Morristown native serving with Navy fighter squadron to support Super Bowl LX flyover
By Ashley Craig, Navy Office of Community Outreach
Feb 3, 2026

MILLINGTON, TN – During the 2026 Super Bowl national anthem performance, members of four U.S. Navy tactical squadrons will conduct a unified flyover with members of the Air Force.

	Photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Trace Gorsuch, Fleet Public Affairs Center San Diego

Petty Officer 1st Class Braxton Smithson, a native of Morristown, Tennessee, is among those supporting the Feb. 8 flyover above Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California.

The eight-aircraft flyover formation will include F/A-18 E/F Super Hornets and F-35C Lightning IIs from Naval Air Station Lemoore in California, F-15C Eagles from Fresno Air National Guard Base in California and B-1B Lancers from Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota.

The “Stingers” of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 113, the “Bounty Hunters” of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 2, the “Golden Dragons” of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 192 will represent the Navy in the F/A-18, and the “Warhawks” of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 97 will represent the Navy in the F-35C.

Smithson, who serves as an aviation structural mechanic, is one of the sailors tasked with maintaining the aircraft for VFA-97. The driving force behind keeping naval aviators safely in the air is the maintainers on the ground making repairs and ensuring the aircraft are mission-ready.

“They wanted the best of the best for this crew going to the Super Bowl, and they got it,” Smithson said.
Smithson attended Morristown West High School and graduated in 2015.

The skills and values needed to succeed in the Navy are similar to those found in Morristown.

“I worked at McDonald’s for three years and a call center for two years before I joined,” Smithson said. “So my mindset was geared towards working hard to learn my new job, and using my social skills to do so.”

Smithson joined the Navy eight years ago.

“My grandfather served in the Navy during the Korean War aboard the USS Essex as a gunner’s mate,” Smithson said. “No one else in my family has joined since, so I thought, why not?”

Naval aviation provides the Navy and our nation with a flexible, adaptable and lethal force to preserve peace, respond in crises and win decisively in combat. The U.S. Navy maintains and operates more than 2,000 aircraft to fulfill various mission sets in order to preserve the American way of life and ensure freedom, security and prosperity.

A combat-ready fifth-generation aircraft, the F-35C is designed with the entire battlespace in mind, according to Navy officials. The aircraft take off from and land aboard Navy aircraft carriers at sea. Missions traditionally performed by specialized aircraft, such as air-to-air combat, air-to-ground strikes, electronic attack, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, can now be executed by a squadron of F-35s.

Smithson serves a Navy that operates far forward, around the world and around the clock, promoting the nation’s prosperity and security.

This year, the Navy is commemorating its contribution to the nation’s defense as the United States celebrates 250 years of independence.

According to Navy officials, for more than 250 years, the Navy has sailed the globe defending freedom and protecting prosperity.

More information is available here: https://www.navy.mil/navy-250/