Tag Archives: airplane

More Tucson Exploration

While the majority of my time at Tucson International was spent chasing F-16s, there is a lot more going on at the airfield. This part of the world is popular for aircraft storage as a result of the dry conditions that don’t encourage corrosion. The reason that Davis Monthan AFB has the boneyard is because of this and Marana is just up the road and also stores lots of aircraft.

Tucson seems to have a few things stored but there seems to be more of a focus on reworking aircraft that have left an operator or breaking down planes for parts. Over on the southwest side of the field seem to be a bunch of planes so I drove over to take a look and see what I could find.

There are quite a few aircraft in various states over there. A bunch of ex-Southwest 737s seemed to be going through the process of rework. Whether they are going back to the fleet or heading off to pastures new I don’t know. I also came across the fuselage of an MD-80 which appears to have been part of a U2 tour prior to its demise. I particularly liked an L-1011 TriStar that was on one ramp. I assumed it was disused but it does appear to be in better shape than something that hasn’t flown for a long time. Who knows. They are a rare beast these days so let’s hope it is still flying occasionally.

Tucson F-16s

Leave a Reply

I recently was in Tucson AZ for a piece I was working on for the magazine. Since that is yet to be public, I will have to hold off on putting anything from the visit on here. However, I did have a morning free before my flight home and decided to check out the F-16 operations that take place at Tucson’s international airport. I hadn’t visited the airport before so I checked in with my friend Jay to find out what the options are for shooting at the field.

Jay gave me some suggestions on locations as well as the times of day that things are likely to happen. This was focused on first thing in the morning since it is a little warm in Tucson at this time of year. 105F is not just uncomfortable to be out and about in but it does cause lots of heat haze issues which makes for tricky shooting conditions. Besides, I did have a plane to catch.

I got the the departure end of things and the timing of the first wave of F-16s was pretty much as predicted. While you have a good view of the aircraft on their takeoff run, most shots before they get close are pointless since the heat haze is very strong. That didn’t stop me trying some of course. However, there are a lot of shots of that type that did not make it through the first cull of bad images!

With the first wave away, I moved to the other end of the field to get the recoveries. Not only was Jay’s suggestion well placed for getting the aircraft as they came in but it also provided a measure of shelter from the sun. This was very welcome. Depending on the pilots, the jets turn in very close to you and provide a nice angle that you don’t often get. Some pilots turned a lot further out although I did notice one jet which was a two seater do that on its first pass and it was a lot tighter on the second pass. i wonder what the conversation was like in that jet.

I got the recoveries of the jets that had launched earlier along with a few civilian arrivals before deciding that it was too warm. Then I did a little exploration around the field but that will be a different post!

Virginia Air Power Park

Leave a Reply

Just down the road from the Virginia Air and Space Museum is the Virginia Air Power Park. This has some similarities to the Air and Space Museum and some differences. First, since it is also close to the Air Force and NASA facilities, it shares the access to some interesting exhibits. Therefore, there are some very interesting aircraft on display. This includes an XV-6 Kestrel from NASA, just like the Air and Space Museum. Strange that such a rare aircraft should have two on display in such close proximity!

The differences are more pronounced. It is an outdoor exhibition and decidedly less glamorous. Getting funding to look after the aircraft is a continuing issue for the team there and they are working hard at it. Some of the aircraft are repainted but others a in need of a new coat when they can get it. Since everything is outdoors, I imagine that the preservation task is a more difficult one. We were there on a rather grey day. It had been raining heavily and was still cloudy and dull while we were there. Some of the aircraft were standing in large puddles which can’t be good for them.

None of this is meant to be critical of the team. That they are doing what they can to keep these aircraft on display is great but it must be a struggle to make sure that they are not going to rot away. Not only are there aircraft but also some interesting missile and some rockets from the space program’s test activities. They also have some capsule hardware from test activities.

There is a building at the park as well which currently contains a wide selection of models of different aircraft, ships and spacecraft. Again, if you are passing by, I would recommend you pay it a visit but you might need to make sure you have some shoes that don’t mind puddles!

Virginia Air and Space Museum

Leave a Reply

Located in Hampton Virginia is the Virginia Air and Space Museum. Hayman and I checked it out as part of our tour of local museums. I had been warned by Liza that everything inside was pretty crowded and she certainly wasn’t wrong about that but more of that later. The museum is a very modern looking facility with glazing at both end walls allowing lots of light inside. That also makes for a few problems with the levels of contrast between parts of the building but I doubt they planned it based on the needs of photographers!

