have picture perfect weather to boot. thanks for joining us. i'm christine zee and you're watching. a special edition of getting answers here on abc seven. but instead of getting answers, we are going to get excited and we have a special guest with us. this is paco qureshi. he is a former navy pilot who's going to walk us through all the exciting action. right. >> i hope so. yeah. all right. >> yeah. so we're going to be able to see the blue angels takeoff very, very soon, right behind us. and of course, we have terrific camera angles out there to capture all the excitement for you. as you know, they start at 315. all right, let's get those cameras up. okay. so you can see where we're going to give you angles from. we have a camera on russian hill. we have one at marina green, christi field. and of course, we have ryan curry there, who is capturing all the excitement. ryan, people are psyched. >> yeah. kristin, good afternoon and welcome to the marina where you can definitely feel the excitement growing. we are about

15 minutes or so away from the big show of the day, which is the blue angels coming up here in just a few moments. a lot of people are out here really excited. they've been out here for hours, braving some of the really hot summer like temperatures in san francisco. so, i mean, take a look out on the water. you can see just the numerous amounts of sailboats and other boats. they probably have the best seat in the house because they're the ones who are staying cool while the rest of us out here on the shoreline are trying to stay cool as much as we possibly can. but sooner than later, all that's going to turn into adrenaline while we wait for the blue angels to show up. of course, we know that this has been a very emotional week for the city of san francisco with late senator dianne feinstein passing away the blue angels, as well as fleet week. they're dedicating this entire weekend to her. we know that she's had a big hand in getting the blue angels to san francisco back in the early 80s. so for now, we're going to use that ceremony, this big air show that's about to happen to honor what she did to san francisco all those years ago, as well as really just embrace what we all love to know

here in san francisco, which is that annual spectacle of the nice weather, the great air show, and of course, all the excitement that comes with living in this area for this time of year. so, kristin, we're going to wait for the air show. it's coming up soon. but for now, i'm going to send it on back to you. >> 350 and they're off and on time. thank you, ryan. and of course, earlier today, there was excitement already building because of the parade of ships that began at 11:00 this morning. and this year, they have four ships come in under the golden gate. we had two from the coast guard and two navy ships. now they've made their way to pier 30, 32 and 35, where you can take free tours saturday and sunday. so be sure to check them out. very exciting. and of course, the blue angels, that is the star attraction. when they started their practice yesterday , they here in san francisco. so if you work downtown, you might have seen it. they take off from oakland airport, so they crossed the bay. come in in san francisco. and then yeah, they were buzzing about and when they go by you can feel that energy that roar, hear that roar. it's

just incredible. bill. all right. so we're back here on kgo's rooftop. you know, once a year. i mean, all the time. i feel so lucky that i work here. but once a year i think haha. i don't need to go anywhere. i come up to the rooftop and i'll get a perfect view of the blue angels. and here i am with paco qureshi, who is a former navy pilot, and talk to us because you can give us the vantage point of what those pilots go through and how hard their maneuvers are. tell our viewers a little bit about yourself. okay. you can count. i can't even count how many hours you've flown and how many missions you've flown. >> i don't know about missions, but i flew in the navy for 20 years, ten active and ten inches the reserves. i flew the a-6 intruder, the f-14 tomcat, and the f-5 tiger two. as an adversary, i flew about 3000 hours of military jet time and 400 carrier landings. >> so, okay, so, you know, precision because when you have to land on a carrier, there's no room for there's no room for error. >> okay. >> same with the blue angels. >> absolutely. yeah okay.

>> so talk about what it takes to get selected for those guys. oh, look, there you are, young paco. you look the same. >> i can't tell exactly the same any time had gone by at all. >> but what? how did they get picked? how many apply? how many get selected? what's the process? yeah, it's a very select club, obviously. >> so there's a few thousand active duty pilots in the navy. you have to apply to become a blue angel. you have to have done at least a tour. so you have to have experience as a fleet pilot and then you apply. there's probably a dozen to 20 people that apply every year, and then they whittle down as the season progresses. so they go to a bunch of the different air shows and, you know, introduce themselves to the team members. and then towards the end of the season, they narrow it down to who the last couple candidates are that are going to make the team. so every year it's a super competitive process , right? >> and once you're in, it's like talk about the practice and really just how many times they have to do it to get it just oh, wait, wait, wait. paco, i'm seeing something i don't know what kind of aircraft that is.

