Laux, No. 6 opposing solo pilot during the 2026 season, was removed for failing to meet the standards expected of squadron members, said the Navy. It appears the PAO, Capt. Danielle Cribb, was also quietly removed last month.
The U.S. Navy has removed Marine Corps Maj. Scott Laux, the Blue Angels’ No. 6 opposing solo pilot, from the flight demonstration team, citing a failure to meet the standards expected of its members. The decision, announced on Nov. 6, 2026, will see Laux miss the team’s annual homecoming air show at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida.
The airshow at NAS Pensacola is the last performance of the season, and is held on Nov. 6 and 7. The Blue Angels already flew with only five jets on the first day of the airshow, according to the Pensacola News Journal who first reported Laux’s removal.
The circumstances surrounding the decision remain unclear, with Navy officials providing no further details. According to the Chief of Naval Air Training (CNATRA) public affairs office, Laux was removed from the Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron for “failing to uphold the standards expected of members of the Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron.”
Officials have not disclosed when the decision was made, nor whether it was connected to a disciplinary matter or an investigation. Noteworthy, Laux’s photograph and biography have since been removed from the Blue Angels’ official website.
It appears that Maj. Laux was not the only one to be removed from the team. In fact, it appears that the Blue Angels’ Pubblic Affair Officer, USMC Capt. Danielle Cribb, was also quietly removed, and both her photo and bio are missing on the team’s website.
The popular website Wayback Machine stored two recent snapshot of the Blue Angels’ website, one from Aug. 7 and the other from Oct. 16, and the former was the last to feature Capt. Cribb. At the time of writing, there are no reports or official statements about the PAO’s removal, and we can’t verify when her photo and bio were removed from the website.
Who is Maj. Scott Laux?
Laux is a Marine Corps aviator from Chantilly, Virginia, who joined the Blue Angels in 2024. He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 2012 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Chinese before proceeding through Marine officer training and flight school.
After completing flight training, Laux earned his wings of gold in 2015 and went on to fly the F/A-18 Hornet with Marine fighter-attack squadrons. His operational experience included assignments with units based at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, California, and deployments aboard the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz.
Before joining the Blue Angels, Laux had accumulated more than 1,300 flight hours and 169 carrier landings, according to his now-removed official biography. He joined the team for the 2024 season as a pilot, and later served as the narrator in the 2025 season.
In 2026, he moved to the No. 6 position, flying as the opposing solo. In this position, he was responsible for a series of high-speed passes, opposing maneuvers and other elements that highlight the aircraft’s performance and the precision required for the team’s demonstrations, complementing the maneuvers of the formation.
Previous suspensions and removals
Although relatively uncommon, the removal or suspension of pilots and commanders from military demonstration teams is not unprecedented.
In November 2017, the U.S. Air Force relieved Lt. Col. Jason Heard, commander and No. 1 pilot of the Thunderbirds, citing a loss of confidence in his leadership and risk-management style. The decision followed a successful demonstration season that included 72 performances at 39 locations, with the Air Force clarifying that it was unrelated to an earlier F-16 accident at Dayton.
As we reported back then, according to most definitions, military “loss of confidence” is when a party is, “inadequate in some respect, are failing to carry out obligations, or are making decisions that other members feel are detrimental.”
The Thunderbirds had experienced one accident under the command of Lt. Col. Heard: on June 23, 2017, during an orientation flight for an enlisted maintenance team member, Thunderbird #8, piloted by Capt. Erik “Speedy” Gonsalves, slid off a runway the day before the Vectren Dayton Airshow in Dayton, Ohio. It was raining at the time. The Thunderbird F-16 rolled during the accident and came to rest upside down.
In February 2019, Capt. Zoe Kotnik, the first female commander and demonstration pilot of the F-16 Viper Demo Team, was relieved of command after just two weeks, again following a loss of confidence in her ability to lead the team.
Just two days later, the Navy confirmed the suspension of an unnamed Blue Angels member pending an investigation into allegations of misconduct. The individual was reportedly not one of the team’s numbered demonstration pilots.
More recently, in 2022, the RAF’s Red Arrows faced a series of personnel controversies, including the suspension of Flt Lt Will Cambridge amid allegations of misconduct (an alleged affair) and the departure of Sqn Ldr Nick Critchell, who reportedly resigned over concerns about the team’s internal “toxic culture,” although the RAF attributed his departure to personal reasons and a different career opportunity.
The personnel changes contributed to the Red Arrows performing with just seven aircraft instead of their traditional nine-aircraft formation.
