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Military

Blue Angels Fly One Of Final Shows In El Centro Before Sequestration Grounding (Video)

The Blue Angels held their first (and possibly one of their last) shows of the season this past Saturday at the Naval Air Facility El Centro Air Show.

Sequestration cuts are expected ground the Navy's Blue Angels and the Air Force's Thunderbirds next week.

The final flight demonstration planned for both elite flight squadrons is March 24 in Florida, according to USA Today.

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Defense spending researcher Todd Harrison of the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments told USA Today that while the savings of grounding the squadrons may be small, it must be done when crucial military programs face the budget ax:

"As a strictly budget matter, these are low priority from a military perspective. Flyovers and air shows don't help you defend the nation."

NAF El Centro is the winter home of the Blue Angels. KSWT-TV hung out with the squadron before they performed Saturday. I've posted that video up top (try not to let the anchors playing musical chairs distract you).