you can probably tell by sight. i don't think our camera can see it yet, but take it when you see it. but in the meantime, tell us about, you know, the pilots and kind of what they have to go through to be ready. >> sure. it's incredibly rigorous. any navy pilot could become a blue angel, but you don't just jump right into the cockpit of a blue angel jet and go do an air show. it takes months. it's literally months of training to practice the maneuvers that they're going to use in the show itself and then get it tighter and tighter and tighter every time they video tape and debrief every single practice session they have. and by the time they get to their season opener in the spring, you know, they've flown in the show itself. hundreds of times, just getting it tighter and tighter and more precise. >> every time they get closer and closer. practice makes perfect. all right, paco, stay right here. we're going to take a short break and then when we come thousands of women with metastatic breast cancer, are living in the moment and taking ibrance. ibrance with an aromatase inhibitor is for adults with hr+/her2- metastatic breast cancer

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so the san francisco fleet week is here. >> finally today is the first day of the air shows which have been underway. and of course, as you know, the blue angels will be flying in seven minutes. that's when the show begins. so they may actually be taken off shortly in oakland. and this is all very exciting. we've got multiple shots here set up. you can see golden gate. you can see russian hill. and from anywhere in san francisco, you're going to be able to hear the roar and see the blue angels action, which is also very exciting. but before that happens, real quickly, i do want to show you something else that's happening this weekend. that's the canine heroes special event tomorrow, saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at dubos park. earlier today, i spoke with the san francisco firefighter and her dog, barney

to see what it's all about. >> it's a big event where we're collaborating with other departments and other types of canines to put on a big demonstration to really show just exactly what all these dogs are capable of doing. >> what makes for a canine hero ? >> well, i mean, there's a there's a big range of it. so we have, you know, the us coast guards as well as some swat, swat police dogs and barney in particular, is a search and rescue dog. so some of them work on rubble piles like the video you're showing now. others are actual there for detection and apprehension. then there's a wide range of what makes these animals heroes. >> why is it important, you think, for them to have this public facing event in which people get to know them and what they do? >> my hope for this event is to actually just show the real extent of the work we put in to have these dogs ready to go. the work that they put in to be ready when you need them. um, there's just so much to it that

i don't think the public really knows. they just kind of they see us walking around. maybe it says, do not pet. and that's maybe the extent of what it is. and and we're really trying to just show how incredible they are and how ready they really are. >> yeah. they're over my right shoulder now. >> all right. and we are back. by the way, you definitely should go check out the canine heroes tomorrow. oh, my gosh gos show. >> is albert part of the show, right? yeah. tell us about fat albert. >> fat albert is the c-130 that transports the blue angels equipment back and forth. and it's so popular that they gave it its own show. oh, my gosh. it's an opening act. >> that's amazing. and then i think we saw the blue angels staging. yeah, i've lost them. visually. >> they're right over berkeley. they're right on top of that green ship right there. oh, okay. >> are they. they're coming closer to us, right? yep. so while they're coming towards us , i want to run some video of you doing your dog fighting for folks who don't know what it is. tell us. you know, it's kind of

similar in terms of the maneuvers that the blue angels pilots would do. talk to us about that. >> sure. dog fight. i mean, if you could imagine like world war one, you know, biplanes guys shooting at each other in airplanes, that's what we do for entertainment. now that i don't get to fly military with the so. >> and how close are they right now to each other? >> you think they're not quite at show distance right now when they're in their show formation? the diamond is literally 18in, apart from wingtip to canopy. so

a foot and a half from, you know, smacking into each other, which to me like is a military pilot. we flew type formation, but we never flew that kind of formation. that is that takes hours of practice. right. right. >> and can i just ask you how fast are their show, their spees going to vary from there's a point where one of the solos goes like 80 miles an hour, incredibly slow, and then they'll go almost to the speed of sound. so when they do that one pass, when they're doing a shock right over the water. yeah, it's like just over 0.9 mach. so they have the whole gamut there. >> okay. and you've you've got that speed, right? you flew a supersonic f-14. an f-14. >> yeah, f-5s. >> so can i ask you, what does it feel like as a pilot? what does that do to your body? well

the speed of sound, you don't feel it. >> it's just the plane is accelerating, you know, to a certain number. >> so it's the. gs, right. >> gs are what you feel. >> yeah. okay. explain to folks how that increases depending on the move that you're doing. >> sure. so right now, we're in 1g1 gravity. and as you pull back on the stick, your body wants to keep going forward right? so the harder you pull the more force is pushing down on your body, the more your the blood wants to drain out of your brain into your ankles. right. and , how are you

doing in san francisco? here we are. >> that's an impressive hello. right showing off just a little bit. okay. but at this point, you know, when they're going straight up or straight down, i can't even imagine the feeling in your stomach and how, you know, the head rush and how you kind of keep your orientation. yeah. so everybody is flying off of the lead. >> so the number one blue angel one is called the boss, and all the other three planes are flying off of him. oh wait, are they flying over us? >> that's one of the solos.

