Boys and Girls Club’s Jake Erickson takes flight with Navy’s Blue Angels

The first of the Blue Angels landed in La Crosse on Tuesday ahead of this weekend’s Deke Slayton Airfest.

Jake Erickson from the La Crosse Boys and Girls Club got an invitation to be a civilian passenger with the Navy pilots.

Before taking off, Erickson said he wanted the flight to be an experience he could share with the club members.

“I was selected to do this, but representing 5,000 kids and all of our great staff at the Boys and Girls Club, it’ll just be fun to get to share the experience with them,” Erickson said.

The Navy precision flying team will be the main attraction at the festival Saturday and Sunday at the airport. Tickets are only available online.

Erickson said he was nominated for the chance to fly with the Blue Angels and tried to do healthy things in the past week to physically prepare for the forces of gravity involved in the Blue Angels stunt flights.

His normal way of flying would be to go on Delta Air Lines.

Airfest began as an annual event in 1998, but is now only held during years when a well-known flying team is available to come to La Crosse to maximize attendance.