot.

The Blue Angels are now flying the F/A-18E/F “Super Hornet” military aircraft, which is a redesign of the McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet, the Blue Angels previous ride. The Super Hornet is approximately 25 percent larger, can fly 40 percent farther and carry more weapons than the Hornet.

Each Blue Angels aircraft can be transitioned back to combat-ready status in less than 72 hours.

The Blue Angels flight leader and commanding officer is Navy Commander Alex Armatas. He has more than 4,100 flight hours and 911 carrier landings.

Other aircraft and performers scheduled for the Smyrna event include the Air Force F-22 Raptor, the Navy F-35 Dual Aircraft Performance, the Air Force Heritage Flight, the Navy Legacy Flight, the Special Operations Command parachute team, and private and commercial pilots.

GREAT TENNESSEE AIR SHOW

When: June 10-11. Gates open at 8 a.m. each day. Performances end at 4:30 p.m. each day. Schedules for specific performances will not be released in advance.

Where: Smyrna/Rutherford County Airport, 278 Doug Warpoole Rd., Smyrna

Tickets: Tickets are sold online only at greattennesseeairshow.com/tickets/

Parking: General parking is free. VIP Parking is optional and available for purchase.

One of the Blue Angels aircraft makes a high-performance climb. PHOTO COURTESY OF BLUE ANGELS