they say, welcome to the team. you'll be number. whatever. no, no, but that would be awesome. that would be like, you know, the free form go out and do the crazy maneuvers. everyb 18in apart. but it's one of

the things i love about this show is that they have the diamond come through and do some incredibly elegant, precise maneuver. and then as it leaves the opposing solo and the solo will come through and do something more dramatic and exciting. so it's just a beat of diamond. two solos, two diamond, two solos, which is pretty cool. and then obviously they all get together and do a few maneuvers as a big group. >> right? but look a because ths

♪ always in that state of mind ♪ ♪ living on a high vibration ♪ ♪ so hot gonna make it melt ♪ ♪ and i'm lovin' what i'm tastin' ♪ ♪ que bonito lugar lleno de tanto sabor ♪ ♪ so much flavor ♪ ♪ un future brillante se acerca ♪ ♪ ahhhhhhh ♪ ♪ nos gusta mezclar ♪ ♪ como malteada ♪

♪ aqui hay lugar ♪ ♪ yeah we livin' in the golden state ♪ ♪ dame mas, fres-co y real ♪ ♪ (wooh) dale gas ♪ ♪ vive en el estado dorado ♪

when they're going through that, we're back on tv. >> hello, everybody. a special fleet week edition of getting answers. why are we on the kgo roof? because as the blue angels are in the skies over san francisco right now, this is so exciting. and we're lucky to be joined today by former navy pilot paco kirishi, who is here to walk us through what we are seeing. paco, what is impressing you about this so far? well i just love seeing that, you know, it's part of my dna. >> i love seeing this presentation of naval aviation and flying precision. i haven't seen him in a few years, so it's awesome to see them flying this new airplane that they're flying the super hornet f-18 f or e, actually, this one. but right now, the solos just did the inverted pass. no one's going to fly right over our head. oh, there we go. >> oh, it is.

>> you feel it in your chest. >> that vibration is something else. let me tell you. it's awesome. we've got all these camera shots for you. our viewers at home, in case you are not here in san francisco. you see all the folks in the crissy field, marina green area, and paco sitting here on the roof. you can really see how quickly they go by. here they are again near the bay bridge, four of them. are they setting up for something, right? yeah, they're setting up. >> like i said, they always come. they start off in the diamond and i think i don't know what they're doing on this one. can i just ask you, viewers at home, we all love fleet week. >> we think this is amazing. why does the navy need to train its pilots to be able to fly like this and be able to do the maneuvers? you know, that are so impressive acrobatics. why? right. >> i mean, they look beautiful to us as we're watching, but they're definitely based the foundation of all these maneuvers are based on combat maneuvers. >> oh, let's zoom in. yeah, look at that. >> there we go. oof.

so even in modern combat, you would still need this type of ability to maneuver like that. >> yeah, absolutely. so i mean, just the basic formation flying , you know, when you're taking off in a formation of 2 or 4 airplanes and you leave your airport or the aircraft carrier and you go out to the area where you're going to work or go to combat, you take off and you fly in formation so that everybody gets together. you you go out into the area in some thing not quite as tight, but similar to what the blue angels are doing today. and then when you're done, you gather everybody up together, you rendezvous, and then you come back and come in for the break at your airfield or the carrier. so just basic formation is integral to every military pilot, right? >> and as we watched them, we think, wow, they're so amazing. of course, the blue angels pilots are almost like heroes. and the stars of the show. but it's a really grueling life, isn't it, to commit to this? >> yeah, absolutely. so this is what would be considered a shore tour for them. you know, in the

