The Boeing Company has awarded Summit Aviation a follow-on Oil Tank System contract to support the Navy’s Blue Angels flight demonstration team aircraft upgrade, from the F/A-18C/D Hornet to the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet.
In August 2018, the Navy awarded The Boeing Company the contract to configure nine F/A-18E and two F/A-18F aircraft to the standard Blue Angels’ aircraft structure and modify to accommodate the team’s unique needs. One of the key items of that installation is the oil tank storage system. Summit Aviation was awarded the first contract for the tank systems in October 2018. The system is employed during the flight to pump a special oil back through the jet’s engine to produce the air show smoke that helps onlookers follow the team’s path through the sky while demonstrating its aerobatic maneuvers.
“The Navy’s Blue Angels are legendary,” said director of Manufacturing for Summit Aviation Scott Roush. “We are extremely proud Boeing has chosen Summit Aviation to help support this impressive program.”
Summit is providing a total of 18 units through its manufacturing facilities in Somerset, Kentucky and Kernersville, North Carolina.