Tag Archives: North American

Airmotive Specialties Visit

AU0E4162.jpgThe Society of Aviation History organized a visit to Salinas to the facility of Airmotive Specialties. Owned and run by Dave Teeters, Aviation Specialties provides a number of services but the thing that brings them most attention is the restoration of warbirds with a strong focus on P-51 Mustangs. During our visit, there were seven Mustangs in the hangar in various states of restoration. There were some other types too as well as some more commonplace types undergoing maintenance.

AU0E4175.jpgDave has spent his life in this business having started working for his Dad before setting up on his own. He supplies parts to his Dad’s business and vice versa as they both operate in the same field. Dave has really committed to the processes and capabilities needed to restore these vintage aircraft. His team is one that he has trained and many of his staff have been with him for years. He has also invested in technology. So many parts for these aircraft are hand crafted but Dave has acquired numerically controlled machines to assist in producing a large number of components. These machines are also capable of digitizing the outline of existing components to allow him to reproduce them as needed.

AU0E4195-HDR.jpgThe investment in these machines is substantial but the pay off comes in how quickly he can produce replacement parts once the process is done. Hand crafting these parts is an intensive business and, when sufficient are needed, the business case is straightforward. Even so, there are still many pieces that require the hand skills that are in short supply and are becoming rarer. Dave maintains capabilities with many old tools and techniques in order to make sure that they can always provide what the customers need.

AU0E4188.jpgThe hangar was full of interesting projects in various states. Some were disassembled completely with rework on fuselages and wings plus various subassemblies. Others were fully complete and were just in for ongoing maintenance. A great looking Beech 18 was at the front of the hangar along with a P-51 due to be picked up by its owner. A couple of Robinson R44s were also parked in with a JetRanger – one of the R44s flew off later in the day.

AU0E4192.jpgDave provided great access to our visit and was exceedingly generous with his time. He explained exactly how they work and answered any questions the group had for him. The hangar has some nice facilities for customers but, while they were very comfortable, the contents of the working area were of most interest to us and Dave gave us freedom to wander as we wished. It was a great time. Many thanks Dave.

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Collings Foundation at Livermore

AU0E6426-Pano.jpgThe annual visit of the Collings Foundation to Livermore with their vintage warbirds is a popular event with many people turning out to look at the planes and, in some cases, fly in them. This year I didn’t plan on spending a lot of time there but I did head down for a while to check out how things were progressing. It was a hot day so the heat haze was playing havoc with shots as usual but there was still enough to see.

AU0E7522.jpgI had pondered what other spots might be useful for getting a shot or two and tried wandering down the street. However, the area is not pedestrian friendly so that idea didn’t progress too far. I did wrap up the day by driving to the public golf course at the end of the field to see whether I could get a different perspective on the departures. It wasn’t a bad spot but not somewhere I shall try again unless there is a good reason. You get a brief view and have to grab your shots before the planes are behind the trees.

AU0E7640.jpgWhatever the limitations, having the P-51, the B-24 and the B-17 on display is always nice and worth taking time out for given that it is so close to home.

Anyone See Any Mustangs?

AU0E6999.jpgHalf Moon Bay might not have been an air show in the strict sense but it did bring in a nice mix of warbirds. A good selection of P-51 Mustangs launched together to carry out some flypasts. We ended up being well placed for them taxiing out. Having a group of Mustangs rumbling past you is pretty cool. Having them lined up on the taxiway for their power checks before taking off was even better. What a great looking group of aircraft.

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T-6s Doing Their Stuff

wpid10232-C59F7419.jpgA pair of locally based North American T-6 trainers were keeping busy while the Collings folks were in town. Shortly after I first arrived, they launched as a pair. The departure was very nice but was a little spoiled by a card error on my camera. (I had a card that had given me occasional trouble but this was the first time it really crapped out. It has now gone back to the manufacturer for a replacement.) The T-6s were not done and flew several times. This gave me a few more opportunities to get shots of them. Their returns to base would involve some nice breaks into the downwind which were well centered on our location. I will have to investigate these guys further since they flew very nicely.