navy, we go out to sea for three years and then we come back and do a shore tour where ideally you can hang out with your family or, you know, spend more time at home. but these pilots spend 300 days a year on the road doing these air shows. so they are completely dedicated and committed. and it's a grueling life. >> and for the navy, i guess, is there a lot of i don't want to say pr value, but is there value you in them reaching out and performing these shows? >> yeah, 100. so this is obviously a massive recruiting tool and i think it's really important that it the people of america are as connected to their military as possible. you know, it's becoming less and less. so the military is shrinking, fewer people serve. so this is, you know, a demonstration in to the people that pay the taxes. yeah, this is part of where your money goes. you know, these people are amazing. they're training really hard. and, you know, these planes are incredible as well. so can i just ask my producer, am i going to need to take a break anytime soon? >> if i do, please let me know because i'm finding it hard to peel away. okay we have a few

minutes. we have a few minutes. okay. now, what are we looking at? see the split screen, the right side, the formation where they have four together. >> they have the diamond. this is the diamond dirty pass with the diamond. dirty means all your landing gear, your flaps and the tailhook and the navy is down. and then they're going to do a loop out of this, which is not something that we do normally in the military. but it's an amazing demonstration of precision flying. >> i was asking you about how the pilots. oh, i do believe they're about to fly over our heads again now. >> they're just going to do a loop and then they'll come back going the other way. okay. >> so given that they're doing this loop, let me ask you, how do you keep your orientation when you're up there in the cockpit? >> well, like i said, everybody is flying off the boss. so the number 1.21 is he's flying the show and then everybody flies formation on him right. >> but how does the boss keep track? >> yeah, hours of practice. hours of practice. >> and you never lose yourself up there, do you? >> no, especially not on a day like today. you see the sky. you see the earth. you know, you have a good situational awareness of everything around

you. your peripheral vision is in play. wow. but the people flying formation of the boss, they're not. they are completely focused on the points on his airplane that they're they're supposed to maintain. right? yeah. >> so, all right. as we just watch them, we have two different angles for you here. you can see they're flying, you know, pretty close to big buildings and the bay area. you know, the san francisco is that an element of risk and danger? you know that they do these shows sometimes in very urban surroundings? no, i don't think so. >> i mean, these they're incredibly skilled. they they do their practices. they get mark points for all their turns so they know exactly what point they're going to turn in every show at every maneuver. it's fun to fly over the city. it's beautiful. you know, people generally enjoy it, i think. and the pilots really enjoy it, too. so who gives the office workers something to look out their windows for, right? >> that's for sure. wow. and sometimes it's funny because i'm hearing sounds and i look in that direction and the plane's not necessarily there. right

explain to us about the sound. and. well, that's the echo. >> so echoing off the buildings or off the water, i mean, the jets are over there, but the buildings themselves will, you know, bounce the sound off. okay, let's experience this. >> let's experience this right here. >> so the solo's just completed a maneuver. another the diamond is going to come through again. >> okay. you're like a kid so excited. i know. it's so great. all right. i think. do we need to take a little break? let me know if we need to take a little break. oh, shoot. okay. short break. we'll be right bac

back here with former navy pilot paco kirishi. we are watching the blue angels show live. so very exciting. by the way, paco . we see a coast guard ship behind us. right. and that's one of the visitors that you can tour tomorrow, though, and sunday. so check it out. all right. do we have any angels in the air right now as we search for them? i think we're searching because they're still going. no, we'll catch one soon. there it is. okay. paco, if we can take the one. folks, do you see the shot there? really, really amazing. we've been talking about what they have to do in terms of the training. do you think these pilots just love being up there and doing this? what is the thrill? >> absolutely. i mean, they would not do this if they didn't love it. it is incredibly arduous. it's demanding on them and their families. they they're thrilled by it. >> yeah. >> and the risk, i mean, there

is definitely a risk. the blue angels have had some accidents. fortunately not lately. it is a you know, it's a demanding environment. they're incredibly hot right now. >> they're probably sweating buckets, losing a few pounds. but but, you know. >> yeah. >> because like you said, i think you were telling me the air conditioning doesn't actually work that great when you're this low to the ground. >> right. it doesn't work very well. >> oh, boy. this 90 degree day. yeah it's a workout. who would have thought, right? yeah oh, my goodness. all right, we're watching them just doing amazing things up there in the sky, folks. we want to let you know there's a lot more blue angels action coming up, even though we do have to get off for getting answers. >> if you want to kee tonight, the flash flood threat taking aim at the northeast. powerful storms moving in tonight and through the weekend. heavy rain from philadelphia to new york to boston. new york city activating its flood emergency