(COLORADO SPRINGS) — High in the sky above the Pikes Peak region on Thursday, Jan. 11, a blue and yellow blur soared through the clouds, though the lettering on the side of the vessel wouldn’t distinguish this elite team until touchdown: U.S. Navy Blue Angels.
Among the pilots who visited Southern Colorado on Thursday is U.S. Navy Lieutenant Commander Brian Vaught, who is no stranger to Colorado. He grew up in Englewood and graduated from the University of Colorado in Boulder.
“It’s a dream come true,” Vaught said. “I’m from Englewood, the Denver area, and I grew up here and Colorado will always have a special place in my heart. It’s really nice to be back, so I’m excited to show the rest of the team what the state has to offer.”
This visit comes as the Blue Angels will headline the Pikes Peak Regional Airshow in August for the first-time, and serves as a preparation for the upcoming show.
“We’re really at the groundwork level so we are identifying issues and problems and things that we’re going to run into, every show site has them it’s totally normal really,” Vaught said. “Luckily we have several months to plan out these but really we get with the FAA rep, so make sure everything is nice and safe, that’s the number one goal. “
LCDR Brian Vaught has a special connection to our state, growing up in Englewood.
Vaught, along with another pilot, greeted volunteers and board members of the Pikes Peak Regional Airshow, along with the Colorado Springs Sports Corporation.
“To have the Blue Angels headline means a lot to us, so having them come out months in advance is really exciting… getting that groundwork, getting all the questions out of the way, having them see for themselves the site, you know, ask all the right questions that they need,” said Colorado Springs Sports Corporation, Marketing Manager, Lauren DeMarco.
For Vaught, his path did not bring him immediately into service as he went to work in professional sports marketing and promotions after graduating college. Following, he went on to attend Officer Candidate School in Newport and in 2011 earned his commission as an Ensign in the U.S. Navy.
The Blue Angels will headline the Pikes Peak Regional Air Show in August for the first time ever.
“I like to think of myself as a little bit of a late bloomer and so we like to spread our message to the children that not everyone knows what they want to do right out of college and I was one of them,” Vaught said. “I was lucky enough to, I was working in Denver, and it was fly over at the Colorado Rockies baseball game that I was like, ‘you know what, I’m going to go try do that’.”
Throughout the years, he served in multiple roles with the U.S. Navy, accumulating more than 1,450 flight hours and over 250 carrier-arrested landings. It was in September 2022 that he joined the Blue Angels and now he hopes to inspire others to spread their wings.
“I’m lucky enough, very lucky to be here, very excited to be a part of this team,” Vaught said. “Hopefully if there’s other people out there who are maybe not quite sure what they want to do right away, that’s okay.”
The team puts on shows all across the country, to exemplify not only the skill but also professionalism and teamwork of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps.
“This will be our 78th season, started back in 1946,” Vaught stated. “So, we are very honored to be a part of that and if it does help recruit and retain some of the talent of this country, we’re absolutely willing to help with that.”
“I think the Blues kind of said it best is influencing the youth of today like, it’s so important, they’re our future and kind of having them see if they want to go into the military. Colorado Springs is a massive military community. We got several different branches here, so to kind of see them and dream big, I think is just really important and really special.”
The Pikes Peak Regional Air Show helps support local aviation museums throughout Southern Colorado including The Fort Carson 4th Infantry Division Museum, The Peterson Air and Space Museum, and The National Museum of WWII Aviation. But those tickets won’t last.
“They’re selling fast, again having the Blue Angels headline is huge, they’ve never performed in Colorado Springs before, so we’re really honored and excited to have them here,” said DeMarco.
The event is set to take place on August 17-18 and tickets can be purchased online. Additionally, DeMarco mentioned the need for volunteers to help out as they expect to see 30,000 people.
A group photo taken during the visit on Thursday afternoon.
While the show is still months away, this visit to the Pikes Peak region highlighted how determination can one day lead to a dream come true, especially for Vaught.
“All the attention to detail that will go into planning this airshow will be totally worth it,” said Vaught. “We’ll put out a safe demonstration and you’ll see the kids’ faces. Hopefully they’ll leave, maybe some of them will want to be pilots, and if not, they’ll go out and find what they want to do and do it to the best of their ability.”
