Blue Angels' 2020 Season Could be in Trouble

Just a couple weeks after the Blue Angels announced their preliminary 2020 show schedule, a possible sequestration puts the 2020 season in danger.

Last week, Navy Secretary Richard Spencer submitted a document to Congress stating that if across-the-board cuts can’t be avoided in the Department of Defense’s budget by January of 2020, the Blue Angels will be among the first targeted in budget cuts.

According to DefenseNews, when the potential impact of a “mechanical sequestration” was presented to Congress, it showed 21 shows being cancelled for the Blue Angels in 2020, with only 29 shows on the list to begin with.

Unlike previous show seasons, the 2020 season was already scheduled to end earlier than usual, with the team’s annual homecoming show scheduled for mid-October rather than the beginning of November as it normally is. Sources tell us the shorter 2020 season was pre-determined in order to budget for the transition to the Super Hornet in the coming years, and that the 2021 season may be even shorter. A shorter demo may also be in the works in order to further decrease costs.

Outside the Blue Angels, a possible sequestration also affects fleet readiness, delaying deployments and forcing a change in structure. Congress has until January 15, 2020 to present a deal that forestalls sequestration, and hopefully they can do so in order to save the Blue Angels’ 2020 show season.

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