In fact, they really didn’t. The building has a great collection of aircraft. The close proximity to NASA facilities has obviously been helpful in getting access to some pretty unusual exhibits. The Apollo 14 Command Module is on display as is the HARV F/A-18 Hornet, a research F-106 and an XV-6 Kestrel among many other interesting airframes. They even have an MMU from the Space Shuttle program (although getting a shot of it from the moving elevator was tricky). The result of all of these exhibits is that they have to be squeezed in. They are usually suspended from the ceiling which makes them look more dynamic. However, they do tend to overlap a lot.

This isn’t a problem if you are visiting to see everything which is, after all, the purpose of the museum. It does, however, make getting photos a bit more tricky. I ended up using a combination of lenses. A wide angle zoom and a fisheye zoom were the two I chose. The fish is a lens that viewers can tire of quickly but, in this case, it was a case of trying to get unobstructed shots where possible. It also let me try a few odd angles for fun too!

While not a museum I would go back to repeatedly, this was certainly a good place to visit. I might go back one more time with some new ideas about how to shoot certain things but even that might require the cooperation of the management! If you are passing and have a couple of hours, do pay it a visit.

More Oceana

Leave a Reply

The ISAP theme continues! In a previous post (that you can read here if you missed it) I talked about some shooting I did with some friends outside NAS Oceana, the premier fighter base for the US Navy on the east coast. Well, the field trip from the symposium included a visit to Oceana as well although this was to be on the flightline. VF-31 was the Squadron that hosted us. They provided us with an excellent visit.

The squadron was not undertaking operations that day so their part of the ramp was occupied by planes but nothing was moving. This gave us a great space in which to move around. We were basically free to go to the end of their line where it met the taxiway and to shoot from anywhere in there. The only restrictions were the normal ones on a Navy base. No shooting open panels and no shooting Super Hornets down the inlets.

There was a fair amount of activity on base and the weather was very nice (if a little breezy). Since we were there in the morning, we had the sun pretty much behind us which worked out well. The squadrons that were flying that day seemed to have a steady stream of jets on the move. They would taxi passed us on the next taxiway from the one we could get to the edge of so we could see the jets coming by easily and when they were in the hold they were easy enough to shoot.

The warm weather meant that shooting anything too far away was going to be fruitless if using a long lens since the heat distortion was too much. However, if you went a little wider, you could minimize the effect of that, at least for the size of shots that are going to be posted online. They wouldn’t stand up to too much enlargement I suspect but they certainly show what was going on.

Interspersed with the regular jets were a few in special schemes. There were a number of the squadron specials up and flying as well as one of the CONA marked aircraft. We also saw a few jets that were in the aggressor colors but that had moved to a new squadron so we a combination of new and old markings. I am sure they will be repainted in gray before long so that is something good to have seen while it was around.

The VF-31 special aircraft was at the end of the line up and the squadron kindly provided some steps to allow us to get a higher look at it. These were originally for us to get a group photo in front of the jet but, once they were there, most people took the opportunity to get a few shots as well. These things tend to work quite well with everyone taking a turn but occasionally, as with people who linger very close to a subject, you get a few people who forget that they aren’t the only person involved. Thankfully, he majority are very considerate and “help” the less fortunate to play well with everyone else!

The next squadron along the ramp was VF-213. They did have some operations underway. One of the things they were doing was providing experience flights to midshipmen who were yet to decide their career path in the Navy. Additionally, they appeared to be in the process of training up a number of the ground crew. Consequently, when one of the jets came in for a running change of backseater, we got to see the midshipmen swap over and the ground crew being shepherded through the process of turning the jet. It was fun for us but I wonder how much they enjoyed having their early work being watched by so many. Many thanks to them, though, for tolerating our presence.

Our stay was slightly extended since our bus driver had been taken ill while we were on base and a replacement had to come in and help out. I didn’t hear the final outcome but hopefully he was feeling better later on. With a new driver in place, it was time for us to move on. Considering the size of the group we had, the team at Oceana did a great job of hosting us. Many thanks for everything.

NAS Oceana

Leave a Reply

The recent ISAP symposium took me to Norfolk VA. It is a short drive to Virginia Beach and NAS Oceana – the home of the east coast fighter squadrons for the US Navy. The field trip for the symposium was going to include a visit to Oceana but, since I was there ahead of the event, I decided to pay a quick visit after my arrival. A slight delay due to travel complications and then the passing through of a pretty significant storm meant I was a little later than planned but no great problems resulted.

