Monthly Archives: November 2015

Parliament

C59F0411.jpgThe hotel we used when we were in London was located just across the river from the Houses of Parliament. This gothic structure is instantly recognizable to many. I have been inside on a few occasions for events and the interior is as impressive as the exterior. It also varies in age with some parts much older than others such as Westminster Hall. On this trip we weren’t paying the place a visit and for most of the time there, didn’t really see much of it other than in the distance.

C59F0524.jpgOn the final morning, I took a wander around to get some shots of things before we left on the next leg of our trip and I realized I had neglected to photograph Parliament itself. The morning light is better for getting shots on the river side so this was a good time. Combine it with Westminster Bridge in the foreground and there is something to work with. I actually prefer shooting it at night. The lighting on the bridge and the buildings is pretty neat. However, that opportunity had passed so this would have to do.

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EC145

 

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The EC-145 is an helicopter I have yet to decide about.  A bigger type than the EC-135, I am not sure it carries the extra size as gracefully as it could.  It has a slightly bug-like look to it I think.  The most recent updates have added a Fenestron to replace the tail rotor.  That can sometimes be a good thing but on this type it seems like they have picked a slightly larger unit from the parts bin by mistake.  The fin section seems pretty large.  Even so, I am not totally against it.  It certainly seems smooth and quiet as it flies by.  This one did look kind of cool…

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HMS Belfast

C59F0287.jpgJust upstream from Tower Bridge along the South Bank is a World War II cruiser, HMS Belfast. Part of the Imperial War Museum, the Belfast has been moored up in London as a museum for many years. I visited it as part of a school trip when I was quite young. It is a slightly incongruous thing to see against the other occupants of the river. A while back it was given a repaint in a splinter camouflage scheme as opposed to the plain gray it had before. The rest of the river traffic is bright in comparison.

C59F0330.jpgThe ship is impressive enough when viewed from river level but, when you look from above, you get to see just how large it is. A light cruiser from that era is a substantial thing. Occasionally a Royal navy ship may visit the city and they have previously moored up alongside the Belfast. The comparison between the old and the new is quite striking. The angular lines of older ships compared to the more sweeping hull shapes show the age of the design. Sadly, I don’t have any images of that to share.

Charlie November

C59F0901.jpgThe Isle of Wight may be a pretty small island but it has had a number of significant aerospace projects over the years. One of the most successful is the Britten Norman Islander. A twin piston aircraft, the Islander has been in production for decades and provides passenger and freight service all around the world. Developed and produced for many years in Bembridge, the history of the Islander is important to a lot of the local residents.

C59F0898.jpgA group of them got together to recover and preserve the third Islander ever built. G-AVCN (or Charlie November) was the first production aircraft following on from the two prototypes, neither of which is still in existence. It was recovered in pieces from the Caribbean and returned to Bembridge for restoration. I worked with the project leader on a feature for GAR that can be read here.

C59F0910.jpgMy mum is involved in the project so she took me down to the restoration facility to take a look at the airframe as it currently looks. The fuselage is pretty much completed. Now the focus is on the restoration of the wing. They are also looking for the final location where the aircraft will be put on display. It is painted in the colors of Aurigny – an airline that has flown many Islander and Trislander aircraft over the years including Charlie November. Things were a little cramped for photography where the plane is at the moment but it was cool to check out a significant part of the Island’s aviation history.

St Paul’s Cathedral

C59F0203.jpgWe made a stop at St Paul’s while we were in London. It was Sunday so it was not open for tourist visits but was operating as a church. You were able to go in and listen to the service and the choir which is certainly worth hearing. However, we didn’t spend much time inside and, instead, took a look around the outside of the cathedral.

C59F0215.jpgIt is a great looking building, even if it is a little squashed in amongst the other buildings in the City which impacts on the view a little. Apparently, there are laws that protect certain sight lines of the cathedral but, when close in, it is quite hard to appreciate it all. Even so, we did have some fun checking it out from various angles.

C59F0342.jpgWe also got a good look at it from up at the top of The Shard. The aerial perspective is a good one, much like what we saw a couple of years ago when in the helicopter. With the height of the Shard, it is hard to tell the difference from flying.

