I thought that TV personalities, actors, (or the network they worked for etc.) had to pay like $5,000 for them to go up with the blues... perhaps I'm wrong.
Perhaps so. What makes you think a government entity could essentially charge for rides in a jet? In what bizarro world does that make sense? Let's not forget that the primary purpose of the Blues is is as a recruitment tool and for PR. Letting members of the media (or celebrities) fly with them gets them airtime on TV, allowing their message to reach the broadest possible audience.
Brett