Perfection is not something you can bargain for. For years, a group of pilot daredevils who like to call themselves the Blue Angels have impressed the world with their gifted, practiced and near perfect handling of F/A-18 Hornet during extreme maneuvers.
However, being part of an aerial demonstration squadron comes with responsibilities which expand beyond looking out for your plane and your colleagues. You also have to look out for very solid principles. Principles that may seem exaggerated for most of us, but are law for the Blue Angels.
The team's leader, Navy Cmdr. Dave Koss, announced on Friday that, following a maneuver which is not in full sync with the squadron's way of doing things, he decided to resign. Koss will be replaced by Navy Capt. Greg McWherter.
"I performed a maneuver that had an unacceptably low minimum altitude,” Cmdr. Koss said in a statement, explaining a gesture which, if indeed caused by the dangerous maneuver, is a very rare bird these days, sort of speak: honor.
"This maneuver, combined with other instances of not meeting the airborne standard that makes the Blue Angels the exceptional organization that it is, led to my decision to step down."
Apparently, the maneuver which led to the current leader stepping down took place in Lynchburg, on May 21.
The Blue Angels came to be in 1946, now being the oldest formal flying aerobatic team in the world. Six pilots, selected from the United States Navy's best, fly at some 70 air shows across the US each year, on board F/A-18 Hornets. To date, the unofficial number of people who have seen the Blue Angels fly is 427 million.
However, being part of an aerial demonstration squadron comes with responsibilities which expand beyond looking out for your plane and your colleagues. You also have to look out for very solid principles. Principles that may seem exaggerated for most of us, but are law for the Blue Angels.
The team's leader, Navy Cmdr. Dave Koss, announced on Friday that, following a maneuver which is not in full sync with the squadron's way of doing things, he decided to resign. Koss will be replaced by Navy Capt. Greg McWherter.
"I performed a maneuver that had an unacceptably low minimum altitude,” Cmdr. Koss said in a statement, explaining a gesture which, if indeed caused by the dangerous maneuver, is a very rare bird these days, sort of speak: honor.
"This maneuver, combined with other instances of not meeting the airborne standard that makes the Blue Angels the exceptional organization that it is, led to my decision to step down."
Apparently, the maneuver which led to the current leader stepping down took place in Lynchburg, on May 21.
The Blue Angels came to be in 1946, now being the oldest formal flying aerobatic team in the world. Six pilots, selected from the United States Navy's best, fly at some 70 air shows across the US each year, on board F/A-18 Hornets. To date, the unofficial number of people who have seen the Blue Angels fly is 427 million.