VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – An experience of a lifetime. That’s how I would describe the opportunity I was given Tuesday to fly with the Navy’s Elite Flight Demonstration Squadron the Blue Angels. After getting a safety briefing and going over procedures with the crew chief, I was safely strapped into the backseat of Blue Angels Jet 7, barreling down the runway at Naval Air Station Oceana. Lt. Brandon Hempler had us airborne within seconds, quickly flying over Virginia Beach and then out over the Atlantic Ocean. It was there where Lt. Hempler put me through the paces, demonstrating the capabilities of the F/A-18 Hornet and showing off many of the moves the Blue Angels perform during air shows. Parting the clouds and touching the sky was unreal. From flying inverted over the ocean, climbing tens of thousands of feet into the air, and going so fast we broke the sound barrier, the experience was like nothing I had ever been through before. “You did awesome. That was a great flight. That was a lot of fun, wasn’t it?,” Lt. Hempler asked. “We broke the sound barrier. So everyone wants to know how fast we went. We went Mach 1.03 over [...]