The Blue Angels Flew Grumman F11F Tigers–Their First Supersonic Ride

When this film was made by Grumman during the late 1950s, the United States Navy Precision Flight Demonstration Team, otherwise known as the Blue Angels, was flying the Grumman F11F Tiger. The film is narrated by former Navy pilot and actor Robert Taylor. Because the Navy always pulled pilots from fleet squadrons in order to build the Blue Angels rosters, the film also makes the point that although the pilots in the Tigers might be wearing the Blue Angels patch today, they could easily be assigned to operational fleet squadrons tomorrow.

The film introduces each of the Blue Angels pilots flying with the team at the time the film was made. Footage of the Blues flying their Tigers is simply awesome, and there’s also footage of some of the training the pilots received while earning their Navy wings of gold. Explanations of the maneuvers the team flies provide some understanding of the expertise required to fly with the Blues. The team operated Grumman’s Tiger between 1957 and 1969. Thanks to YouTuber PeriscopeFilm for uploading this Blue Angels time capsule.