Monthly Archives: October 2016

Pakistani Block 50 F-16s

AE7I4452.jpgI have made two short visits to Nellis for recent Red Flag exercises.  The Pakistani Air Force attended RF16-4 but they showed up near the end of the preceding RF16-3 to allow them to familiarize themselves with operations before the next exercise kicked off.  They weren’t supposed to be flying while we were that after their arrival but the F-16s that launched over us clearly had the conformal tanks and it turned out that they were up and flying ahead of the rumored times.  Sadly, it was a brief opportunity and the lighting wasn’t great.

AE7I4414.jpgI did head back for RF16-4 and that trip will get a post of its own.  Enough went on that week to easily fill another entry.  However, staying on track, I did get to see the Pakistan jets as they launched and recovered.  They are a recent build standard and, aside from the conformal tanks, they are also distinctive courtesy of a paint scheme that is different to the normal F-16s camouflage.  I don’t know whether they had a productive time at Red Flag or not but I was glad to catch them while they were over.

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Disappearing Glaciers

AE7I9530.jpgFrom Hurricane Ridge, you get a great view of the surrounding mountains of the Olympics.  September obviously is not the time to see the snow on most of the mountains but there are some glaciers on some of the peaks.  However, it appears like they are in retreat.  Photos on the display boards near the visitors’ center show the extent of the glaciers in previous decades and they have retreated a long way.  If they don’t slow down (and usually this accelerates), they will be gone before too long.  We saw them but it seems plenty won’t get the chance.

Norwegian East Bay Arrivals

B11I1542.jpgNorwegian Airlines have been flying in to Oakland for quite a long time now.  They started out with flights from Oslo but they now also have flights from London Gatwick.  Despite them having been coming in for a long time, I have never got good shots of them.  I have often seen the jets while standing on the BART platform at Bayfair but that is not a time to get a shot.  I have also seen them across the bay from the SFO side. Finally I got to see one coming in from the right side of the bay and on the side of the jet that had light.

AE7I7919.jpgNorwegian has famous people from that country on the fins of the jets.  This one was Edvard Munch.  I don’t know how many different people they have on the jets but, with this being the first one I have shot, I don’t have what you would call a collection.  It was nice to catch it later in the day as the sun was getting lower.  Maybe I shall catch more in due course.  However, there won’t be a lot because Oakland is a bit quiet unless you are after Southwest or FedEx jets so I won’t be there often.

Climb to the Top of Hurricane Hill

B11I8118.jpgHurricane Ridge is a popular place to visit but go a bit further along and you come to the trailhead for the climb to Hurricane Hill.  We felt up for a bit of hiking.  The hike is not terribly long but it has two elements to consider.  One is a fair bit of climbing with some reasonably steep grades.  The other is that you are quite high so the air is noticeably thinner.  That is a great excuse for taking things at a steady pace.  It isn’t me, it is the altitude!

B11I8122.jpgIt certainly is a popular trail.  Plenty of people passed us as we were going up and coming back down.  The views as you climb get better and better.  Some wildlife shows up as well.  We saw a marmot at one point.  It only lives between certain elevations so this was the only place we were going to catch it.  Once you get to the top, you have a view down to the coast.  Port Angeles lay beneath us and you could see over to the islands in the distance although the view was a little obscured by the haze.  The trip back down was okay but walking downhill is something I don’t enjoy if it is steep.  Climbing may be tiring but I find it less hard on the knees.  This wasn’t too bad though.  You stop less on the way back down since you have seen all of the views on the way up when you were more than happy to pause (only for the photo – not tired at all).

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Keeping the Huey In the Air

B11I7726.jpgPreserving military aircraft in an airworthy condition is no small undertaking.  They were never designed to be easy to keep.  They were designed to perform and, when there isn’t a long supply chain backing things up with big budgets, things can be a bit more tricky.  One group that is keeping an old airframe alive to share its history is the Huey Vets group in Hayward.  I first came across the helo when I was in Hayward and I saw it flying in he distance.  It showed up in a post here when I got some shots of it.

