No doubt many of you are familiar with Fat Albert Airlines, the all Marine crewed support aircraft for the US Navy blue Angels. In addition to carrying everything and everyone required to keep the Blue Angels doing what they do, the Fat Albert Airlines crew put on a great show that shows why the Hercules, a 60 year old aircraft, is still in production and service worldwide.

The demonstration the crew puts on consists primarily of a number of passes, such as the “Parade Pass” (also known as the “Banana Pass” due to the shape of the aircraft’s path) and the “Flat Pass.”  Two of the most notable elements of the demonstration profile are the “Maximum Performance Takeoff,” which has superseded the JATO, and the “Short-Field Assault Landing. In all, the short demonstration makes for quite a show considering the size of the aircraft, but have you ever wondered what it looks like from inside the aircraft? You could get a media ride in the back of Fat Albert since the aircraft can hold 40 people or more it’s easier than getting a ride in a Hornet, but I have some good news, I’ve found some videos of the demo on Youtube. They lack the thrill of feeling your body go from 3 times its weight to weightless in seconds, but I doubt you’ll need an airsickness bag to watch the videos.

The first video gives you a good idea of what’s going on in different areas. It’s got shots from the cockpit, the ground, and the scenes in the back where all the vomiting journalists sit.

The second video, which is in my opinion the better of the two, is shot from a fixed camera in the cockpit and runs the duration of the demonstration. It also has the cockpit audio patched in, so you get a good idea what it’s actually like for the pilots.