VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The commanding officer for the Oceana-based Strike Fighter Squadron 81 is taking on a new assignment: leading the Blue Angels.
Commander Brian Kesselring was selected to succeed Captain Eric Doyle as the commanding officer for the elite squadron's 2020 and 2021 seasons, the US Navy announced last week.
Commander Kesselring will report for initial training in Pensacola, Florida in September and officially take command of the squadron in November.
In addition to serving as commanding officer of VFA-81, Kesselring has served four squadron tours where he flew the F/A-18 Hornet and deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation New Dawn, Operation Enduring Freedom, and Operation Inherent Resolve.
Kesselring and his air wing recently returned home from a tour overseas.
"We had a chance to go out there and fight ISIS, reassure our allies in the high north. It's been an awesome deployment," he told 13News Now reporter Mike Gooding at the time.
For more information about the Blue Angels, including the 2019 and 2020 air show schedules, visit www.blueangels.navy.mil.