When I headed south out of the center of Nagoya to go to the museum, my route took me down to the docks area. A highway along the water obviously needed to clear the route for the larger ships so a pretty impressive bridge had been constructed. It is called the Meiko-Chuo Bridge. I could only get a good view of it from the train but it was in the background when you were at the museum. I thought it looked pretty spectacular.
I was working through some RIAT photos of the Patrouille de France display. I had some tight shots of the first four jets as they took off and, as I looked closer at them, I was confused as to why two of the jets had a more nose high attitude than the other two. Since they are taking off on formation, I figured that they should look the same.
A closer look at the images and it seems that the flap settings of the jets vary. The nose high aircraft seem to have less flap – hence their need for a higher angle of attack – than the other two jets. I have been trying the think why they would adopt this approach. With all jets accelerating together and climbing together, I had imagined that they would all be in the same configuration. I wonder whether there is something to do with the outwash from the nearby jets that requires a different configuration but I haven’t come up with anything conclusive. I throw it out to the aero engineers that read this to propose your ideas as to why. If any of you know anyone in the PdF, feel free to ask them instead!
This one is for some of the Brits who read this blog. The pictures are a bit sketchy as they were taken from a moving car (I was not driving)! I was in Dallas for work and noticed this building from a distance. I figured I would try and get some pictures as we drove by. The building is apparently a modern construction but, to my mind, it appears to be a direct reproduction of the original Crystal Palace. Obviously not a reproduction after it burnt down but it does look just like it. Anyone from Texas – Gary, I am looking at you – that knows anything about this building?
My F-16 shots from RIAT didn’t just throw up vortices (like this post). They also showed something that seems to be a common occurrence in flying displays. That is the failure of a Smokewinder to perform. Smokewinders are a smoke generating pod that fits on a Sidewinder launch rail. They are controlled from the cockpit and should add a nice effect to a display sequence. The Belgian Air Force display aircraft was using them for its display.
In the early 90s we used them on the BAe company Hawk demonstrators at shows. The crews had got to understand the workings of the pods well and knew what could cause them to quit during a display. At one Farnborough, they actually helped out one of the other companies that was having trouble keeping theirs running smoothly. I guess the problem hasn’t gone away and the knowledge is not widely shared as the Belgian jet lost one pod during its display. In the shot above, you can see a small amount of flame emerging rather than the intended smoke and, a short while later, the pod quit for the rest of the display.
Arrivals day at any air show is a good opportunity to catch the movements of aircraft that will only be in the static display as opposed to the flying display. At RIAT, there are park and view areas at the east and west ends of the airfield. I have used both over the years but the east end can be really hectic. It does give you the chance to shoot the aircraft on final approach but you can really be fighting for space.
I chose the west end this year. Planes were landing at the east end but it was pretty normal for aircraft to taxi to the west end to then be led to their parking location. Of course, a few interesting types managed to turn off early or backtrack before they got to the end but, on the whole, we did well. The weather wasn’t great but there was a fair bit of sun which helped.
Some of the more exotic types made it up our way. The Ukrainian SU-27s and their IL-76 came up as did the special schemes on some of the F-16s. The Luftwaffe brought some marked jets along too. An F-15E taxied past twice and provided a couple of speed brake waves for the gathered photographers. It could get a bit congested and, with jets holding in the turning loop, they did occasionally send their jet wash across the path of the incoming jets which sabotaged a few photo opportunities.
Later on the Thursday, a few practice displays were also flown by crews qualifying for the show which provided a different angle on some of the performances. An F-16C of the USAF did its full routine and then added a few extra banana passes bringing out right over us at speed several times. Much appreciated!
I posted some shots of John Sessions’ Dragon Rapide in this post. I was pleased to see another Rapide show up at Fairford for RIAT. I managed to get a few shots of it. It was painted in a nice color scheme and looked very elegant as it pottered by. Not a speedy plane (despite the name) so plenty of time to enjoy it.
The IL-76 is a beast of a transport. It is a rugged plane and looks like it could handle anything thrown at it. I have seen them on a variety of occasions – most recently the modernized versions used for civil freight work. The older versions with the original engines are a great thing to see though. The Ukrainian Air Force brought an example to RIAT this year. It was flying overhead when the Sukhois were landing and then it came in too. It came up to the west end where we got a good view of it. Then it was parked up on static display for the show. Sadly, I didn’t get to see it depart at the end of the show.
Ineos is a name I hadn’t heard until recently. They took over the Sky cycling team and that was the first time I became aware of them. I guess that sporting achievements are something that their management are quite focused on because, while waiting to catch the ferry at Portsmouth, I got a look at the building in these photos. It is their America’s Cup challenger facility. The building looks pretty impressive and I hope that the boat that they come up with is similarly so. It would be good to see the cup make its way to the UK after all this time.
When I heard an Avanti had showed up at RIAT while I wasn’t there, I was a touch annoyed. I am such a fan of the type that I thought missing it would be very frustrating. Fortunately, it was still at Fairford at the end of the show so the departure day was going to be the time for me to get a shot. It took off in plenty of time before I had to go so I was treated to the sight and sounds that accompany a pair of pusher props.
The Royal Navy destroyer fleet’s most recent additions have been the Type 45 Daring Class. These ships are an integral part of the groups that will support the new carriers. The Type 45s preceded the carriers in to service by a number of years. They have a superstructure that suggests more focus on radar reflectivity and the main mast is a larger structure than seen on previous ships. This example was sailing out of Portsmouth and towards the English Channel while I was at Seaview on the Isle of Wight. It was a bit distant but still worth a shot given how I haven’t seen one on open water before.