The first female pilot ever to fly with the U.S. Navy Blue Angels will be flying for hometown fans at the OC Air Show on June 13-14, 2015 in Ocean City, Maryland.
Marine Capt. Katie Higgins, a third generation military aviator, is originally from Severna Park, Md., and she is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy. She then went to Georgetown University for a Masters in International Security and later started flight school training in Pensacola, Fla., in 2009.
She is one of three Blue Angel pilots who fly the C-130 Hercules, known as “Fat Albert”, and Higgins will be taking the controls during the Ocean City show. The cargo plane carries all the necessary personnel and supplies for the Blue Angels performance and performs a demonstration for the crowd on Saturday and Sunday during the air show as well.
Katie has flown almost 400 combat hours in support of numerous operations and exercises in Afghanistan, Djibouti, France, Greece, South Sudan, Spain, and Uganda. Katie joined the Blue Angels in September 2014. She has accumulated more than 1,000 flight hours. Her decorations include five Air Medals, and various unit and personal awards.
“We are excited to welcome Katie to Ocean City and we know all of Maryland is proud of her,” said Bryan Lilley, President of the OC Air Show. “She will add even more excitement to this amazing lineup with the U.S. Navy Blue Angels, the Breitling Jet Team, and the F-22 Raptor Demo Team. Those are three of the biggest acts in the air show industry, all performing in the same year.”
Save 25 percent off day-of admission pricing by purchasing in advance through May 15th. Saturday’s VIP Penthouse tickets are already sold out so please hurry and buy your tickets today. For more information and to purchase tickets visit www.ocairshow.com or call (877) 722-2927.
