Great interview. Was a pleasure being friends with his Crew Chief Don Clark would love to see interviews and more information on the great ground crew that keeps the jets in the air. Salute to all the BLUES
As a little feller, I would be so excited when the air show would come to Kissimmee, Fl. I remember the Blue Angel pilots would walk down the flight line and sign autographs and one particular Blues pilot stopped and looked at me with my University of Tennessee hat on and said “Young man, I really love that hat you’re wearing” as he signed my program and shook my hand. It was Curt Watson. Thank you for sharing this and a fond memory.
Was a A4 plane captain for 12 years 78 -90 with VMA 223 until we transitioned to the AV8B. I watched you fly in numerous shows and when we were training in el centro ... awesome story and thank you for sharing it with us...
What a heartwarming story ! The humility, modesty & utmost probity with which all these heroes carry themselves is phenomenal. It never fails to inspire me whenever I listen to them speak about their life. 😊
Love this series on the Blue Angels history as told by former team members!!!!. Such an amazing number of moving and revealing testimonies on a timeless team. Go Navy!!!!. Go Blue Angels!!!!.
You know, these mini documentaries are so awesome. So well done. Thank you for doing this, they are so valuable for the history of the Blues and aviation in general.
Amazing airshow in 1985 when you and the team visited Puerto Rico performing in San Juan. That was the last time I saw the Blues in the A-4F Skyhawk. Still have videos from you and your 1985 team, an outstanding team.
Thanks, Michael. I love meeting these amazing people and sharing their stories. Thanks so much for sharing your appreciation. I’m always thrilled when I get comments like yours.
Another great interview/video. Brings back memories of watching the little A-4 fly at Deer Valley airport in Phoenix. Looking forward to the next one. Thank You.
Ryan, I was just thinking when are you dropping another video.. bam..These are some of the best videos on RU-vid. Your work is getting better and better with each story. THANK YOU!!!
Thank you so much for your kind words. It's humbling to know that you hold my channel in such high regard. The Blue Angels alumni are no doubt a special group of people and I'm honored when any of them agree to let me document their stories. More to come!
Curt is my second cousin and as a child I remember attending his airshows arriving with a police escort and just being awe struck by the entire day!! I remember my father taking me out of grade school one day and going to Deer Valley Airport to meet up with Curt and I was allowed to sit in his jet! Meeting the entire team and having breakfast with them all. Words cannot explain how cool that was to me. What an amazing experience! Curt inspired me to join the Navy and spent 4 of the best years of my life serving our country as a Hospital Corpsman with the Marines on Camp Pendleton. Thank you Griz!
Thanks for an incredible interview! Congrats on your tour with The Blues, and thanks for your service! Never heard that story about Tom C before, seems like GRIZ made a smart choice!
As a 8-10 year old kid, I remember watching the Blue Angel A4s fly over my apartments in Grand Prairie, Tx. They flew out of Dallas NAS when they were in town. They always put on amazing shows and are my all time favorites! The Thunderbirds are really cool also, but I grew up watching the Blues. Great childhood memories!
I was a young Second Class Air Traffic Controller in Milton, FL stationed at Whiting Field. Before I transfered to USS Ranger it was a great experience to see this man and the team perform at their season finale at NAS Pensacola in 1984. What a great show in the 'scooter' A-4 Skyhawk. I still wish I could have seen them in the Phantom II.
Griz's sister was going through Navy flight training at the same time as I so I got to meet Griz a couple of times. Once must have been when he was interviewing for the Blues the first time and visited NAS Corpus Christi in his A-7 to meet with the folks at the Chief of Naval Air Training (CNATRA) HQ. My first and I lived aboard Miramar from mid-'83 to fall '87 so between rehearsals and shows, I got to see the Blues many times through the 80s.
I graduated with Curt from high school. As a grade school football player I would lie on the ground and grab his ankle and trip him. He always accused me of hiding behind a blade of grass because I was so small, 84 pounds. Later, I made the mistake of trying to grab his waist and tackle him. He nearly beat me to death with his thighs :) I have watched Curt throughout his career, and he is the only person I ever met you truly lived up to his potential in everything he tried. He was naturally physically gifted, but he also gave 150% to everything he did, school, sports, flying later on with Fed Ex and as a husband and father. I am proud to call him my friend, and I can assure you everyone in Crossville, Tennessee remembers the "Crossville Comet" as THE greatest football player to ever come out of Cumberland County High School and one of the greatest at the University of Tennessee. Even more, he is a good person, which, in the end, is what really counts. His fame never went to his head.
