The House of Representatives ("House") was the source of two bills that called for commemorative coins to honor the US Navy's Flight Demonstration Team, the Blue Angels. The first was introduced by Earl Dewitt Hutto (D-FL) in May 1994 (103rd Congress) and the second by Charles Joseph "Joe" Scarborough (R-FL) in June 1995 (104th Congress).
Note: Representative Scarborough took up the mantle for the bill for Hutto, when the latter decided not to run for re-election to the 104th Congress.Each of the bills proposed a single-coin program - a Silver Dollar - to recognize the Blue Angels' 50th Anniversary; up to 500,000 coins were requested to be struck.
US Navy Blue Angels Logo - Current
(Image Credit: US Navy. Public Domain.)As "Findings" sections were not as ubiquitous at the time as they would become in later bills, Hutto's bill did not include one (nor did Scarborough's). Hutto did, however, offer a few remarks at the time he introduced his bill:
The year 1996 marks the 50th anniversary of the Blue Angels. To honor this occasion, I am introducing a bill to authorize the minting of $1 commemorative coins.
Millions of people have been dazzled by the high-speed flying exhibitions performed by the Blue Angels. In addition to their flying events, though, the pilot and their crews perform numerous good will and role model activities. In virtually every community in which the Blue Angels perform, the team visits high schools and hospitals, and opens practice shows for the disabled and the elderly to inspire people to achieve their highest potential.
The Blue Angels serve not only the Navy, but also our country. In 1992, the team expressed American good will to over 1 million people across Europe and Russia. The Blue Angels deserve our recognition, and I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.A bit more history from the Blue Angels web site:
In 1946, the Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Chester Nimitz, had a vision to create a flight exhibition team in order to raise the public's interest in naval aviation and boost Navy morale. In the 1940's, we thrilled audiences with our precision combat maneuvers in the F6 Hellcat, the F8 Bearcat and the F9 Panther. During the 1950's, we refined our demonstration with aerobatic maneuvers in the F9 Cougar and F-11 Tiger and introduced the first six-plane delta formation, still flown to this day. By the end of the 1960's, we were flying the F-4 Phantom, the only two seat aircraft flown by the delta formation. In 1974, we transitioned to the A-4 Skyhawk, a smaller and lighter aircraft with a tighter turning radius allowing for a more dynamic flight demonstration. In 1986, we celebrated our 40th Anniversary by unveiling the Boeing F/A-18 Hornet. In 2021, we transitioned to our current aircraft the Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornet and celebrated our 75th anniversary.The proposed Blue Angels coins were to be dated "1996", struck only in calendar year 1996 and be struck in Proof and Uncirculated versions with just one US Mint facility eligible to strike a particular quality of the coins minted.
The designs for coin were to be selected by the Secretary of the Treasury in consultation with the Commission of Fine Arts, with review by the Citizens Commemorative Coin Advisory Committee.(CCCAC). No specific design details were included in the bills - not even the generic "emblematic" statement.
A surcharge of $8.00 per Silver Dollar was to be included in each coin's Issue Price, with surcharge funds collected being paid into the General Fund of the US Treasury to help reduce the national debt.
The bills include the standard "Financial Assurances" language which specifies that no coins were to be issued until the Secretary of the Treasury had received full payment for them. Considering the coin bills had no third-party sponsor and were to be funded internally, the language of this section of the bill likely needed a bit more customization.
Hutto's bill was referred to the House Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs, with a further referral to its Subcommittee on Consumer Credit and Insurance. Scarborough's bill was referred to the newly-assigned House Committee on Banking and Financial Services, with a further referral to its Subcommittee on Domestic and International Monetary Policy. Both of the bills stalled after referral to Committee. Neither had the required number of co-sponsors for further action, and, with no outside sponsor, suffered from a general lack of Congressional advocacy.
In 2006, Canada commemorated the 35th Anniversary of its Snowbirds - its air acrobatics team - with a $5 silver coin. it features a double-holographic image vs. traditional engraving.
2006 Canada Snowbirds Silver $5 - Reverse
(Image Source: Royal Canadian Mint. Media Image.)For other of my posts about commemorative coins and medals, including other What If? and Canadian numismatic stories, see:
Commems Collection.
Posted 07/16/2025 2:55 pm