The weather was not great so the light was a bit sparse. Combined with a cloudy sky, photographing grey jets is always a challenge but I was meeting up with a friend from FenceCheck.com who lives locally so there was always time to chat even if nothing was happening. However, after a pretty quiet period, a few more jets got up and started flying. I was supposed to be leaving to go and pick up a friend from the airport but the storm that I had come through was not alone and his inbound flight was significantly delayed. Therefore, I had the time to see what else would fly.

The activity kept going for a bit was the light was fading fast and my ISO settings were getting higher and higher. Since the time to pick up my friend was now approaching, I decided to pack up my stuff. Another jet arrived as I did so. This didn’t bother me until I realized it was one of the CONA painted aircraft so the kit was rapidly extracted again and a few shots taken. Then it really was time to go.

Thanks for the advice on the spot to those concerned and also for the chance to catch up. Maybe not the most ideal conditions but still a fun way to kill an hour or two.

Changing Your Name – Even if You Are a Building Pt 2

Leave a Reply

And so we progress to Part 2. Attentive readers will already be aware that the Unitrin sign had been removed. I was a lazy boy and watched from my living room. The following weekend the new sign was scheduled to go up. Fortunately, we had friends staying with us. Mark is a flight test engineer and a pilot so the suggestion that some aviation action could be added to the weekend was good for him. Since it was close to home, we wouldn’t be missed for a short while on a Sunday morning.

The replacement of the sign was pretty much the reverse of the previous week. The letters and the logo had been assembled on the street on the back of trucks. Two sides of the building had to be done and fortunately our side was to be first. The placement of the signs was a touch more tricky than the removal. Pulling them off meant getting them clear and dropping them down to the street. Lifting the new ones up was complicated by the way in which the letters – which are large but don’t weigh much – can catch the wind and start to rotate. The crews on the building have to catch the tag lines and then pull them steady before positioning them.

They soon got a good rhythm going and we watched the letters and the logo go up on the first side of the building. We then retreated to further away as the other side was dealt with, not least because a lot of it was out of sight from the better locations. Midwest did a great job as always and it was good to see the team. Thanks everyone and Mark certainly was glad to see one of these jobs in person.

Trying the New Spot in Better Light

Leave a Reply

I recently posted about a trip to O’Hare in some crummy weather when I didn’t end up with many good results. One of the better aspects of that visit was that I found a nice location directly under the approach to 14R. This provides some good head on shot opportunities. Head on shots are kind of fun I find. They are a different perspective to normal and mix things up a bit. You can’t do it all of the time or it is dull but it does make for some more dynamic shots that the standard side on pass.

I waited to see when the right combination of wind and weather would occur so that I could get the morning light just off the nose when this runway was in use again. Fortunately, I didn’t have to wait particularly long. Things lined up quite nicely so I popped out to have a look. My desire to stay in bed meant that I was about five minutes too late to catch the ANA arrival from Japan but others were on the way so it was a nuisance but not a huge loss. However, en route I did take a look at the south side of the field for other possible shooting locations.

I had shot a few years back at a spot that provided a great view of aircraft departing off 22L, many of which turn quite early after departure giving some topside views. This spot ended up having a warehouse facility built on it which was a nuisance. however, further development in the area has provided some spots to park so I checked out one of these and it seems a reasonable option. Then I headed to the approach.

In good light it seems to work really well. I experimented with wide angle shots as they pass overhead as well as long lens shots that crop tightly in on the aircraft as it gets closer. Both seem to have some merit. I didn’t stay too long as there was a gap in the larger arrivals so I headed back to my other new spot to try a few departure shots. Then it was back to the approach for the last of the big jets and then home. Not a bad morning really and with the day only just started, plenty of time to do other things.

Remember Northwest?

Leave a Reply

I have been going back through a lot of the archive recently with the goal of culling a lot of the crap images that have no hope of ever seeing the light of day again and are, therefore, just filling up drive space. As I do this, it reminds me of a few things I haven’t seen for a while and some I won’t see again. Northwest Airlines is one of these!

From time to time I have done a lot of shooting of airliners. I won’t profess to them being my favorite thing to shoot – fast jets and helicopters are probably my favorites – but when it comes down to it, I love all things that fly and airliners do just that. Besides, they are sometimes easier to come by! One of the features of shooting airliners is that most of what you see does not cause you any surprise. There may be something that is rare or unusual wherever you are and that can be quite exciting but usually what you see is pretty much what you would expect to see.

