A Navy Blue Angels pilot died Thursday afternoon after his F/A-18 crashed during a practice air show in Smyrna, Tenn. The pilot was taking off to begin practice when the crash occurred, the Navy said. The other five jets were not involved, and all landed safely. The Navy did not release the name of the pilot Thursday evening, citing next-of-kin notification guidelines. The mishap occurred at 3 p.m. local time, roughly an hour after a Thunderbirds jet crashed in Colorado, within two miles of the air field. Navy Secretary Ray Mabus posted on Facebook that the Navy’s “deepest sympathy” is with the family and friends of the Blue Angels. Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson promised the Navy will investigate the accident and prevent anything similar from happening again. And in light of the crash, the Navy said, the Blue Angels will not perform in this weekend’s airshow.
The rate of building B-21 bombers would speed up if the fiscal 2026 defense budget passes. But it remains unclear how much capacity would be added, and whether the Air Force would simply build the bombers faster, or buy more.