Collings Foundation

wpid10346-C59F8178-Edit.jpgThe Collins Foundation carry out a tour throughout the country with their vintage aircraft showing them off to many communities, sharing a message about what people did in the Second World War and providing an opportunity to ride in some historic machinery. I have seen them in the past while we lived in Chicago. Their tour this year brought them through the Bay Area with stops at Moffett Field and Livermore. Since the latter is close to home, I went along to see them.

wpid10336-AU0E7769-Edit.jpgThe part of the collection that they bring on tour includes a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, a Consolidated B-24 Liberator and a North American P-51 Mustang. I headed over to Livermore ahead of their planned arrival time and plenty of people had already gathered to see them come in. We all waited for a while and then the B-17 appeared over the hills. It made its approach and landed a short while before the B-24 showed up and followed suit. The P-51 was last of the three making a nice pass before landing. What I hadn’t anticipated was a B-25 Mitchell was also following them in. A quick turnaround and the three main players were soon launching off for flights with expectant passengers.

wpid10271-C59F7859.jpgAt this point I headed off as I had other things to do. Later in the day I came back and managed to catch an evening launch of the B-17. The following evening I had more free time so came back again. Another evening launch and recovery as the light got better and better. Then, as everyone packed up, the Collings team was kind enough to let me take some shots around the ramp. A local P-51 was parked up while the Collings P-51 had disappeared somewhere. As the sun set, I shot around the various aircraft and included a cracking 1937 Oldsmobile that one of the volunteers had brought along. With the light fading, the ramp lights came on which gave me a whole new bunch of opportunities to get some shots. I shot a lot until it was pretty late. At that point I headed home. The following day they also departed moving on to the next stop on their tour. If they come your way, make the effort to get out and see them. If you have the money, take a ride and support the continued operation of these great aircraft.

WHF Day Out

wpid7411-C59F2218-Edit.jpgWhat seems like far too long a time had passed since I had last had a chance to head up to Waukegan to see the team at the Warbird Heritage Foundation.  A nice day and a break in my schedule meant that I was finally able to resolve that shortfall.  I headed up to Waukegan keen to see what sort of day was in store.  As with any collection of older aircraft, the chances of much flying are relatively limited since the planes are usually in need of some sort of care.  However, there were a few parked out on the apron when I got there.

wpid7397-AU0E5396-Edit.jpgSean and Mike were busy taking care of them as I wandered up.  The first thing Sean told me was that he had flown the Bird Dog that morning and that it was a shame I hadn’t been there.  Indeed so!  Telling me I have missed out on a great opportunity is just cruel!  Never mind.  I still haven’t seen the Bird Dog fly so it would have been good to see it let alone fly in it.

wpid7401-AU0E5417.jpgThe project for the day was the T-28 Trojan.  Not so long ago, this aircraft had an engine go bad.  The chip warning light came on while Sean was flying it and, since he was close to the field, he made a speedy descent to land.  The engine pretty much gasped its last as he taxied in.  A rebuild later and now the plane is flying again.  However, as with all engines after overhaul, it is going through a running in period.  This also requires a different grade of oil and a change of oil was the task for the guys.

wpid7405-AU0E5466.jpgWith the new oil in, the engine was run and the oil topped off.  Then it was time for a flight.  Jeff is a regular T-28 pilot and member of the Trojan Horseman and he came along to fly with Sean in the back seat.  Putting hours on the airframe is the goal but not going too far from the field in case anything goes wrong.  They did their duty flying patterns over the field and I grabbed some shots when I could.  Most of the time they were quite far away but, with the moon traversing the sky, a couple of opportunities presented themselves for shots with the moon in the background.

wpid7395-AU0E5379-Edit.jpgI also grabbed some shots of the aircraft on the ground while they were off doing their thing.  I haven’t got much before of the Bird Dog so spent a bit of time with it including getting some shots of the cockpit.  Harsh exterior lighting meant a but of HDR was required for some of the shots but hopefully it isn’t too obvious!  I have shot these planes a lot over time but there is always a chance for something new.  Good to see you guys again and hopefully it won’t be so long next time!

