Author Archives: Rob

What Did This R66 Do Wrong?

The scanner is a good way of tracking what is about to happen but it can also give you an insight to what might not have gone to plan. I heard a Robinson R66 call in for its approach. When things are on a north flow, the helicopters will run along the river and turn in to land. They can often come at quite a good angle for getting a shot. This one worked out well, despite the backlighting, and I was getting back in the shade as it touched down. I then heard the tower ask if he was ready to take down the phone number he needed to call. Oops! I have no idea what the infraction may have been and I hope it all worked out okay.

Caldera In A Caldera

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Crater Lake is a lake in a caldera. In the middle of the lake is an island that was formed as the eruptions from beneath built up a new outcrop from the original caldera. That island has itself formed a caldera on the summit. The scale of everything is so large that it is easy to not even notice that this second caldera sits within the first caldera. There are some trees on the island that give you some context as to how large it all is.

Ye Olde Pub

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Erickson took their B-17, Ye Olde Pub, to the show at Klamath Falls. However, we first got to get a look at her when we stopped at Madras where she was out on the ramp being prepared for the trip south to the show. When she did make the transfer, we were ready for her arrival and then got a few chances to shoot her undertaking the display routine from a variety of locations both outside and inside the airfield.

She is a good looking B-17. I like the painted aircraft more than the bare metal versions (although there is not a huge amount in it). That makes her appeal to me a lot. (I do get a little annoyed by cutesy words with an added “e” but will let that go for now.)

SR99 Bridge Over SR509

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WSDOT is in the process of building a new part of SR509 that will connect I-5 to the rest of SR509 on the west side of the airport. The alignment that the new road is taking cross SR99 at the same place that we are currently building the light rail extension. To avoid making life too complex, WSDOT funded Sound Transit to build the bridge for SR99 that is needs as part of the light rail construction program. The contractor diverted SR99 around the work site and then excavated the area where SR509 will go. A new bridge was built over this and then it was all filled in underneath. The road then was laid on top of the new bridge.

Since these pictures were taken, the road has been re-opened. However, at this tie, they were finishing the pours of concrete for the new bridge and too tie it in to the existing roadway. This view is now gone so it was a narrow window to see the bridge. I was lucky to see it at various stages of its construction. In due course, WSDOT’s contractor will come in and remove the earth under the bridge and build the SR509 roadway. That will happen pretty soon.

BA’s Smallest Big Jet

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British Airways was an early customer for the 787 when Boeing launched it in the form of the 787-8 and has been growing the fleet ever since. They now operate the -8, the -9 and the -10 versions. Their introduction allowed the retirement of the 767-300 fleet so the 787s are now the smallest of the widebodies (although the 787-10 has similar capacity to a 777-200ER). In Seattle, we tend to get the 787-9 or an occasional 787-10. However, Portland gets the 787-8 so, when I got to shoot one there, it was the first time I had seen a BA -8 in ages. They look quite stubby in comparison to the rest of the family.

Heron In Flight

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Much of my heron photo collection is of them hunting for their lunch as they stand at the water’s edge. However, I do occasionally get photos of them in flight. Now I like most things that fly but I do think that the heron is not the most elegant bird when it is flying. The long outstretched neck works for a swan or a goose but, for a heron, it seems rather out of balance. With the large wings, it is an efficient flyer but it doesn’t have the look of a bird that is having an easy time of it. This one was heading across Juanita Bay and over the the shore where another heron had been hanging out and, as is the way of wildlife, it was determined to drive the other bird away whether it needed to or not!

Some Ag Flying Mixed In

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The trip to Klamath Falls was all about military aircraft but, during the day, we saw some agricultural aircraft launch off the cross runway in the distance. At one point, one of them came pretty close to where we were so it would have been remiss of me not to grab some shots as it flew over.

Henry Island Transporting A Tanker

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I have had some previous posts about San Juan Ferry and Barge as we saw a lot of them while vacationing in the San Juans. On our trip to Friday Harbor while mum was visiting, I hadn’t figured on seeing them unless they were moored in the harbor. However, as our ferry was getting ready to depart Anacortes, the Henry Island, one of their two boats, came towards us from the main harbor at Anacortes.

It passed behind us but I figured that we would catch it up as we headed to Friday Harbor and that proved to be the case. It was transporting a tanker truck with a trailer so the deck of the boat was full. As we chased it down, a couple of kayakers were coming the opposite direction. I wonder which of our two vessels they were more interested in.

Southwest Max7s Are on The Move

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The monumental screw up that was the 737 Max program has been getting back on track with the return to service of the 737-8 and 737-9 along with the new deliveries coming off the line. The 737-7 has been in flight test for a while now but its certification was going to be delayed until the main fleet issues had been resolved. Reports now suggest that it will be certificated in plenty of time before the year end deadline that Congress set for cockpit upgrade requirements.

A few Southwest 737-7s (Southwest is the significant customer for this marque) have been parked up at Renton for a while. These had been painted and then stored. However, a couple of 737-7s made flights to Boeing Field in recent times. These are Southwest jets but they have yet to be painted. The fact that they are on the move might be interpreted as suggesting that certification may not be too far away and that Southwest may soon be taking delivery. During the downturn that resulted from the pandemic, Southwest increased its -7 orders at the expense of the -8s. Now traffic is booming, I wonder whether Southwest will reverse that reversal and switch more orders to the -8.

Hummingbirds On Real Plants

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I have taken a ton of photos of the hummingbirds that come to our feeders in the back yard. However, a cooler shot is one that involves real plants rather than a metal feeder. We have hanging baskets which have sometimes provided food for the little critters but the majority of the flowers in our baskets this year do not seem to have interested them. Only one of the flowers seems to get some of them to feed and it is a narrow trumpet shaped flower that seems to thrive on the far side of the basket away from me and the light.

Of course, the sun does move so, with a little patience and forethought, it is possible to get in position and try to stay very still so as not to scare away the blighters. I have had some backlit results but they aren’t very appealing photos. They are better than nothing but getting on the right side of things is the goal and one I have finally managed to achieve. If I could get better angles, that would improve things but there are a good start. Now to spend more time waiting for them and try to avoid freaking out the neighbors in the meantime.