Who is Amanda Lee? All about the first Navy Blue Angels female pilot

U.S. Lt. Amanda Lee has been appointed as the first female demonstration pilot for the Navy's famed Blue Angels team.

On July 18, the Blue Angels took to their Facebook handle to announce that Lee would appear in the elite unit. The F/A-18 Super Hornet pilot is currently allotted to the "Gladiators" of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 106 that is stationed at Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia.

As per the social media post, Lt. Lee is one of the six officers selected to join the famed team for the 2023 air performances.

Although females have been serving the elite Blue Angels for more than 55 years now in different capacities, this will be the first time since the team's inception in 1946 that the air show team will have a female pilot.

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Everything you need to know about Amanda Lee

Amanda Lee is a native of Mounds View, Minnesota. She was a student at the University of Minnesota, where she decided to pursue a career in the Navy.

As per the U.S. Navy, in 2007, she enrolled and graduated from Recruit Training Command in Great Lakes, and began working as an aviation electronics technician. In 2013, she got her commission after she was selected to participate in the Seaman-to-Admiral Commissioning Program.

That same year, she earned a degree in Biochemistry from Old Dominion University.

In April 2016, Amanda Lee joined the US Navy as a naval aviator. In 2019, Amanda Lee became one of the nine pilots who paid homage to the late Captain Rosemary Bryant Mariner by participating in a women-only flyover after she passed away.

As per the New York Post, Amanda Lee credited Mariner for her contribution to the Navy so that "‘equal opportunities won’t be in our vocabulary in future generations."

Before Lee, it was Marine Major Katie Higgins who joined the Blue Angels in 2015 and was the first woman to fly with the squadron. She flew the C-130 Hercules transport aircraft from 2014 to 2016, which was also referred to as Fat Albert.

Getting selected to fly with the Blue Angels is considered quite an honor since the squadron serves as the ambassadors of the U.S. Naval Aviation.

The United Services Organization website states that:

"The Blue Angels’ mission is to showcase the skill and teamwork of the Navy and Marine Corps through flight demonstrations and community outreach."

Lt. Lee is one of the five new members of the squadron that were announced on July 18, 2022. Other names include LCDR Thomas Zimmerman, LCDR Brian Vaught, Capt. Samuel Petko, LCDR Greg Jones, and Lt. Philippe Warren.

The newest recruits will be joining the squadron in September 2022 for a two-month period. The 2022 air performance will end in November, following which the recently added members will undergo a rigorous training program for five months at California's Naval Air Facility and NAS Pensacola.