Posted on 08/11/2005 7:16:16 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
MONTEREY, Calif. (AP) - Retired Navy Capt. Roy M. "Butch" Voris, a World War II ace and the first flight leader of the Blue Angels, died at his home in Monterey, Calif., the precision flying team said Thursday. He was 86.
Voris, who died Wednesday, was hand-picked by Adm. Chester Nimitz in 1946 to organize the Blue Angels, now based at Pensacola Naval Air Station. The team made its first public performance June 15 that year at Craig Field in Jacksonville.
"Butch Voris' contributions to naval aviation history were epic," said Cmdr. Steve Foley, the Blue Angels' present flight leader, or "Boss." "The legacy Boss Voris bestowed upon the Blue Angels has had a profound impact on our team's 59-year history."
Officially, the Blue Angels were created to boost Navy morale, recruiting and public relations, Voris said in an interview with The Associated Press in 1996, when the team celebrated its 50th anniversary.
"World War II was over and the military was shrinking," Voris recalled. "All the good things the Navy had done ... they start to be forgotten."
Voris, however, said an underlying mission was to help the Navy generate public and political support for a bigger slice of the defense budget.
"My objective was to beat the Army Air Corps," he said. "If we did that, we'd get all the other side issues."
Voris shot down eight Japanese planes in the Pacific and survived several accidents during his 33-year Navy career. They including a midair collision during a Blue Angels show at Corpus Christi, Texas, in 1952. Another pilot was killed, but Voris managed to land his badly damaged plane.
He had returned to the Blue Angels for a second tour as flight leader that year as the squadron resumed its demonstration work after being deployed for a combat tour during the Korean War.
After retiring from the Navy in 1963, Voris became an executive at Grumman Aircraft Corp., in Bethpage, N.Y, where he helped develop the F-14 Tomcat fighter, of "Top Gun" fame and still in service with the Navy. He ended his aviation career as a NASA spokesman during the 1970s.
Voris, a native of Santa Cruz, Calif., is a member of the Hall of Fame at the National Museum of Naval Aviation in Pensacola. An aircraft bearing his name is displayed outside Jacksonville Naval Air Station and the passenger terminal there is named for him.
He is survived by two daughters, Randi Nothhaft, of Saratoga, Calif., and Jill Edwards, of Ben Lomond, Calif.
A memorial service is being planned, probably in October, at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, said Voris' son-in-law Hank Nothhaft.
An undated file photo provided by the Museum of Naval Aviation shows the first flight leader of the Navy's Blue Angels, Lt. Cmdr. Roy M. 'Butch' Voris. Voris, a retired Navy captain, World War II ace, died Wednesday at his home in Monterey, Calif., the precision flying team said Thursday, Aug. 11, 2005. He was 86. (AP Photo/National Museum of Naval Aviation, File)
Old pilots never die, they just go to a higher plane. RIP.
The FReeper Foxhole Studies Aerial Demonstration Teams - Part 3 - The Blue Angels - Dec. 6th, 2003
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-vetscor/1035045/posts
Lots of good Blue Angels pics on the FReeper Foxhole thread ..
Chocks are out, Cap - hand salute and thumbs up as you taxi out.
Thought you might like to see this ping.
That’s like another world, hard to imagine. Thanks.
He claimed that the name came from some sort of club in New York City. Supposedly they were there for some reason and went to a go-go club or something called the Blue Angel.
He said they were youngsters that liked to “get up and grunt and thrust” so they used the name.
Maybe not the same guy…
That’s why I like Lee Rodgers, BTW. He’s a crabby old codger but has varied interests and interviews interesting people that you actually remember. Or, at least you remember the interview even if you don’t remember the particular person that participated in it.
Ping
Sorry. I first saw the Blue Angels at McGuire AFB in the early 60s and he might still have been at the stick! May he reach out his hand and grasp the hand of God.
I remember once last year at Seafair in Seattle...during a Saturday show, one of the Blue's solo pilots actually...and accidentally...DID crack Mach 1. Large BOOM went out over Lake Washington, and everyone turned to each other and said "Did you hear that???"
RIP Capt. Voris....vertical climbout, 'burners full, Ceiling Unlimited....
I first remember these guys flying F9F jets, ala "Bridges At Toko-Ri", when I was a little kid.
Sad Regards
alfa6 ;>}
The T-Birds are impressive, even after watching their show for the 200th time.
The first time I saw the Blue Angels do a show at Nellis, I pretty much said what you said. T-Birds are not in the same class.
Did you catch the JATO C-130 take off?
That was just plain "un-natural" for a C-130 take off.... and a jaw-dropper for sure.
LVM
RIP, Butch. Vertical climbout, break the barrier, and we'll see you on the other side.
Bring it home, Capt. Well done.
Capt put his hand on the agent, and said, "I'll handle this."
He signed the poster with a grateful smile.
Thanks for the ping. Got your mail. ;-)
Thanks for the ping. I will forward to Hubby.
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