Cmdr. Mike Jennings, a Mooresville native and Navy fighter squadron member, will be one of four Air Force members conducting a unified flyover during the 2026 Super Bowl national anthem performance.

Chief of Naval Operations Daryl Caudle stressed that the sixth-gen fighter jet was urgently needed to replace the US Navy’s existing fleet of F/A-18 Super Hornets and EA-18G Growlers.

Congressional appropriators have revived funding for the Navy’s F/A-XX program and lambasted the Defense Department for failing to award key development contracts for the service’s sixth-generation fighter jet.

In the Navy's investigative report, the pilot was blamed for the crash that killed himself, his crew member and three people on the ground.