The grounding of the 737 Max fleet worldwide means that they have been coming off the production line and going in to storage. A few of them were scattered around the Boeing ramp at Paine Field. One was particularly interesting though. It seemed to have the front fuselage wrapped in something while the rear fuselage windows were not covered but had individual panels sealed across them. No idea what this was all about but it did look unusual.
My inability to see a Boeing T-33 jet in nice conditions continues. I was at Boeing Field when one of the T-33s was taking off in support of a Pegasus test mission. The weather was crappy with rain and a heavy overcast. I thought that this was not going to work well but sometimes bad weather provides good opportunities so I gave it a go. Besides, I don’t see them enough to pass it by. As it turned out, the flat conditions and the dampness made the jet show up nicely against the background when it was still low on climb out. Once it was against the sky, things weren’t so great but it turned out a lot better than I expected.
Boeing started delivering KC-46s to the USAF as I covered in this post. However, it didn’t take too long before the Air Force found various items of tooling in the aircraft that shouldn’t have been there and stopped taking delivery. Consequently, rather than delivering the backlog, it has continued to build. Paine Field had well over a dozen aircraft in various locations when we were there including three over by the Heritage Flight Foundation’s hangars. Here three were illuminated nicely by the sun as it rose across the field so a pano seemed in order.
I have shot KC-46s in bad conditions more often than would seem probable. I got one in conditions so dark it was like a night shoot. This time it was heavy rain. Of course that can mean vapor. The matte gray of fuselage actually looks better when it is wet. I had hoped the inlets would fog but that didn’t happen. However, the flat light helped the fuselage a bit which often gets too contrasts. Besides that it throws up a ton of spray behind it as it accelerates down the runway. Rotating in front of me meant I was rather happy with the result compared to what I expected.
The Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) was attending Red Flag 19-2 with some brand new F-15SA jets. These jets had come direct from delivery so had not yet even made it out of the US. I guess they had that new fighter smell. They did fly the first day we were there, despite the strong winds which was a pleasant surprise. They flew along with the rest of the jets on our second day. I have mentioned their slightly strange approach to flex departures before so I won’t go there any further but instead will share what I have of the jets from the two days I was there.
Paul and I were in Vegas for Red Flag but the early morning is also a good time to shoot at McCarran International. The morning light is ideal for the north/south runways and, with the wind playing ball, you can get the iconic McCarran shots of jets taking off with the weird and wonderful hotel buildings behind them. Where else will you get a pyramid and the Empire State Building in the background. Southwest has a big presence at McCarran and we saw a string of their jets head out including one Max8. We watched it climb out little realizing that the grounding order would be coming within hours or even minutes. Whether the jet continued to its destination or turned around, we don’t know but that was its last commercial flight for a while.
The BOAC retro jet that BA has painted up was a nice treat to get. There are two other retro jets in other colors but, based on their interior configuration, they should not normally be used on the Seattle route. Therefore, I wasn’t expecting a chance to get them any time soon. Then, I saw that the Landor scheme aircraft was coming to SeaTac. It must have been a substitution. Now I was interested. However, it pushed off the gate at Heathrow and then went back on with some engine start issue. Was it going to scrub?
Apparently not. The issue was resolved and they pushed again. While the passengers were, no doubt, unimpressed by this, I was delighted. It now meant the arrival was at nearly 7pm. No problem to get to SeaTac after work and the light might be really nice. The weather was better than forecast although the chance of Mt Rainier making a second appearance was low. Again, plenty were out for the arrival. She showed up on the approach and the light played ball. This jet would have been delivered to BA with these colors so it was a case of reverting to how she had appeared many years before.
Some late day departures after the Flag returns included F-15Es, F-35As, L159s and A-4s. You don’t know how long anyone is scheduled to be out but you find yourself hoping that they will all make it back before the sun sets so you can get some arrival shots in the nicest light available. Once they are gone, it is a case of watching the time and crossing your fingers. As it was, we got lucky. They came back in a steady stream with all of them showing up as the sun was at its best. Arriving over Cheyenne is not ideal from a sun angle perspective at this time of year but we still got some nice angles. Some turned tighter while others went wider so we got to try all sorts of angles out to see which picked up what light was remaining.
Boeing 727s aren’t a total rarity but they are certainly not common and, when one showed up at Paine Field, it was worthy of a look. Operated by Kalitta Charter, it was making a trip around the west. It arrived at Paine in nice light and a flight plan was filed for a departure shortly afterwards. This turned out to be a bit optimistic but I had plenty to do so I sat nearby awaiting the departure. It ultimately came later in the day so the weather was great.
What wasn’t great was that I missed them calling up on the radio as I was busy with some work. I happened to glance up and see the aircraft rotating in lovely light. I grabbed the camera and tried to get a quick shot but the camera was not happy and I got a second of open shutter. Nothing usable. A quick reset and then I was able to get tail on shots as it climbed away. To say I was annoyed is an understatement. At least I saw it, even if I have no shots to share.
It’s always interesting to see what is at the Sands ramp at McCarran. The flight of luxury jets for bringing in the high rollers to play at the casino is a mix of types. Some “normal” Gulfstream, an A340-500 and the Boeing 747SP. I was delighted to see that two SPs were parked up on the ramp the morning I was there. Seeing them move was a bit much to ask but getting them in some lovely light immediately after sunrise was a good alternative.