Category Archives: military

Hello Again Marine One

It wasn’t long ago that I made a trip out to get some shots of the VH-3D helicopters that operate as presidential transports and are known as Marine One when the President is aboard. You can read about that here.

It turns out I was going to get a second chance. As I drove back up to DuPage airport after shooting Fifi on the approach, I noticed a selection of nice looking helicopters parked up between the hangars. A presidential movement was planned and the aircraft were operating from DuPage. With the TFR being published, we knew they would be heading out early in the afternoon.

Sure enough, in due course the helicopters came into view. There were the two VH-3Ds along with three CH-46s in support – two of which were in the glossy green finish and one in standard gray. They taxied out in line and lined up on the taxiway. Then they lifted in unison and departed towards the city. It was very cool to watch.

A while later I was off the field again shooting Fifi taking off when a couple of the CH-46s came back. I was pretty disappointed to miss their arrival but I got the shot I was there for. When I got back to the field, I was walking across the apron when I met one of the HMX-1 crew-members. I told him how disappointed I was to have missed their return. Not to worry. He told me two more would be back in about ten minutes. Sure enough, in they came. What a great break to get them when I had no idea that they would be there.

Hello Fifi

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As part of her tour of the country, Fifi, the B-29 operated by the Commemorative Air Force was coming to the Chicago region. She was scheduled to appear at DuPage Airport, west of Chicago. I had been in contact with the team about covering the visit for GAR. This is something to be published soon so I won’t spoil everything just yet! However, it is safe to say that I did head along and meet up with the team and see Fifi flying.

She was scheduled to fly three times during the day with the first trip being in the morning. The layout of the main part of the airport meant that the light wold be bad in the morning but better later in the day. I found an alternative spot to catch her as she took off and got myself ready. Unfortunately, my brain was not totally in gear and I had one camera on the wrong settings. I did get lucky though and did not end up with frozen props in the shots, even if they are a little less blurry than I would like!

I then headed around to the approach lights to get her heading back in. It was very impressive to have a B-29 coming right over your head. I got the shots but did peak out the side to enjoy the experience – something that is a little lost some times when focusing too much on getting the shots. I was about to head back when I noticed a P-51 on approach too. A nice bonus. Then it was back to the airport to get the interview and some ground shots. A great bunch of people and a very interesting day.

Travis

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This is a plug for the magazine. For those averse to gratuitous advertising, look away now. Global Aviation Resource’s digital magazine was running a feature on the Air Force Reserve. Paul Dunn was leading the article but wanted some help on the piece so I joined him at Travis AFB located between the Bay Area and Sacramento in California. This is an area I am spending a lot of time in at the moment but it was fun to do something a little different!

Since the magazine will be the outlet for a lot of the work from the day, I can’t put too much in here at the moment. The Reserve article is live in the current issue but there will be some follow up material in later issues. However, here are a couple of shots from the day. The team at Travis were as helpful as you could possibly want and many thanks to everyone there for taking such good care of us. My only complaint is that Paul broke the sim but that is another story…

Waukegan Part 2 – The Military Stuff

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As mentioned in the previous post, the Collings Foundation were at Waukegan with their B-17, B-24 and P-51. Pete and I had headed up there to take a look at what was going on. This was the last day of the tour at Waukegan before they moved on to Palwauckee. They were supposed to be flying during the day and then departing in the early afternoon. Things were looking promising with the B-24 taking off while we were over at the Warbird Heritage Foundation hangar.

The P-51 was apparently being a little troublesome but was also scheduled to take someone on a ride while we were there. A friend of mine, Chris, volunteers for Collings and he was working with them that day so i took the chance to catch up with him. I give him regular abuse as he got a ride in P-51 Baby Duck once before when I was shooting it. I must be a lucky omen for him!

We needed to head back to Chicago for Pete to be ready for the return flight but the warbirds hadn’t yet departed. We decided to give them a few extra minutes. The B-17 had headed out first but the B-24 was obviously waiting to make sure the P-51 was away. Unfortunately, the engine was not looking too willing when it came to starting. Fortunately, a bit of ground power did the trick and they were away. As it turned out, Chris had made it in to the back of the P-51 so I got him in another one. I hope he recognizes my role in all of this!

Trade Stands

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A big part of the Airventure experience is the trade stands that are available. There are a lot of plane owners visiting the event and these are people that are known for constantly tinkering with what they have. They are also willing victims for the next thing in their aviation collection.

Consequently, every level of need is catered for. There are stands selling everything you could possibly want from someone who will embroider your plane’s registration on to a baseball cap or shirt through to someone selling you a business jet. Having a walk through the manufacturers’ stands is a good way to spend some time. A really good time to do this is during the flying display. This is a time when many people are off watching the flying and you can get a bit more space.