It is only at a later stage, when whatever you saw is no longer around, that you can get interested in something that was previously pretty unexpected. Such is the case with Northwest. Before the merger with Delta, Northwest had a large fleet that covered the country. I didn’t fly with them much but I would frequently see their aircraft. I would take pictures of them but probably not get too excited. I even spent one day at Detroit where they were most of what I saw.

Now, Northwest is no more and its fleet has been repainted in Delta’s colors. To find a picture of a Northwest jet as I go through the archives suddenly takes on a level of interest that it hadn’t at the the time it was taken. Maybe it will have the same effect for you so here are a few samples of something no longer to be seen.

Skiing to Success!

Leave a Reply

As I wrote before, I was hoping to make a trip to the ski plane fly-in at Oshkosh this year. The weather had not looked good long in advance but then some snow fell and it looked promising. Oshkosh still had patches of the runway without snow so it wasn’t clear until the day before. Then a storm came through on the Friday. In Chicago we got quite a good fall. In Oshkosh, it was only 2-3″ but that was enough to cover the gaps. The next question was with the storm clearing out, was the weather good enough to fly?

The answer was yes. I was riding up with some of the people from Poplar Grove. I drove out to Union IL to meet up with some of the guys. As I left Chicago, the weather was not great with some snow still falling. I was not optimistic. However, as I reached Union, I came out into clear skies (and falling temperatures) and suddenly things looked a lot better.

I met Lee, Buck and Jim at Union as they were getting the aircraft ready to go. I was riding up with Drew who was coming across from Poplar Grove to pick me up. It was 8F as we got our stuff together. The Champ and the Cub were prepped and started up just as Drew arrived. They headed out as I loaded up and we followed on. Drew has a Piper Clipper so we had a speed advantage to catch up.

The first leg was to Palmyra in Wisconsin. Here the whole group had agreed to meet up for breakfast. The good folks at Palmyra had held off from plowing half the runway and one of the taxiways so we had no problem operating on skis. We all met up and trekked across to the restaurant who did a great job of feeding a raucous bunch! It was a very friendly group just confirming me previous good experience at Poplar Grove.

From Palmyra we all headed north to Oshkosh. We departed near the back again and caught up with some of the group. We managed to get some nice formations going en route and I could grab a few shots. Shooting through the windows was a little tricky but the results were not too bad. It was far too cold to consider sliding the windows open! At Palmyra we had reviewed the arrival procedures for Oshkosh. Since Pioneer field is not part of the main airport, we have to arrive low on a special route.

This sounds straightforward when reviewing the brief. However, the arrival height is about 500′ above ground level. At that height, it is not so easy to make out exactly where everything is. However, with two pairs of eyes checking it all out, we managed to pick out all of the appropriate waypoints and find the field. Even doing it right is quite interesting since you have to head straight at the cab of the main tower and then turn final. You feel like you are doing something wrong even though you aren’t. Drew made light work of it all.

Once on the field there was time to take a look at all of the other aircraft that had made it – and see the arrivals of those we had left behind. Chatting with the other crews was a lot of fun and also talking to some of the other visitors made it all the more interesting. There was a briefing about the departure as well. Since the wind was calm, departures were in the opposite direction. This made for great viewing from our location in the parking area with planes taxiing right past us and then turning to depart back past again!

We watched a fair few go. Our group was nearly last to head out and, again, we waited to be towards the back of the group. We got airborne and caught up with one of the Cubs which we found had a ski out of alignment. There are safety wires that limit the travel but a bungee holds the ski in optimal position. This had dislodged. They decided it was easiest to land and fix it so found an open field and dropped it in. They were back up in no time. A few more pictures of the group and then we left them to it.

They were planning making a few touch and goes at various spots but we were on our way home. Only in the last section of the trip did a low cloud base come in. This wasn’t a problem from our perspective other than that the lack of sun meant the cabin suddenly felt a bit colder! It obviously wasn’t a deterrent to some hot air balloonists we passed on the way back. They must have been chilly when the burner wasn’t going!

Drew dropped me back at Union and then headed home to Poplar Grove. It was a great trip and I had a whole lot of fun. I hope Drew’s passengers on his 767s have as much fun as I did. Thanks to everyone involved. It was great and I hope to spend a bunch more time with everyone in the future.