Heritage Flight Foundation Visit

wpid6724-AU0E8355.jpgThe field trip during the ISAP Symposium was held at Paine Field in Everett.  We were hosted by the Heritage Flight Foundation and its owner John Sessions and they were excellent hosts.  (I visited once before and you can see that post here.)  Aside from the selection of aircraft still in the hangar where we were set up, they had arranged some photo sorties with some of their aircraft.  The B-25, Grumpy, was the camera ship for a few photographers and the P-51 Mustang was the target.  A T-6 also went up as a second camera ship.  Each photo position was a paying ride with the T-6 obviously being the premium slot.

wpid6706-AU0E7804.jpgI had decided not to take the ride.  It was not cheap although certainly not bad value for money.  As the weather was not looking great, I wondered whether I had chosen wisely.  As it was, the people who did go up did get some great images.  The area certainly can provide some nice backdrops and the light, while flat, did not hurt things.  However, even as someone on the ground, the flights seemed over very fast so I imagine for those on board, it was gone all to quickly.

wpid6712-C59F9236.jpgFor those of us on the ground, we got treated to the departure and arrivals of the aircraft plus a few passes of the P-51 and T-6 which were a lot of fun.  Gloomy skies made it all a little flat looking but still a great sight.  Being able to be close to the aircraft during the start up, taxi out and return was certainly worthwhile.  The following day they were having a public event and I hope the weather improved for the large numbers they were expecting.

More WHF Fun!

Some days things are just looking like they will be good.  The Warbird Heritage Foundation have their newly restored P-51 Mustang, Baby Duck, ready for flight.  Before they can do too much with it, they need to get some hours on the engine.  Consequently, they have had Vlado Lenoch coming across to fly the aircraft when possible to build the hours.

I knew that they had intentions to fly in the week before Christmas but I didn’t know exactly when.  However, the weather was crap for the majority of the week.  When I saw a  good forecast for Friday and I had some free time, I decided to take a chance and head on up to see if anything was happening.  If not, it was still a nice day to be out and about!

As it was, not only did the guess prove to be accurate, I got a bit luckier than even I had expected.  Baby Duck was out on the ramp when I arrived which was a good sign.  Indeed she would be flying and Vlado was coming to fly her.  What is the easiest way for Vlado to get there?  In his P-51 of course.  Paul also was planning on flying one of the other aircraft that day as well.  Bonus!

Vlado showed up and got ready to fly the Duck.  I scooted across the field to be in a position for good light and angles and it wasn’t long before Vlado was taxiing out.  A few other aircraft movements kept me amused while he headed out to the departure end.  Before I had left the hangar, I had foolishly suggested to Vlado that he keep it low on departure.  That was a pretty redundant thing to say.  Vlado certainly kept the aircraft in a good position for me as he came past and he built up speed before turning it into height.

I headed back since we didn’t know how long they would be out.  They actually landed away so were gone for quite a while.  Chris Doud had been in the right place to bag the back seat so he was having a great time.

When they got back, Paul had a chat with Vlado about how the flight had gone and then got ready to take the T-2 up for a run.  Vlado was also heading home in Moonbeam McSwine so I made a second run across the field to get the departures again.  They ended up heading out close together.  Both provided sporty departures so I was considering the day a very productive one.

I headed back to the hangar to await the return of the T-2.  They broke back into the pattern and landed so some taxi in shots and then a few pictures of a very happy back seat passenger made for the end of the day.  Time to head back to Chicago and enjoy all the traffic could offer on the last day before Christmas!

Time in the T-6

I recently popped up to Waukegan to see the good folks at the Warbird Heritage Foundation. I was up there to take some shots of their A-4 Skyhawk. It was scheduled to fly and the weather was looking particularly good so it seemed like an opportunity not to miss. A post on that will follow soon.

While I was there, the Chief Pilot, Herwig, was getting ready to take up the T-6 to run a check on the adjustments that had been made to the aileron trim. When he asked if I wanted to come along, I think you can guess what my answer was.

This was to be my first trip in a T-6. I minimized what photography equipment I was going to take along in order to keep things simple. Since we weren’t shooting anything else, I really only had two shot options. The ground or myself. Needless to say, I had a go at both. There is something very self centered but fun about shooting yourself in the cockpit while flying. I like shooting the pilot too but in the case of the T-6, the best I can get is the back of Herwig’s head!

The flight was a quick one and the trim checks were carried out before heading back to Waukegan. An overhead break into the pattern and then we were back on terra firma. Not a bad way to spend an afternoon. Thanks guys.