Captain Alex Armatas was the Commanding Officer and Flight Leader (aka Boss) of the U.S. Navy Blue Angels for the 2023 and 2024 seasons. In this exclusive and in depth "exit interview", we discuss his time on the team, how the demo is flown, and his thoughts on leaving the illustrious organization behind.
Special Thanks to the San Diego Air & Space Museum for hosting us in front of their former Blue Angel Legacy F/A-18A Legacy Hornet.
Special Thanks also to @PrestonMonoc for some of the B-Roll footage used in this video, as well as the DCS World Blue Angels @_wingflexaviation_ and @Coop22 for help with some of the more technical questions.
00:00 - Welcome to San Diego!
02:05 - How did it feel to end your tour?
03:56 - What was different than you expected?
05:22 - What did you say to Boss Brian?
06:52 - Early life and Navy career
08:45 - Applying for the Blues
10:59 - Priorities for year one
12:43 - Responsibilities of Boss
15:17 - How do you memorize so much?
17:01 - Learning from your wingmen
19:36 - Amanda Lee’s historic tour
22:10 - Saying goodbye to the 2023 team
24:32 - Second year priorities
26:42 - Relationship with the Thunderbirds
29:14 - The Super Delta
30:23 - Balancing family life with Blue Angel life
31:55 - Technically how are the maneuvers flown?
34:54 - Importance of hitting those numbers
36:26 - Adjusting the show mid-flight
38:50 - Do you try to tighten up the length of the show?
41:26 - Hardest Maneuver to master
43:40 - Favorite Maneuver
44:40 - Hardest Show Site
45:42 - The F-18’s “Tapes”
46:40 - Boss’s favorite Jet
49:02 - Carrying the Blue Angel ethos through life
51:34 - A light in the darkness