B11I8102.jpgI have since made a couple of visits to the group to see what they do.  Their mission is to share the history of the EMU unit that was unique in providing emergency medical cover jointly between the US Army and the Australian Army.  Not only do they keep the Huey flying but they have members with a history in the unit including one from Australia who makes frequent visits.  They have many members of the organization and members are able to take flights in the aircraft.  I went along to see one of the open house days.  It was a hot day in Hayward and they had a number of flights lined up which gave me a chance to watch them in action from a variety of positions.

B11I7796.jpgThe Huey is an iconic airframe.  The big two blade rotor beats the air into submission and you can hear it from a long way off as a result.  Having the doors slid back to give access to the cabin and the gunner positions means you can see straight through the fuselage.  It also means the occupants of the cabin get a good view of things outside.  They transitioned from the hover outside the hangar along the taxiway before heading off for some local flying. Then they would return for a change or a break for lunch.  Great fun to see them in action.  Check the group out at their website, http://www.hueyvets.com.

Hurricane Ridge Deer

B11I8069.jpgPlanning our time in the Olympics meant checking the weather forecast.  We wanted to go up to Hurricane Ridge but doing so on a day that was forecast for rain was not going to be very good idea.  However, one of our days was showing clear skies so we headed up the mountains.  The forecast was not wrong.  The weather was great and there were plenty of nice overlooks to check out on the way up.  Once we got to the top, I was turning in to park when I saw some people stopped ahead of me.  Turns out that there are a bunch of deer that hang around up on the ridge and they don’t seem in the least bit bothered by the presence of people.  One was looking to come through the parking space I was planning on using.  I waited until it decided it was ready to move and then we parked the car.  It headed off to join its family.

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Pinal Air Park

AE7I6148-Pano.jpgPinal Air Park is located northwest of Tucson.  A number of business operate there.  It used to be a location for Evergreen International.  They carried out a number of programs of a spooky nature which meant there was strict security controlling access to the area.  Evergreen have gone bust so now the airport is a lot less restricted.  The hangars and ramp areas are still controlled but the roads around the field are now freely accessible.

AE7I6139.jpgThe airport is used for active operators but also for storage of airframes.  Some of these are planes that are clearly not going to be making it back into the air again.  They are either old enough to not be in demand or of a type that has more value in the spare parts they contain than as a complete airframe.  That isn’t the case for all of them though.  Many of them are stored awaiting another operator finding a use for them.  Consequently, you see a variety of aircraft from old TWA 747s to unmarked A330s.

AE7I6150.jpgWhile I was there, a Pratt and Whitney 747SP engine testbed was visible on one ramp while the Global Supertanker 747-400 was not far away.  There were also some stored Grumman Goose aircraft (should that be Geese?) that looked like they weren’t moving for a while.  A turbine Caribou was on the ramp obscured by a CASA 212.  Plenty of variety.  This would certainly be a fun place to tour with someone that has good access.

Hoh Rain Forest

B11I7961.jpgIt rained when we went to the rainforest.  What a shocker!  Of course, it really added to the atmosphere.  However, there is a limit to how much atmosphere you really need.  Most of the time, we were doing just fine though.  The Hoh Rain Forest is in the Olympics National Park and it is certainly worth the drive to get to.  The growth of the plants in such a damp environment is impressive.  Ferns that are huge, trees that dwarf everything, decaying material on the ground that is being recycled back into the ecosystem.  It is all there to see.  Seeing it when it is lush and damp is how it is supposed to be seen.

B11I7941.jpgYou do occasionally find yourself popping out of the vegetation and alongside a river.  This comes as something of a shock after being immersed in the forest.  The surrounding hills were shrouded in cloud since this is an area that takes a lot of the moisture out of the air coming off the ocean (and what results in the nice weather on the Gulf Islands that lie in its shadow).  The clouds really add to the sense of the place.

