When the Navy’s Blue Angels pierce through San Diego’s skies this weekend performing daring aerobatics at the Miramar Airshow, Katie Higgins will be in the cockpit of the elite team's C130, known as Fat Albert.
“I only fly the Fat Albert, “ Higgins said. “I’ve flown it my entire career. She’s my baby and I wouldn’t want to fly anything else.”
Higgins, 29, is the first female pilot to perform with the Blue Angels. Earning her wings took perseverance, she said.
“I studied really hard in flight school and it ended up paying off,” said Higgins, a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy. “A lot of it had to do with really great timing, and then I ended up thankfully being selected for this position and it has been a wild ride and it’s awesome.”
Higgins is a third-generation aviator from Severna Park, Maryland. Her father flew a hornet. She deployed to Afghanistan in 2013, and has flown nearly 400 combat hours.
She said she’s never felt competition among her male copilots, just a lot of camaraderie.
“They see me just like one of their own. They treat me like their sister,” Higgins said. “They’re obviously protective just like they are of each other.”
"I think I finally came along and was the right puzzle piece for this team," Higgins added.
Some of Higgins’ daring airshow maneuvers include 45-degree climbs, steep nosedives and low passes.
She said she feels honored to fly over Miramar.
“It’s an awesome location because we are in a very large military presence and that’s why we exist,” she said. “To remember and to bring attention to those people that are overseas still fighting to keep us free.”
Higgins hopes she’s paving a path for more women to join the team. Her advice: “work hard.”
“It’s the hard times, it’s the rough seas, it’s the obstacles that you have to overcome that shape you as a person and shape me as a Marine and shape me as an aviator."
The Blue Angels are scheduled to perform at the annual Miramar Airshow on Oct. 2, 3 and 4 at 2:45 p.m. A twilight show is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on Saturday. Gates will open each day at 8:15 a.m.