Another JetStar for the Collection

IMG_3440.jpgRegular followers of the blog who like aviation will know I have a soft spot for Lockheed JetStars. While my luck has not always been great in chasing them down, I have come across a few at various times. Hayward Airport is the home of a couple of them. There is one I have seen move through on a few occasions but I thought there was another based (or stored) on the field. At one point it seemed to be out in the middle of the ramp but, more recently, when I was flying in to Oakland, it appeared to have moved over to near the road.

IMG_3438.jpgI figured I would try and see it if I was passing by early in the day. Finally a chance came to do this and I stopped off en route back from Oakland. The plane was parked up conveniently close and the fence in front was not too high. I don’t recognize the registration as being one I have seen before so this is a good one to add. While I haven’t seen any sign of this plane moving, it could be blocked from tracking. It certainly looks to be in great condition which would seem likely if it was unused. Maybe I will catch it moving one day.

Lafayette Reservoir

AU0E2184.jpgThe hills to the east of Oakland provide a great opportunity to build reservoirs. Supplying the Bay Area with water is a big deal so the reservoirs are in important pat of the local infrastructure. Damming a valley is no simple feat but, once done, a substantial quantity of water can be held. Of course, this also makes a nice spot to hang out.

AU0E2201.jpgWe took a trip to the Lafayette reservoir. It has trails and picnic areas around the water. Originally we had intended to walk around the whole thing. However, they had a facility for renting pedalos and rowing boats so we decided to go out on the water instead. Off we went in our pedalo. The rules were quite amusing. Absolutely no way we were to touch the water. I know the water will be used for public consumption but I don’t think the local wildlife is so bothered about what it does in the water. The water quantity is huge so there is no risk but you would think we were going to have some sort of toxic impact if we touched the water with a hand. Oh well.

AU0E2190.jpgThey obviously don’t want you getting too close to the water inlets but you can get pretty close to the dam structure in the boat. (You park on top of the dam so you are really close then!). The dam looks a lot more impressive from the surface of the water. Given what a lovely day it was when we there, I was surprised how few people were there. I’m not complaining since it meant it was quiet for us.

Sneak Pass

C59F5630.jpgI have seen a large number of displays by the Blue Angels over the years.  Their display is a good one generally (although the ground portion is a little time consuming in my opinion).  The sequence does not vary much from year to year but it works well enough so that is probably no big surprise.  One of the fun parts is the sneak passes.  The four ship head off in one direction to distract you and a solo jet streaks in from the left at low level and high speed.  This catches a lot of people by surprise.

C59F5638.jpgJust as everyone is getting over this, the other solo jet does something similar from crowd rear to make you all jump again.  The displays that are held over water provide an added option for the first sneak pass.  With no obstacles, the aircraft can end up very close to the water.  This makes things look even more impressive.  Also, the high speeds can result in some impressive vapor formations in the shock waves.

C59F5622.jpgThe Fleet Week display on the Friday had great weather conditions but, surprisingly for the Bay Area, the humidity levels were not terribly high.  Consequently, while the sneak pass had its usual surprise impact, it did not result in any vapor on the jet.  The upside of this was that the optical distortion caused by the shock waves was visible in some shots when a reasonable amount of background was included.  Not what I was aiming for but not a bad alternative.

DC-7 Tanker

C59F8125-HDR.jpgI previously posted an item about the DC-7 tanker that was parked up on the Erickson ramp. Over the course of the few days we were there, this aircraft had a few visits from me. It’s positioning was not always ideal for what I wanted. The evening light was often great for photos but, sadly, the aircraft was almost exactly tail on to the setting sun. However, that did provide some silhouette options as well as playing with HDR to see if I could come up with something I liked.

C59F8084.jpgOne morning the sun came up as there was still some rain in the area. There was some good light on the nose for a while but the best option was the rainbow that formed in the background and was well aligned with the aircraft. I tried a variety of things over the days and some of those results are here. Of course, it would have been far more fun to see it in action!

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