Blue Angels VIP ride
 

Here's the snoozer de jour:
http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/met...ra/blueangels/

That was great!!!!! Thanks:D

Yeah. Really enjoyed watching the video of NFP passing out. I'm still laughing.:D

He obviously didn't pay attention to the training.

It never fails. The only press you get from media rides is the rider passing out. Believe it or not, there is probably 30 minutes of unused footage that is better.

I challenge you to avoid passing out on those sustained G maneuvers after only 30 minutes of training and not being an aviator! It takes time to condition your body for that.

Hey if you can get me an invite I promise to only use the "good footage"! It's unreal how many "how do I become a pilot" emails we get on a daily basis, the military would have their target audience here ;)

That was some good stuff. I don't know if anyone caught it but a couple of months ago on the Discovery Channel the Crocodile Hunter went on a ride in an F-16 out of Luke AFB. He passed out two or three times as well. I kept waiting for him to come to and say "Crikey...that was a doooozey!"

I can't point fingers, I'd be out like a baby.

The Blues do not wear g-suits which is amazing. In pilot training I was in pretty good shape but started to tunnel out (field of vision narrows) approaching 6 g's even with a g-suit. I was able to learn to sustain upwards of 7 to 8 g's but it was difficult to sustain that for long. The Blues routinely pull 6 plus g's and don't miss a beat. They use a technique much like grunting that tightens muscles and keeps the blood from heading south. It used to be easier in the old days to take guests along for a ride. Years ago I took Ted Kennedy (don't say it), Bob Hoover and several of the Top Gun actors for rides when it was not such a big deal. I hear it takes alot these days to get a ride. I think Blue Angel 7 takes riders occasionally but don't know what it takes. It is certainly worth a stamp to ask the question though. The Blues are headquartered at NAS Pensacola.

All it takes is a press pass and approval from CHINFO. Each showsite deignates the riders, they are not picked by the Blues.