Tag Archives: formation

Please Come Just a Touch Forward

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Sometimes, pilots don’t realise that their obligations to a photographer are more important than their other mission goals!! I was in a Voyager on a refuelling track over the North Sea providing fuel to a bunch of RAF jets. A couple of Typhoons from 3 Sqn (ignore the unit markings on one of the jets) came up to get some fuel. They had a time on a range that they were waiting for so hung out in formation on our wing until near their slot so that they could top off at the last minute before heading in.

A tight formation of the two jets off our wing was really cool. They were close in and their formation was nice and tight. Perfect photo stuff. However, their location was just a touch further back then ideal with the wing tip obscuring the planes a touch. I was desperately hoping that they would pull forward just a touch. Nope, locked in place seemingly effortlessly maintaining station. Then, after a turn at the end of the track, the positioning moved just a touch forward. I was able to get a clear shot of the pair at last. What a great view. This was also one of those moments when it is important to stop looking through the viewfinder and enjoy watching this most unusual of sights.

Hoodoos on a Smaller Scale

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Many years ago, we visited Bryce Canyon in Utah. It is famous for its rocky pillars known as hoodoos. I was slightly surprised to see signs about hoodoos in Banff when we were staying in Alberta. We took a diversion along the road to the overlook for these hoodoos. They are down on the slopes towards the river, and the overlook is some distance from them. Clearly not the same number of them than you get in Bryce but still just as interesting a formation. It was a worthwhile diversion since it didn’t take us far out of our way. To be honest, the view of the river valley was the more impressive element of the visit.

An Unusual Pairing for “Formations”

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In the late 1980s, the RAF had just introduced the Tornado ADV to service. The squadron boss of the OCU displayed the jet with a Spitfire of the BBMF. This dissimilar formation caught my attention at the time. This was repeated in the 2000s when the RAF repeated the idea with a Typhoon and Spitfire display. However, I think I saw something that trumped both of those combinations at the Shuttleworth Military Air Show. The combination of a Great War SE5a and Spitfire was really something else. You might think that a fast jet and a Spitfire is a tough combination, but jets can fly slowly quite well, and Spitfires are no slouch.

However, an SE5a is not a speedy plane while a Spitfire is still no slouch! How to make this work then? Some very clever use of speed differentials and spacing is the answer. The SE5a would fly some curving passes closer to the crowd line while the Spitfire offset further out – slowing into the pass and then accelerating away. The result is a view from the crowd where both planes are quite well aligned.

The idea was very interesting. I won’t say it is innovative because I’m sure someone has done something like this before, but it was the first time I had seen it. The result was surprisingly effective, and they did it on a few passes. I don’t know just how precise the initial points have to be and how much scope the pilots have to adjust on the run in to make it work. I assume the SE5a pilot just flies the pass, and the Spitfire pilot has the power and control to make the adjustments. Whatever the approach, it worked well.

Swans in the Overhead

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I was up at Mukilteo one afternoon when I looked above me when I heard the sound of birds. At first, I thought it was a flock of geese, but a closer look led me to think they must be trumpeter swans. They were flying south, and Paine Field was in the direction of their travel. A flock of swans would be suboptimal for an airfield that doesn’t want to have a Sully moment, but I imagine that they didn’t cause any trouble. Their echelon formations looked very cool as they flew over me. I will have to go to Juanita to see if swans are back in residence at this time of year. A trip to Skagit must be on the cards too.

Repeating Cloud Patterns

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I was down in Burien on a day with some stronger winds from the north.  As I looked in the direction of Mt Rainier, my attention was drawn to the east and a string of clouds that had a very repetitive pattern.  I might have expected them to be downstream of a summit, but they were not obviously connected to a high point.  They did like someone had just discovered the clone tool in Photoshop and had not yet worked out how it creates repeating elements.  It took little time before they had dissipated, and I was left wondering what the cause was.

Parachute Formations Look Uncomfortable Up Close!

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The Canadian Forces parachute display team, The SkyHawks, were performing at the Abbotsford Airshow.  With their Canadian flag parachutes, they carried American and Canadian flags for the show opening as well as undertaking a few formation demonstrations.  I was working my way through the images from the show and was cropping in on the shots to see which were the sharpest.  It gave me a better view of how the team members link together for some of the configurations that they use.

One of the positions involved one guy’s foot being hooked between the legs of his partner.  This looked like a pretty tough position to hold.  In a three-person formation, the middle individual was holding the other two in place.  I imagine that there is a fair bit of strength involved in making this work.  These soldiers are undoubtedly tough individuals.  I suspect you practice these positions a little further from the ground for the first few times!

Formation Kite Flying

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During a visit to Whidbey, we stopped off at Fort Casey to have some lunch.  After eating, we walked downtown the hill from the lighthouse towards the main fort area.  There was a ground of people flying kits on the grass down there.  They clearly were experienced flyers and were flying routines in formation.  There were three of them at first and they were very slick.  A fourth joined in but I think was less experienced than the others.  Even so, they were still doing a good job.

I got a few photos of them as they practiced.  However, stills are not so good a way to give the feeling of kite flying so I went with a little video too.  A little of the video is below.

Clouds Over Rainier

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If you live in the Seattle to Tacoma area, you get familiar with the phrase “the mountain is out” or “in”.  This refers to Mt Rainier which can be shrouded in cloud or out in the sun.  As a 14,000’ mountain, it is the most obvious landmark around here.  It also drives its own weather systems so the clouds on the mountain are always worth a look.  Not so long ago, I was quite taken by the cloud development over the mountain which was a bit different to what I am used to seeing.  The boat in the front was not helpful but I wanted to get a shot of the mountain so went for it.

Formation Work with Gull

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Hayman and I were shooting at Anza Fisherman’s Park.  As the name suggests, this is a popular spot for fishing and this seems to attract the attention of a lot of gulls.  There was a steady breeze which allowed the gulls to hover close above us and sometimes alongside us.  We didn’t have anything of interest for them but it took them a while to work that out.

I got some shots of them as they hung around us.  The background of a few was disturbed a little by the fishing poles that were propped up but the long lens wide open managed to isolate them from most of the background.  They were a bit like photographing aircraft in formation but they didn’t necessarily respond to the directions I had for the shots I was after.  Not the best formation pilots for photo work I guess.