Amanda Lee Became The First Female To Be Navy Blue Angels Pilot

Lt. Amanda Lee of the United States Navy has been named the team’s first female demonstration pilot. On July 18, the Blue Angels announced on their Facebook page that Lee will be joining the elite unit. The F/A-18 Super Hornet pilot is now assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 106, which is based at Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia.

According to the social media post, Lt. Lee is one of six officers chosen to join the legendary squad for the 2023 air performances. Although ladies have served the elite Blue Angels in various roles for more than 55 years, this will be the first time since the club’s founding in 1946 that the air show team will feature a female pilot.

Everything You Need to Know About Amanda Lee

Amanda Lee was born in Mounds View, Minnesota. She was a University of Minnesota student who opted to join the Navy after graduating. According to the US Navy, she joined and graduated from Recruit Training Command in Great Lakes in 2007, and then started working as an aircraft electronics technician. She received her commission in 2013 after being chosen to participate in the Seaman-to-Admiral Commissioning Program.

That same year, she graduated from Old Dominion University with a degree in Biochemistry. Amanda Lee joined the United States Navy as a naval aviator in April 2016. Amanda Lee was one of nine pilots that paid tribute to the late Captain Rosemary Bryant Mariner by participating in a women-only flyover following her death in 2019.

According to the New York Post, Amanda Lee thanked Mariner for her service to the Navy in order to ensure that “equal chances” are no longer in our language for future generations. Prior to Lee, Marine Major Katie Higgins joined the Blue Angels in 2015, becoming the squadron’s first female pilot. From 2014 until 2016, she piloted the C-130 Hercules cargo plane, commonly known as Fat Albert. Being chosen to fly with the Blue Angels is a great honor since the squadron acts as the ambassador of US Naval Aviation.

According to the website of the United Services Organization:

“The Blue Angels’ objective is to demonstrate the Navy and Marine Corps’ competence and coordination via flying exhibitions and community engagement.”

 

Lt. Lee is one of five new squadron members that were revealed on July 18, 2022. LCDR Thomas Zimmerman, LCDR Brian Vaught, Capt. Samuel Petko, LCDR Greg Jones, and Lt. Philippe Warren are among the others. The newest recruits will join the squadron for a two-month stint in September 2022. The 2022 air performance will conclude in November, after which the newly joined personnel will face a five-month hard training program at California’s Naval Air Facility and NAS Pensacola.

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