Tag Archives: lockheed

An Aurora Is a Bit of a Rarity These Days

For many years, the majority of maritime patrol operators have been using P-3 aircraft.  However, with the advent of the P-8 Poseidon, the number of P-3s is rapidly reducing.  Canada operates its own version of the family called the CP-140 Aurora.  With their continued operation, that are now becoming a bit of a treat to see.  I had hardly ever seen one in action before so, when they were displaying at the show at Comox, I was really pleased to get a chance to get some photos of one.

As with all military jets these days (or so it seems), grey is the order of the day.  Not the most exciting paint job but a different version of grey is definitely good.  They threw the plane around with plenty of energy in the display so the photo opportunities were good including a pass with the weapons bay open.  The replacement of the Aurora is currently being pursued so they won’t be around for much longer so good to get them now while the opportunity presents itself.  Funny how little I was interested in P-3s when I was younger and now I am hunting them down!

Not Many P-3s Left So This Was a Treat

When my friend Paul first told me he was going to be in Seattle over the holidays, I thought we wouldn’t be able to get together.  However, circumstances changed, and it turned out we could go out and check out the local aviation scene.  We had been getting some stuff locally but a check on ADSB showed a P-3 and an EP-3 out at Whidbey Island and we debated whether to make the run north.  In the end, we went for it.  The EP-3 had been out a while already and it did return before we got there but we were not going to come up short.  A P-3 made its return with some lovely December sun on it.  It flew a bunch of patterns which meant the chance to try different spots to get some images, so we were rather pleased with the outcome.

A Twin Tub A-12 Sitting by the Parking Lot

Google Maps can really be your friend.  I was hoping to find the time to get to see the space shuttle stack in Expo Park while I was back in LA if possible.  I went on Google Maps to see how to get there and the layout of the area and I saw a tag for an A-12.  Sure enough, the twin seat Lockheed A-12 is mounted on display right next to the parking lot.  It is tucked in between the lot and a pathway over a dip in the grounds.  It is rather tight to the parking lot which made getting shots a touch tricky but the early morning light when I was there was the best angle for it.  I was pleased to add an unusual airframe to the briefest of visits!

The KF Centre of Excellence

Usually, when I go somewhere new, I have done some research on what aviation related things might be in the area should there happen to be any spare time to squeeze something in.  I had actually been checking out the layout of the airport at Kelowna before our trip since I knew that Kelowna Flightcraft had their operations and there was an Alaska Airlines paint facility.  I figured it would be worth a drive by if time allowed.

As it turned out, our planned hike got scrubbed because the snow made access to the trail, we intended to try impossible for our not off-road optimized car.  We were looking for something else to do and I asked Nancy is a quick drive by at the airport would be possible.  With nothing else in mind, so generously acquiesced.  We drove up the west side of the airport and passed a pair of Convairs up a side road with a sign saying Open to the Public.

I had no idea what this could be but, when we came back, we drove up to take a look.  Much to my surprise (and Nancy’s bemusement that I didn’t already know), we were at the KF Centre of Excellence.  This is a new museum that the owner(?) of Kelowna Flightcraft has established.  The building itself is a lovely structure.  It is loosely designed to resemble the layout of a plane with a central fuselage element and two wings which are hangars.  The external styling is very nice, and the interior is tastefully finished with lots of wood.  We paid to have a look around with the front desk being a converted nacelle.  (Much of the furnishing is aviation components that have been repurposed.  An office desk from a tailplane, nacelles that have been modified and the café seating is all old business class seats.

The center section of the museum has a lot of exhibits about flying including engines, fuselage components and even an old simulator.  It is quite informative and educational.  We enjoyed looking around.  Then it was to the hangars.  One has a Second World War vintage to it.  The largest item was a DC-3 but it was probably the least exciting.  Alongside it was a Mosquito that had only recently been flown in.  Beside that is a Hawker Tempest which is in an advanced state of restoration to flightworthy condition.  It may well be the only Tempest I have seen.  I’m not sure if I have ever seen one before.

Across to the other side and things are still quite empty.  Clearly there are plans to add more aircraft in due course.  A Staggerwing and a few floatplanes are in place but the two-seat F-104 Starfighter is definitely the most exotic.  It was airworthy until relatively recently.  Sadly, it is rather tight to the wall which made getting shots from different angles tricky.  Still cool to see it though.

I had no idea about the museum.  I had heard something about the Mosquito flying out of Vancouver to a new owner but hadn’t really pieced together what was going on so didn’t realize it was Kelowna.  The whole thing was quite a surprise.  Finding such a collection and in such a lovely building was a shock.  Oh yes, parked out front were two Convairs.  One was the old Honeywell testbed that I have shot prior to its retirement and the other is a retired water bomber.  How cool.  (As an aside, the Honeywell 757 testbed was just down the road undergoing some maintenance work.)

