Look closely at the commemorative flight suit patch for Super Bowl LX and you’ll notice what appears to be an anomaly: while the military aircraft flyover on Sunday is set to include Air Force B-1 Lancer bombers and F-16C Eagle fighters alongside Navy F/A-18 Super Hornets and F-35C Lightning fighters, the patch includes silhouettes of another advanced fighter jet: the Air Force F-22 Raptor.
According to a planner for the flyover, that’s not a mistake, but evidence of operational needs taking priority.
Katie Spencer, the Sports Outreach Program manager for the Department of the Air Force, said the initial flyover plan included a pair of F-22s, to showcase the most advanced jets from both services.
“We wanted 5th-generation aircraft from the Air Force and 5th-generation aircraft from the Navy,” Spencer told Military Times in a Friday interview. “But as things happen in our military, you know, operational tempo has increased, and so the F-22s got pulled for some operational assignments.”
While Spencer did not go into details about operational needs, F-22s in June played a key role in Operation Midnight Hammer, the B-2 Spirit bomber-led strike campaign on Iranian nuclear facilities. In January and early February, an undisclosed variety of U.S. aircraft conducted strikes on ISIS sites in Syria in a mission dubbed Operation Hawkeye Strike.
Even for the aircraft approved to conduct the Super Bowl flyover, Spencer stressed — as officials have done in the past — that the flyover represented training time for aircrews, and did not require additional taxpayer funding.
“These flyovers serve as time-over-target training for our crews,” she said. “They serve as recovery efforts with our maintainers. And so the reason that we are so proficient at operations like Midnight Hammer and other things that you’ll see is because we can replicate those real world scenarios with this type of flying.”
To complete the formation, Spencer said, F-16s from Fresno Air National Guard Base, California, were tapped late in planning to join the flyover.
“Our Guard members have stepped in to fill that role, and we’re super grateful for that,” Spencer added.
With theming focused on the 250th anniversary of the United States, planners wanted to make the flyover unique and symbolic of the greatest of American airpower. It’s the first time that the Air Force and Navy have teamed up for a joint Super Bowl flyover, officials with both services noted.
The B-1, known by its fans as “the Bone,” was an easy choice to lead the formation, according to Spencer.
“We wanted a unique display of air power,” she said. “Our bombers are beloved by everybody, and they really replicate what it means to be time over target at a certain point. So it was a no-brainer to have bombers in this formation.”
The F-35Cs, the Navy’s carrier landing-capable version of the Joint Strike Fighter, represent 5th-generation power; while the F/A-18 and F-16 are also beloved and iconic jets, said Spencer.
“While we have a lot of aircraft in our inventory, we thought that this would be the coolest formation,” Spencer said. “And the loudest.”
On the ground, a joint color guard dispatched from the Military District of Washington will render honors, involving the other services in the display.
“This prestigious inter-service team from the Capitol’s region combining members from the Navy, Air Force, Army, Marines, Coast Guard, and Space Force provide unparalleled ceremonial precision and national representation,” Navy officials said in a release.
Spencer said the flyover was the result of roughly a year of planning and coordinating with the National Football League, NBC broadcasters and Federal Aviation Administration, among others.
The effect, she said, should be impressive — especially so because of the venue: Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, home of the San Francisco 49ers. As it’s a conventional stadium, rather than a dome, Spencer said the larger-than-typical flyover formation was possible.
“And so I think the fans are really going to see something special, and they’re going to hear something special,” Spencer said. “They’re going to feel the sound of freedom in the pits of their soul when this formation flies over.”
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