First Blue News - October 2005
Original Blue Angel Honored With Aerial Farewell | October 12, 2005
By Lt. Garrett Kasper, Blue Angels Public Affairs
MONTEREY, Calif. (NNS) -- Retired Navy Capt. Roy M. “Butch” Voris, the original flight leader of the famed U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, was honored Oct. 10 with a memorial service at the Fort Ord chapel, followed by a six-plane missing man formation flyover by the Blue Angels in their blue and gold F/A-18 Hornets.
Voris died at his home in Monterey, Calif., Aug. 10. He was 86.
Full military honors were conducted outside the chapel following the memorial ceremony, which included a 21-gun salute and the traditional folding and presentation of the American flag. The service ended with the Blue Angel flyover at approximately 2:15 p.m.
“Butch Voris’ contributions to naval aviation history were epic,” said Cmdr. Steve Foley, flight leader and commanding officer of the 2005 Blue Angels. “Concluding his memorial service with a fly-by by the 2005 Blue Angel team will be a highlight of not only this season, but our careers as naval aviators as well. It truly reinforces our responsibility to preserve the legacy and ideals Boss Voris bestowed upon us 59 years ago.”
The service commemorated Voris’ life and his passion for naval aviation. It was peppered with notable speakers from his historic career as a World War II flying ace, the first Blue Angel, carrier air group commander, air show supporter and loyal friend.
“It was a fitting thrill and great comfort to our family,” said Hank Nothhaft, Voris’ son-in-law. “I know Butch was looking down at the proceedings with a twinkle in his eye and the thrill and pride that he always experienced whenever he watched the team perform.”
Voris, a World War II flying ace in the Pacific theater, was hand-picked by Adm. Chester Nimitz in 1946 to organize a flight demonstration team to showcase naval aviation. June 15 of that year, Voris led the newly-named Blue Angels and their Grumman F-6F Hellcats in the team’s first public performance at Craig Field in Jacksonville, Fla.
Voris’ Navy career spanned 33 years, flying everything from biplanes to jets, many of them in combat. His status as an ace was earned in the early years of the Pacific War when he shot down eight Japanese fighter planes. Flying from the carriers USS Enterprise (CV 6) and USS Hornet (CV 8), he had taken part in the battles of Santa Cruz, Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Central Pacific Islands, Philippine Sea, the Great Marianas Turkey Shoot, and “The Mission into Darkness,” in which air wing pilots had taken off near dusk to pursue the Japanese fleet, knowing many probably wouldn’t have enough gas to return.
In 1952, Voris was brought back to re-form the Blue Angels following their stint as a fighter squadron in the Korean War known as “Satan’s Kittens.” Voris was a two-time Blue Angel flight leader, the skipper of Fighter Squadrons (VF) 113 and 191, and commanding officer of Carrier Air Group 5.
After retiring from the Navy in 1963, he went to work as an executive at Grumman Aircraft Corporation, in Bethpage, NY, where he had been instrumental in the early development of the F-14 Tomcat. He ended his aviation career as a spokesman for NASA during the momentous 1970 moon shots.
Voris was awarded three Distinguished Flying Crosses, 11 air medals, three Presidential Unit Citations and a Purple Heart, when he almost was killed by a Japanese Zero that shot up his cockpit as he defended Guadalcanal.
Voris was inducted into the Navy Aviation Hall of Fame in Pensacola, Fla., and the International Air Show Hall of Fame. An aircraft bearing his name is outside Jacksonville Naval Air Station, and the Passenger Terminal at the station is named for him. In 1993, he was honored by the Air Force in a “Gathering of Eagles” ceremony as one of 20 pilots worldwide who had made significant contributions to aviation.
For more information on the Blue Angels, visit www.blueangels.navy.mil.
Butch Voris Memorial Service Backgrounder | October 05, 2005
Butch Voris, though very well known for his aviation accomplishments, never sought to bring attention or personal gain as a result of any of his many personal achievements. In that regards he was very humble and modest. However, he was willing to use his fame to promote his beloved Blue Angels for the betterment and advantage specifically of Naval Aviation and the Navy. As a result, in later life, he was a popular speaker, who spoke often about his many aviation adventures, in a humorous and self effacing manner. Particularly impressive was his ability to continue to relate to various generations of youthful Blue Angels fans. He was also very supportive and enthusiastic about the enlisted personnel that have supported the Team and Naval Aviation through his various tours. I will never cease to be amazed by the positive impact and impression that he made on so many people during his lifetime. What a wonderful legacy.
He had a few favorite sayings that tell a lot about his character.
One in particular was “Get it up, get it on, and get it down.” Though originally applied to his philosophy of Blue Angel Air Show performances, it became a broader philosophy statement later in life. His strong personality, insistence on excellence through pilot debriefs and commitment, and through teamwork, established a tradition that continues with the Blues today.
He also would joke about having used up at least 8 of his 9 lives through his exploits, and how looking back he wouldn’t have changed a thing. “I wish I could do it all over again.”
In a sense, the format for the Butch Voris Memorial Service is an attempt to do it all over again. The speakers chosen represent various facets of Butch’s life from WWII fighter ace, Blue Angels founder and leader, Air Group Commander, loyal friend, air show supporter and dedicated parent and grandparent. Included in the ceremony are his grandsons Hank and Ryan, his biographer Robert Wilcox, the author of “First Blue”, Russ Reiserer, a WWII Ace in his own right who joined the Navy the very same day that Butch joined, Dusty Rhodes, a WWII colleague, POW, who Butch chose to join the Blues and became their third leader, Wayne Handley, a former Navy pilot who is a famous stunt flier from the Air Show circuit, George Whisler, who commanded a fighter squadron in Butch’s Air Group, RADM Winston Copeland USN (Ret), fellow aviator to read a letter from Captain Dobson, CO NAS JAX, and Al Cheney, a close personal friend from the Santa Cruz area where Butch grew up. All emceed by Kathy Eby who met Butch through his support of the California Air Show in Salinas.
Butch led a long and full life, and accomplished a great deal, but the creation of the Blue Angel tradition was his crowning achievement. He was so proud of the Blue Angels and the personnel who maintain this tradition. He met with nearly every team leader and member during the lifetime of the team. He always looked forward to attending the pre air show and post air show briefings and the Team reunions. He meant so much to the Team and they meant so much to him. It is only fitting and a great thrill and comfort to his family, that after full military honors are rendered that the Blue Angels will participate in the Memorial Service by doing a missing man formation flyover. I know Butch will be looking down at the proceedings with a twinkle in his eye, and the thrill and pride that he always experienced when he watched the Team perform. His family will be ever grateful that The Blue Angels Flyover provided a fitting and official end to this remembrance. However, we great take pride and joy in the thought that Butch’s legacy will live on through the world’s greatest fliers and flight demonstration team, The Navy’s Blue Angels.