Ex-Blue Angel to Command Gulf Force

MANAMA, Bahrain — A former leader of the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels jet acrobatic team takes charge of escort and patrol operations in the Persian Gulf this week.

Rear Adm. Anthony A. Less, a 50-year-old career aviator who headed the elite unit in the mid-1970s, will become commanding officer of the Navy’s Middle East Force in ceremonies Saturday aboard a new flagship, the Coronado.

Less, a native of Salem, Ohio, replaces Rear Adm. Harold J. Bernsen. Under Bernsen, the force nearly tripled in size, from about six to 17 warships. It has recently been cut back to 16 in a Pentagon move to trim its naval commitment in the gulf region.

Less flew A-7 Corsair attack bombers from the carrier Kitty Hawk during the Vietnam War and in 1973 became the first commanding officer of the Blue Angels when the flight demonstration team was formally made a squadron. He served as its commander and flight leader for three years.