Cockpits are often powered up in the aircraft. Having a look at the interiors is a also a good idea. Some of the newer designs are vying for the attention of the visitors so might have stands that are more fancy. The less well established manufacturers are also more likely to make an effort to show you their wares. It is interesting to hear from them what their expectations are for the week. Some will sell many aircraft. Others won’t sell anything but may make that first contact with someone who will ultimately prove to be a customer. One thing is for sure, it is a greater concentration of aircraft owners than you will find pretty much anywhere else!

Warbirds

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One group that always gets a lot of attention at Oshkosh is the warbirds. A separate area is set aside for them where the aircraft can park but also where their people can camp. It seems to be a well developed operation with its own marshaling and security arrangements. I guess when the aircraft are valuable and in demand, they need a little extra attention.

Despite that, it is still a very relaxed area to visit. The aircraft are parked up and you can walk freely in amongst them. Often people are working on the planes and they fly quite frequently during the days (and more often the evenings when photo flights are common). As they taxi in and out, the volunteers keep you just safely out of harms way but they are aware that everyone wants to get a picture. A good balance exists.

The best time to visit is either early in the morning or late in the evening. Not only is the light better then, the number of visitors is much lower so you can have a lot of time to yourself and people are not in your shots most of the time. It is worth making repeated visits. My first trip across had a few aircraft around but it was noticeable how many spaces there were. however, a couple of days later, the ranks of vintage aircraft had swelled and there was much to see that was new.

Gary South Shore Show

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Only a short distance south of Chicago across the state line to Indiana is Gary. They hold an air show there every year that is over the lake along one of the beaches. For one reason or another, I have never been to this show. This year was expected to be no different originally. I had decided against going since the attendees list – while good – was a little shorter than in previous years. It was also supposed to be unbelievably hot!

My buddy, Joel, was going and he offered me a ride down if I wanted to go to the twilight show they hold on the Friday evening. I figured I would go since the opportunity was there so we headed down. Although not part of the twilight show, the USAF Thunderbirds were performing on the Saturday and Sunday and were scheduled to practice on the Friday afternoon, not long before the twilight show started. Therefore, we got a full show plus whatever else they planned to check out as part of their practice efforts.

Then we got the displays for real. The heat was pretty intense but the performers did not allow this to affect their displays. Unfortunately from a photography point of view, there was quite a lot of haze which hurt the visibility and the wind had died down which meant that smoke from the displays did not disperse quickly and could obscure the following passes in places. This meant that the photo opportunities had to be grabbed when they could.

The hope was that, as the sun dropped down, the golden light would arrive and it would be possible to get some more unusual shots than would be the case at a normal day show. Unfortunately, while this worked a bit, it wasn’t as successful as I had hoped. The sun sets a long way north at this time of year so, as it got lower, it got further behind the performers. Not back lighting but certainly not illuminating the front of the aircraft. Also, the haze I mentioned before meant that the dropping sun became more obscured so the strong evening light never really came along and we got something more diffused and weak.

This was a shame but not the end of the world. The show was still enjoyable and the people I was there with made it all the more fun. Thanks to the team at South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority for hosting us. I hear that the two main show days at the weekend were very popular and went well.

Davis Monthan AFB

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This year is the 40^th anniversary of the first flight of the Fairchild A-10 Thunderbolt II or Warthog to most people. Global Aviation Resource wanted to celebrate this event in the magazine so I headed off to Tucson Arizona to visit Davis Monthan AFB. Well known for being home of the boneyard, DM is also the home of three A-10 squadrons. Two are training units and the third is an operational squadron.

I was visiting both a training squadron and an operational unit to see he people train to fly the jet today as well as learn about how it is used today. I have had a soft spot for the A-10 for as long as I can remember. Visiting an A-10 unit is a treat for me. This is still true even if it is 105F in Tucson while I am visiting!

The team took great care of me while I was there. I spent the morning with Major John “Tex” Lesho who is an instructor on the jet with a number of tours at different locations with the aircraft. He gave me a great description about the aircraft and the training process as well as the changes that have been introduced in recent upgrades. He also had some great stories as would be expected of someone who has been flying the jet a long time. During the visit with him the opportunity was presented to head to the weapons ranges to watch the jets training. However, this involved a long drive each way and would have taken up most of the day. Since I was there to learn about the units, going to photograph the jets gunning the range couldn’t be done. It would have been great to do and hopefully I will get another chance in the future.

In the afternoon it was time to visit the operational squadron. Beercan Collier was my host. I mentioned Beercan in a previous post for those of you paying attention. He gave me a rundown on how the unit works as well as the additional work he has with the Heritage Flight duties. He then handed my off to a group of pilots who were getting ready to launch on a four ship mission. We watched them sign out the jets and then head out for start up and launch. They were very accommodating but I did make sure to stay out of the way. Launching military jets does not happen quickly since there is a lot to do. You don’t just turn it on and go. I made best use of the aircraft shelters during this to stay out of the sun.

