I'm afraid we may have seen our last Blues/Thunderbirds show

Sad to say I can't see either team surviving the recent crashes for several reasons: 1. Military budgets are already stressed. 2. The teams, and their associated infrastructure, are expensive. 3. The planes they use are older than some of the pilots and more up-to-date replacements are too expensive to be used for demo purposes only. 4. Someone will decide they are no longer an effective marketing strategy for the military. The recent crashes will be the excuse, not the reason, for their termination.

Please convince me I'm wrong here. I've seen them a couple dozen times over the years, while they were flying everything from A-4/T-38's to the current equipment and hate the thought that its over.

The F-35 is the replacement for both the 16 and 18. Those are just getting phased in. But yeah, the price tag on the 35's is a bit high.

I will be sad to see them go.

Sad, sad day for air show enthusiasts. My heart goes out to the family of the Blue Angels pilot as well.

Nah, the Super Hornet is projected to be around til the 2030s, so they can always transition to that.

According to Wikipedia there have been 26 crashes for the Blue Angels over the years, all the way back to 1948. Today's accident was tragic but I don't know if it spells the end for them.

I'd be happy if they decided to unwrap a dozen A-4s and F-84s from the D-M boneyard, but I don't see that happening.

Unannounced so far on Pocono's website, but there is supposed to be an air show at the track in late August. Hope this does not scuttle the plan.

The old equipment won't stop them; they've been around a lot longer than their current fleet has. The death? That might, especially in light of the aforementioned budget cuts and the fact that they already almost went under a few years ago.

Yeah, they will keep going. A while back the whole formation flew into the ground, and they kept going after that. The pilots are constantly swapping out anyway.

Yes, the F-35 would be a silly choice (of course they did for a while use the F-105!), but they can use any plane in the inventory.

The more likely worry is that will be no manned planes at some point. Drone air shows!

I don't see this being their ends.

There have been numerous crashes before. They fly older birds. They've already been curtailed/disbanded in previous years over budget issues.

In reply to aircooled:

I can hear it now.

"Look at the skill! Those drones are programmed so well!"

Spend an hour or so in Pensacola, and I think you will decide the show teams are here to stay.

There will never be a substitute from a marketing/ PR perspective. What are they gonna do to gain public support, have a cool smartphone app?

BoostedBrandon wrote: In reply to aircooled: I can hear it now. "Look at the skill! Those drones are programmed so well!"

"Three cheers for the flat-brimmed youths remote flying our drones today from Idaho!"

02Pilot wrote: I'd be happy if they decided to unwrap a dozen A-4s and F-84s from the D-M boneyard, but I don't see that happening.

You haven't seen the T-birds or the Angels until you've seen them in F-4s. I had the pleasure of seeing (and meeting) both.

The loss of the Blue Angels pilot was a tragedy, but I don't see them cancelling the programs. They're just too strong a symbol to give up that easily.

Almost unbelievable to have a T-birds and Angels crash on the same day. I'm a big air show fan, as well, I've seen the Angels many times and the T-birds once.

RIP to Capt. Jeff Kuss, the Angels pilot who died yesterday. Condolences to his family, and thank you for your service.

I was lucky enough to see the Thunderbirds and the Blue Angels at the same time. A few years ago they did a joint show at Patrick Air Force Base here in FL. and yes.....it was awesome......totally and completely awesome.

Terrible tragedy to lose such a gifted pilot, but they will go on. I sure hope so at least....

Real Blues fly Scooters. 720 deg/sec roll rate clean is spectacular.

We were at the AFA graduation where the Thunderbirds performed yesterday. Absolutely amazing display, especially from the top row in the stadium. We had stopped at the shopette on the way off base to grab some beer where we heard of the accident. So glad the pilot was able to eject safetly.

When we got back to our hotel we heard about the Blue Angels crash. From some of the reports it sounds as if Capt Kuss may have flown his bird in to avoid civilian casualties as he was over a housing area. Such a tragedy.

Appleseed wrote: Real Blues fly Scooters. 720 deg/sec roll rate clean is spectacular.

And real Thunderbirds fly F-100s.

Growing up in San Diego the Air Show is a staple of my youth and now my kids' youth. Even after going for 35+ years, the Blue Angels still give me goose bumps when they perform.

I'm in the flight path of MCAS Miramar (formerly NAS and Top Gun school!), so I have a constant stream of F18's flying over including the Angels when practicing and during the show.

I can't fathom not having them perform.

In reply to Karacticus:

I saw the T-Birds fly F-100s when I was a kid. They're part of the reason I became a pilot. The F-4 was something to be seen (and heard), too! I wish I had been able to see the Blues fly them.

Both teams have bent a lot of airplanes over the years. Fortunately, it's very rare they lose a pilot. A few years ago, as part of a research project, we identified 33 F-100s that flew with the T-Birds during the 13 years they used the type. Nearly all of the replacements were because of damage or a crash.

You don't really need brand new planes to put on a pretty good show. These decrepit old piles were built in the 50's, and to my uneducated eye, they do just fine.

I'm glad my grandson got to see the Thunderbirds at Cannon AFB, NM last weekend. At 6, he knew of airplanes, but hadn't actually watched them, much less been in one. He now knows that even big, loud things can sneak up on you.

I was a little older than he is now when I first saw the Blue Angels and Thunderbirds in F4's.

In reply to Streetwiseguy:

The Snowbirds performed at the Smyrna, TN air show in '86 or '87, I can't remember exactly. I helped park airplanes the day before. The Snowbirds put on a killer show, partly because there were so many of them that there was something going on at all times.

The Snowbirds are going to be performing at Willow Run Airport,Ypsilanti,Michigan in a few weeks.