Watching the Blue Angels this weekend - What frequencies?

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dboy4ever

Filing Flight Plan
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Chris
Hi all,

We're going to be watching the Blue Angels perform during the Fleet Week here in San Fran this weekend. Can we listen in on their frequencies with my transceiver (a sweet Sporty SP-400 :D)? If so, what frequencies?

Thank you - Chris
 
VHF is in the boxes (as are Marine freqs) but just not used all that much. Kind of a high wing / low wing thing, with the Navy preferring high.
 
Yup, they use UHF here at Pensacola (at least for practice).

They probably have VHF in the jets (lucky b@$tards) but normally use UHF.
 
Besides they are so noisy, will you actually hear much?
And if you have ever heard their chatter, its not all that interesting.
"starting the right turn 2,3,4,...smoke....ON, tighten it up.." and the intermittent semi-singing/chanting.
 
This past summer I was on the ramp with them and one had to hold for me to exit so he could get in. I was on VHF and I never heard him, but ground was talking to both of us, so I am assuming he was on UHF.
 
Hey, someone else from the Bay Area. I'm planning on watching them this weekend, too. Their practice today looked like fun!
 
I've taken a scanner along a couple of times and found the channel in use quite easily. Don't remember if it was UHF or VHF but chances are it would be UHF because there aren't many channels they could legally use on VHF. Just guessing that the military pilots don't like to use frequencies illegally. I remember on one Blue Angel performance at Duluth two of the airplanes actually swapped paint and there was a fairly interesting discussion of the event on the air between the pilots and the ground crew. Also the lead pilot spent a lot of time humming/singing/chanting things like "Pullllllll, Pulllllll, Pullll harder now"
 
gismo said:
I've taken a scanner along a couple of times and found the channel in use quite easily. Don't remember if it was UHF or VHF but chances are it would be UHF because there aren't many channels they could legally use on VHF. Just guessing that the military pilots don't like to use frequencies illegally.
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Not an issue for them -- the FCC issues them any freqs they need that aren't already assigned to the military. However, I suspect they stick to UHF because air show attendees and other nonmilitary don't normally have UHF transmitters which could be used either intentionally or inadvertently to sabotage their performance.

Also the lead pilot spent a lot of time humming/singing/chanting things like "Pullllllll, Pulllllll, Pullll harder now"
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When you're maneuvering in formation that close, knowing exactly what lead's doing before/as s/he does it is essential to staying tightly together. The "patter" lead's calling is how they accomplish that. I do much the same when leading a 4-ship of Grummans through a nonaerobatic demo routine -- it really helps make the formation look better.
 
Ron Levy said:
Not an issue for them -- the FCC issues them any freqs they need that aren't already assigned to the military. However, I suspect they stick to UHF because air show attendees and other nonmilitary don't normally have UHF transmitters which could be used either intentionally or inadvertently to sabotage their performance.
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Do you know of any VHF frequencies assigned to the military for air to air comm? I don't recall ever seeing such.

When you're maneuvering in formation that close, knowing exactly what lead's doing before/as s/he does it is essential to staying tightly together. The "patter" lead's calling is how they accomplish that. I do much the same when leading a 4-ship of Grummans through a nonaerobatic demo routine -- it really helps make the formation look better.
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Yeah, I knew what he was doing, I was just surprised at the "tone". During some portions he was literally singing, albeit off key and with few different notes.
 
gismo said:
Do you know of any VHF frequencies assigned to the military for air to air comm? I don't recall ever seeing such.
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Yes, there are VHF discrete freq's assigned to each fighter wing. F-16's only have 1 UHF & 1 VHF radio so they always use the VHF for inter-flight freq's.

Another reason they might use UHF is that Hornets were originally 2x UHF radios only - we still only have UHF in the Eagle. I'm sure the Angels probably got a VHF radio in there by now, but UHF is the standard in mil aviation.
 
EvilEagle said:
Another reason they might use UHF is that Hornets were originally 2x UHF radios only - we still only have UHF in the Eagle. I'm sure the Angels probably got a VHF radio in there by now, but UHF is the standard in mil aviation.
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While the Blues have the oldest F-18's in the Navy inventory, I have heard them on VHF.
 
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