Darkstar (Not The Real One) and Blackbird (The Real One)

One of the bigger attractions at the Antelope Valley Air Show, held at Edwards AFB, was the appearance of the Darkstar plane from Top Gun Maverick.  Obviously not a real plane (and not even the real Darkstar which was a reconnaissance UAV that never progressed beyond testing), it was part of a hugely popular movie so garnered a ton of attention.  It was parked in the static display alongside a very real SR-71 Blackbird.  This was something I found far more interesting having seen them fly for real in my younger days.  The Darkstar was still fun to see. I am not that churlish.

Blackbird Air Park

Alongside, connected to but not part of Joe Davies Historic Airpark is Blackbird Airpark.  On the south side of Palmdale’s airport, this area pays tribute to some of the most iconic products from Plant 42 across the airfield.  Lockheed’s Skunk Works turned out some amazing aircraft and this exhibit includes an A-12, an SR-71, a U-2 and an D-21 drone.  Having an A-12 next to an SR-71 is pretty special.  You have to look closely to see which is which.  A selection of black airframes together in the desert sun does not make for easy photography and there are lots of power lines and fences in the background but it would be churlish to complain too much.  It is free after all!

Century Circle

I got to the gate for Antelope Valley Air Show 2022 early in the morning.  We were lined up outside the security gate for Edwards AFB waiting for the time things opened up.  I was on the phone so was happy to sit in the car for a while chatting.  When I finished my call, I could see that I was a short distance away from Century Circle – a display of various aircraft associated with Edwards.  Nothing was moving so I figured I would walk up and have a look around.  I had got most of the way there when it looked like cars were starting to move. I rapidly retraced my steps to the car and we drove on to the base.

At the end of the show, I was coming back out the same gate so decided to see if it was possible to pull in and see the aircraft on display.  Indeed, there were no barriers and Iw as able to park up and have a walk around the various exhibits.  The name, Century Circle, is a reference to how many of the jets are Century Series fighters.  There is going to be a museum for the Air Force flight test center and the base for the building was not far from the aircraft.  I will be interesting to see what the museum is like when it is finished and how many of the other interesting aircraft that are currently on base will be included.

Of the jets on display, my favorites are the F-106, the F-105 and the F-104.  Nicely sequential now I think about it.  There is an F-102 which I have never been so keen on and this one is a two seater which takes a place that didn’t look that great and makes it worse.  Still, vintage jets on display is a good thing and I shouldn’t be critical of what is on offer.

The one plane that is a bit of an oddball is the McDonnell Douglas YC-15.  This was a program the USAF ran for a new jet transport to replace the C-130.  Boeing and McDonnell Douglas both built demonstrators for the program but neither was taken to production.  However, there are a lot of features from the YC-15 that will be familiar to observers of the C-17.  Having a transport jet alongside the sleek fighters is a little unusual but it is a rare beast and worthy of preservation.  Thankfully, the dry desert atmosphere is a place that will allow the airframe to survive for many years.

The F-16XL That Most People Ignored

There was a grey camo F-16 on the ramp at the air show at Edwards this year.  When I saw it I was really excited but I think I was in the minority.  I mentioned to a photographer next to me how cool it was and he commented on the air data boom.  I told him it was an F-16XL and he had no idea what that was.  The XL was the long range strike version of the F-16 that went up against and lost to the F-15E Strike Eagle.  Two jets were built and they ended up having some test duties including so work for NASA.  The single seater was the jet on the ramp for the show.

It has a large cranked delta wing but, from a normal viewpoint, that can be seen but isn’t obvious.  A look at the shadows, though, and you know what you are dealing with.  The airframe is an early fiscal number – the next jet became the AFTI aircraft – and the rear fuselage has the mounting points for an anti-spin chute rig.  This jet has done a lot in its flying days but it is now a museum piece.

Inside the JetStars

I have posted about the JetStars that were stored at Klamath Falls.  There were three airframes that we got a chance to check out.  We were given a great opportunity because they also opened up the jets so we could look around inside.  It was fun poking around inside what was once the premier form of executive transport.  It was also interesting to see the difference in the configurations with things like the throttle quadrants looking very different between the jets.

They are being broken down for the key parts that still have value so most of this stuff will either be sold or scrapped but here are some views of the interiors of these three elegant jets.

JetStars In Their Last Resting Place

If you don’t know I like JetStars, you have not been a regular reader of this blog.  If that is the case, I have a real soft spot for this jet.  The original business jet and a plane that looks so cool even decades after it first flew.  If you did know, my apologies for being so repetitive.  On the evening that Mark and I arrived in Klamath Falls, I saw a post on the JetStar Facebook group about some JetStars in the city.  A Brit, Kev Perry, had posted some shots of them.  I decided to contact him, and he gave me some good information about where they were and the team that looked after them.

The next morning found me and Mark at their front door asking if we might come in.  The team couldn’t have been more accommodating.  Two of the jets were parked up on the ramp in the morning sun looking fantastic.  They let us take any shots we wanted.  They also told us about a third jet that they had in their hangar so it would have been rude to not wander across and take a look.  Photographing a jet in the hangar is not as cool as in the morning sun but three JetStars in a morning is not something to miss.