Earlier this month, Boeing delivered the first Super Hornet test aircraft for the US Navy’s Blue Angel flight demonstration squadron.

The unpainted aircraft will now commence the flight test and evaluation phase at Naval Air Station Patuxent River in Maryland. Boeing expects to deliver 11 of these aircraft to the squadron this year.

Pat Walsh, who flew with the Blue Angels from 1985 to 1987 and is vice-president of US Navy & Marine Corps Services for Boeing, said: “The Super Hornet is an iconic representation of excellence in naval aviation.

We are excited to see this platform enter a critical phase of its journey towards joining the Blue Angels team.”

The flight demonstration squadron has flown Boeing or Boeing-heritage aircraft for more than 50 years, starting with the F-4J Phantom II in 1969 and then moving to the A-4F Skyhawk.

The team currently operates the F/A-18A-D Hornet. Boeing converts F/A-18 Hornets and Super Hornets into Blue Angels at its Cecil Field facility in Jacksonville, Florida.

Major modifications include the addition of an oil tank for the smoke-generating system, fuel systems that enable the aircraft to fly inverted for extended periods of time, civilian-compatible navigation equipment, cameras and adjustments for the aircraft’s centre of gravity.