Once they were launched, I managed to grab a shot of a VC-25 that was parked on the ramp before it was time to wrap up. (Unfortunately, the VC-25 launched just as I drove off base and, while I scurried to find a spot to get a picture of it in flight, I was still driving up the road as it flew overhead. Oh well.) My escort for the day, Sarah, did a great job of getting me where I wanted to be and I am grateful to here and everyone else for taking such good care of me. The article is in the August edition of the magazine so go to www.globalaviationresource.com if you want to buy a copy.

Rockford

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Only a week after Janesville’s show (discussed here) came Rockford’s show. Given that Rockford is about 20-30 miles south of Janesville, this must be a bit of feast or famine for the local aviation enthusiasts. Rockford is a larger show and has a substantial static display but it does have some of the same performers as Janesville. It also adds some other bits and pieces too. The only difficulty is that you are facing south so the lighting for photography is a little tricky.

The Thunderbirds were the headline act but the Black Diamond team was also on the bill. Fortunately, they turned up with the full complement of aircraft this time. This made for a far more interesting display and I did enjoy what they did. It was just as well I saw them is this turned out to be one of the last times the full team appeared anywhere. Apparently they have picked up a lot of work supporting military training and can no longer bring so many aircraft to a given show. They will have a reduced number of L-39s at future events. Given my experience at Janesville with their reduced show, this will be a disappointment to many who were looking forward to their appearances.

Art was also present with the SHAR and the L-39. Yet again my weather curse struck. Bright sunlight was present right up until he launched. It was still there as he headed out for his opening pass. Then the cloud came in just in time for his benefit pass so flat light again for me! Arghh! One day I will get the shots I want of that lovely aircraft.

The flying display was a good mix but one of the high points for me was an unexpected extra. A Boeing Dreamlifter was apparently in the area and performed a low approach a go around. The crew brought the jet down to a very low height with gear and flaps down and then maintained that height along a substantial portion of the runway before powering off again. Not something that will be seen at too many shows I am sure and I am glad to have caught it. I have seen the jet on the ground a couple of times but this was the first time I saw it in flight.

The team at Rockford really work hard at getting a diverse selection of aircraft into the static display and this year was no exception. The ramp was full of jets from many operators and locations. Since I was in before the gates opened to the public, I got a good chance to see what was on display and catch up with the some of the crews. It also helped to be able to get some shots before the sun got too high and made the light so harsh. This is an issue during the show since heat haze becomes a problem quite quickly so getting shots of anything to far away becomes impractical. However, there is nothing anyone can do about that so you have to do what you can. It was an enjoyable show and a credit to the organizing team. I know some people had issues with parking and getting away but I didn’t have any unusual in that regard so maybe I was just lucky.

Janesville

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The Janesville show, or to give it it’s proper title, The Southern Wisconsin Airfest, is on each year but, for one reason or another, I have never previously attended it. This time, my friend Art Nalls was displaying with his Sea Harrier and L-39. Originally, I was planning to do something with Art after this show although that fell through as a result of a third party letting us down. However, I decided to attend the show to see what it had on offer.

I went for two of the three days. There was a Friday evening show and both days of the weekend. I went for Friday and Saturday. The Friday show was cut short by a pretty excitable thunder storm that moved in just as the Heritage Flight was getting ready to launch. Art had fortunately already displayed but the light was already fading when he flew and the impending storm was not hard to predict!

Saturday started out with another storm but it fortunately blew through before the show was due to start. My morning was focused on a flight with the US Army’s Golden Knights parachute display team as I previously blogged about here. Then it was on to the main show (or what was left by the time I got back down!).

Art flew again and I had more luck than the previous day (although I believe there must be a weather curse that means clouds will appear whenever I am photographing the SHAR – just enough the make the light flat!). The heritage flight was very good and included Beercan Collier who will make another appearance in this blog in the near future as well as Vlado Lenoch – always a fun P-51 pilot. The Black Diamond team showed up very short handed. The plan for four L-39s and two MiG-17s was not met and only three L-39s were present. They flew well but the display obviously was supposed to have the pair filling in the routine. Without them there were long gaps in the performance which really hurt things. I will return to this subject in an upcoming post since the story has evolved.

Janesville is not a huge show but they had an interesting selection of things on display. The Canadian Hornets that showed up on Friday evening threw themselves around a lot before landing for the static display. I understand their departures were even more interesting although I wasn’t there to witness that. The team that hosted us did a great job and many thanks to them.