Blue Angels Pilot Major Scott Laux Removed Over Standards ‘Failing’ - Newsweek

A Blue Angels pilot has been removed from the elite flight demonstration team for "failing to uphold the standards expected," the U.S. Navy has said.

“Blue Angel #6 was removed from the team for failing to uphold the standards expected of members of the Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron and will not participate in the team’s remaining performance this season,” the Chief of Naval Air Training public affairs office said in a statement provided to the Pensacola News Journal.

Marine Corps Major Scott Laux is listed as the Blue Angels’ designated No. 6 opposing solo pilot for the 2026 season.

Chief of Naval Air Training (CNATRA) confirmed to the News Journal that Laux was removed from the flight demonstration squadron and will not appear in the homecoming air show.

Officials did not immediately make public the specific reason for the removal or the date he was removed. No disciplinary allegation or flight-safety incident has publicly been identified in connection with the removal.

Laux's photograph and biography appeared to have been removed from the Blue Angels’ official website.

Newsweek contacted Laux by phone on Saturday and was told he was currently "unavailable." Newsweek also contacted the U.S. Navy for further comment.

Laux was the Blue Angels’ designated No. 6 pilot for the 2026 season, flying the opposing solo position.

The squadron performed with five jets rather than its customary six in the November 6 Homecoming Air Show at Naval Air Station (NAS) Pensacola in Florida.

The November 6 and 7 event, which marks the team’s final performance of the year, is also celebrating the base’s 200th anniversary. The Blue Angels are separately marking their 80th anniversary in 2026.

The team’s 2026 schedule included 65 flight demonstrations across 32 locations between March and mid-November, according to its official support manual.

The Blue Angels, formally known as the Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, are based at NAS Pensacola and fly the F/A-18 Super Hornet.

According to the Navy, the squadron’s mission is to demonstrate the “teamwork and professionalism” of Navy and Marine Corps aviation while promoting “a culture of excellence and service to country.”

The Blue Angels comprise 158 active-duty sailors and Marines, including approximately 100 enlisted maintenance and support personnel.

Some 17 officers serve voluntarily with the squadron, which typically selects three tactical jet pilots, two support officers, and one Marine C-130J pilot each year to replace departing members.

Laux, from Chantilly, Virginia, graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 2012 and earned his naval aviator wings in 2015, according to a biography page that was previously published on the official Blue Angels website.

His operational career included assignments flying F/A-18C and F/A-18D Hornets and a deployment aboard the USS Nimitz in 2020. He was later selected to transition to the F-35C Lightning II and served as an instructor pilot with Strike Fighter Squadron 125.

Laux joined the Blue Angels in 2024 and served as the team’s narrator during the 2025 season before becoming its opposing solo pilot. He is credited with more than 1,300 flight hours and 169 arrested carrier landings, as well as two Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medals.

The Navy has not said whether another pilot will replace Laux or clarified his military assignment following his departure from the demonstration squadron.

Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story. Learn more about Martyn here.

Contact Newsweek editors for this story: Matthew Cannon and Anthony Murray.