Midshipmen Unveil Special Uniforms Inspired By Fighter Jets For Army-Navy Game

ANNAPOLIS, MD — Navy football will wear special uniforms inspired by fighter jets for this weekend's rivalry game against Army. The Midshipmen unveiled these threads, called the 2021 "Fly Navy" uniform, on Nov. 30.

The left side of the helmets features the Navy's most-utilized multirole fighter jet, the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. The Navy is the only branch that flies this aircraft. The F/A-18 Super Hornet is also the plane flown by the Blue Angels, the Navy's flight demonstration team.

The right side of the helmets and both shoulders of the jerseys display the roundel. This symbol adorns aircraft from all military branches.

The back of the helmets sports three wings representing the trio of career paths in naval aviation. Those are pilot, flight officer and air crew.

Every helmet was hand-painted. They took about three hours each to complete, meaning it to nearly six months to produce these Under Armour uniforms.

"This monochrome color palette is accented by the red, white, and blue colors drawn from the United States military aircraft roundel," Navy Athletics said in a press release. "Every detail of these custom masterpieces is color-matched to the uniform, tying the ensemble together in a meaningful and visually accurate way."

The final highlight is a patch on the upper left chest for the Strike Fighter Wing, U.S. Atlantic Fleet. This stitching honors the flight team based out of Naval Air Station Oceana in Virginia. The wing has more than 16 fighter squadrons that each has about 10 aircraft, 22 officers and 190 enlisted personnel.

"Responsibilities of a naval aviator may include searching for underwater threats, delivering payloads of incredible firepower or critical manpower, and executing strategic aerial maneuvers anywhere from the stratosphere to just hundreds of feet above the sea," Navy Athletics said. "Naval aviators fly some of the most innovative and high-tech aircraft in the world."

Around 300 U.S. Naval Academy graduates are selected annually for training to become flight officers or pilots. Navy punter Ben Fee will train to be a flight officer. His teammates Daniel Taylor and Chance Warren will head to pilot school.

Fans can learn more about the uniforms at this link. They can buy matching apparel on this website.

A promotional video is shown below. It was filmed at Naval Air Station Oceana and aboard the USS George H.W. Bush, the only aircraft carrier named after a naval aviator.

Army-Navy Game

The Navy Midshipmen (3-8) will take on the Army Black Knights (8-3) on Saturday at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Kickoff is at 3 p.m. CBS will air the game nationally.

Army beat Navy 15-0 in last year's contest. The Black Knights have won four of the last five match-ups, but the Midshipmen lead the all-time series 61-53-7.

RELATED:

• Army-Navy Game: Midshipmen To Run Football To NJ, Host Pep Rally
• Army Nabs Navy Goat Mascots In 2nd Heist Before Rivalry Game: NYT
• Army Cadets Try To Steal Navy's Live Mascot Before Game: Report
• Retired Naval Academy Mascot Passes At Age 14

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