B11I7880.jpgWe headed back into the forest and took a loop trail through the Hall of Mosses.  The title might not be one that immediately makes you think you have to see this but I assure you it was quite a place to be.  Everything felt like it was glowing.  So much moss was hanging all over the forest and the dampness made the colors so much more vibrant.  It really did cause you to stop and stare.  Many people came through while we were there and they all seemed to have the same response.  It was quite something.  Shortly after this, the rain turned from steady into rather more persistent.  By the time we got back to the car, our coats had done their work but everything else was pretty saturated.  The drive back gave us plenty of time for the heater to do some drying!

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My First F-35B Jets

A USMC F-35B climbs out after takeoff from Nellis AFB on a Red Flag mission.

I have had a bunch of times when I have seen F-35 jets.  I got to shoot the first prototype at Fort Worth in its early days.  After that, I didn’t see any more for a long time.  As the production jets started to show up, I saw a number of them at Nellis AFB. Sadly, when we were on base we weren’t allowed to shoot them and when I was off base, I was always in a bad place to get shots of them.  As a result, I do not have many useful shots in my catalog.

A USMC F-35B turns on to final approach at Nellis AFB.

I had no shots of the B model.  This is the one being developed for the Marine Corps to replace their Harriers and Hornets.  It is also being acquired by the UK and Italy to use from their carriers.  Red Flag 16-3 was the first one that the Marines brought their jets to so I was pleased to get a chance to shoot them.  My timing was not great and there was limited flying while I was there.  However, the Marines did launch a pair while we were in place.  Nicely, both jets flexed on departure and came towards our position quite nicely.  Recovery was a different story.  For those that aren’t familiar with shooting at the Speedway, there is a constant debate about which gate is the best one to be at.  Some jets turn on to final very tightly and you need to be a inside Gate 4 to get a good shot.  Sadly, a lot of the jets turn long and they can be a long way off if you are at 4.  If there is a four ship, the later jets tend to turn later so, even if the first jet is good, the later ones can be a way off.

B11I0418.jpgIf the jets are Navy or Marines, you need to be on your toes.  They can be a lot more enthusiastic about keeping their patterns tight.  When the two F-35s returned, we soon realized everyone else knew something we needed to know.  They were all grabbing their cameras and running down the street.  I took a while to catch on.  The first jet turned very tightly.  Even as I ran, I could only get a head on shots as he turned inside me.  I then got moving again and was just about in a reasonable option for the second jet.

A USMC F-35B climbs out after takeoff from Nellis AFB on a Red Flag mission.

The second day we were there, timing was again not in our favor.  Just as the 35s were returning, a pair of Growlers were launching to head home.  They were coming off the runway we needed the jets to land on to get good shots.  Instead, they were sent to the other runway.  They broke left towards the hills.  We did have some recovery though.  By the time they had run downwind, the Growlers were gone and the runway was clear.  They switched to land on our side.  We had lost the final turn but at least they came closer when on final.  At some point these jets will be very common but the first encounter is fun.

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KLM’s New Toy Comes West

B11I9877.jpgThe arrival of the Boeing 787-8 on the scene got a lot of attention.  It was a new generation of aircraft with a lot of new technologies.  It also was a major disaster for Boeing.  Years late, massively over budget and with a grounding, it did not go according to plan.  The next version was the 787-9 and, with this one, Boeing really got it right.  The -8 was not a bad plane but the -9 is so much better.  It carries more and goes further.  They also fixed a lot of production issues.  The result is a jet that Boeing is happy to sell and airlines want to buy.  Boeing does not like building the -8 anymore and you will notice that not many have been sold recently.  The -9 is going to be the core product and the -10 stretch will be the second option.

B11I9871.jpgAirlines have been adding the -9 to their fleets in good numbers.  Entry of airlines that didn’t order the -8 did pick the -9 and KLM is one of them.  They have started spreading them out on services across the world.  The demise of the MD-11 in their fleet meant that the 777-300ER and the A330 were their staples.  Now the 787 is becoming a big deal and the SFO run is one that they have started using the jet on.  I was pleased to see it show up.  They still send 747-400s to SFO but the 787 is part of the future.  The 747 will be gone before too long.  Meanwhile, I enjoy the novelty of the new jet.  Soon I shall be glad to see the 747 before it disappears.