I have never photographed at Luke AFB before. Mark and I spent a few hours there as part of our trip. The base is home to the F-35A training unit and a variety of foreign F-35A training too. Plenty of USAF F-35s were in the pattern that day. I got loads of shots of the based jets but, with the current style of low observability finishes, the jets did look very alike. Yes, there were crew names and unit badges to be seen but, sadly, one Luke F-35 looks a lot like another Luke F-35.
The designation of the F-16V is one that leaves me a bit confused. There are A model jets that are upgraded to this standard, but I thought some new build jets were also having the designation. Maybe I am mistaken about that. I also see two-seaters upgraded to the standard so an A or a B model can now be a V model? Anyway, enough about that. I got to see some.
Taiwan has been upgrading its fleet of A and B model F-16s to V models. The program is nearly complete from what I have read. They operate a number of the jets from the Guard base in Tucson at the international airport. While Mark and I were there, we got to see a bunch of them launch and recover. This included one with special markings in the fin. The markings are otherwise not too conspicuous but, because they are early model jets, the lack of the bulged fin root with its antenna is the thing that allowed me to identify them. Must be some life left in those airframes despite their age!
Flashback to RIAT and 2019. I was working through the catalog looking for something for another project and came across these shots of Swedish Gripens departing from RAF Fairford after the show had concluded. A section departure is always more interesting than a singleton even if it does give you something to think about when deciding on which plane to focus on. The Gripen is a great looking jet and one that has been pretty successful given that it was built specifically for Swedish needs. Always happy to get to shoot one.
While Mark and I were in Arizona, we were talking about the sighting of Harriers down at El Centro. Harriers are getting pretty rare these days and the Marines only operate them on the east coast at this point. A detachment to this side of the country is of interest! We debated the merits of a drive across to El Centro and decided to go for it. We left Tucson mid morning and got to El Centro in early afternoon. A quick drive around the south of the base saw one Harrier out in the open. We could hear it too but, before too long, all had gone quiet – at least as far as Harriers are concerned.
As the day wore on, we were beginning to wonder whether we had been mistaken or just unlucky when a call came up on the radio of what sounded like a Harrier call sign. A flight of four. The daylight was beginning to get a little thin, so it was quite late to be going out but, since they have night attack avionics, no reason for them to be limited to daylight only. Sure enough, we soon see a four ship of Harriers taxiing to the departure end.
The four of them launch in stream and, while they didn’t turn towards us when we would have liked them to, they did keep it low enough to get some nice shots. One of the jets even had some color. With them off, we decided to head around to the other side of the base to hopefully get their return. Not long after we got there, one appeared overhead and alone venting fuel. Clearly something was amiss, and it was making an early return. A long straight in approach was best for them if not us! Then we waited. Unfortunately, it became clear that they would not be back before it got dark, so we eventually gave up and started our return journey.
Quite some time ago, I posted a piece about the take off of some F-35As that were doing a flyover for Veteran’s Day. What I didn’t cover in that post was that they had to come back! They actually spent a fair bit of time out around the area as well as doing the flyover so there was some time between departure and arrival. Originally, I had intended to get some pretty standard side on shots of their return. However, earlier in the year, I had done the same thing for some other F-35s, and, at the last minute, I had a change of heart.
I rapidly grabbed my stuff and drove around to the approach end of the airfield near Ruby Chow Park. I decided a head on shot followed by an underside shot would be a better bet. Conveniently, they decided to do a run in and break rather than a straight in approach, so I was able to get some shot of them in formation as they passed overhead. Then the approach shots worked out pretty much as I had hoped. I was glad that I had done something different to my usual. If there had been more opportunities, I hope I would have tried other ideas too.
My most recent visit to FHCAM was also my first encounter with their Messerschmidt Me-262. I knew they had one, but it was never on display when I went previously. Fortunately, it is now part of the main museum exhibits. I think the 262 is a very interesting looking design. Early jets were not always the most elegant shapes but the 262 had a really interesting, blended look to the fuselage and wings. I was hoping I could find a way to get something that reflected that in my shots. What I really wanted to do was use the monopod to get some higher angle shots but the museum has strict rules about such stuff so I had to make do with whatever my arms could manage.
The jet is a pretty small airframe. That generation of planes was not particularly large with a few more specialized exceptions so this shouldn’t be too much of a surprise. Compared to modern jets, it is tiny. First generation jet engines were not efficient beasts so it would have worked its way through its fuel load quite rapidly, I imagine. That assumed that both motors kept running for the whole flight. I still haven’t seen one of the restored/replica 262s fly, sadly. I wonder if I shall do that at some point.
The later stages of the Abbotsford Air Show included a performance by the RCAF CF-188A Hornet. By the time it was performing, the light was pretty much gone. The late performance has some benefits in that the burners are more striking against a darker sky, but the RCAF display often ends with a landing with the hook lowered. I had seen this before at Chino and the same problem as happened there occurred here. The touchdown point was a long way away from the spectator line, so it was too far away to get a decent shot.
However, there was the rest of the display to go for. My current cameras seem very able to handle low light conditions. The focus might be a touch slower or less accurate as the light diminishes but I wasn’t noticing a significant problem. Also, the high ISO capabilities of current generation cameras are really impressive so shooting in such conditions is not necessarily a problem. The camera will be able to perform although that won’t compensate for a jet just not looking that good with so little light. You still have to pick your shots.
The Hornet is a good display jet with the ability to point the nose in different directions rapidly and to pull a decent amount of vapor from the air. It can turn and it can blast through, so it makes for a good show. Original generation Hornets are starting to become a rarity. It won’t be long before the Canadian jets have been replaced by F-35s. Other operators have already transitioned and more will follow. Catch the legacy Hornets while you can and, preferably, in interesting lighting conditions.
I have seen some pictures recently of Growlers bouncing at Coupeville with the latest jamming pods on the underwing pylons. I was hoping that the jets I saw from the Rooks might be carrying the new pods. Instead, they were using the older pods. At first, I was disappointed by this but then I realized that this was the wrong way to look at things. The new pods will be around for a long time and the chances are I will see them a lot in the future. Making sure I have some shots of the older pods on jets as the bounce is something to make the most of before they are gone. We only miss stuff when it is going away so time to think ahead.
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.)
A trip to Coupeville is always going to be a bit hit or miss. Will the weather play ball, will the jets show up, how much will they bounce, how many of them will there be, will they be RAG jets or operational squadrons? All sorts of options. I was really happy that the weather suited a pattern direction that was better for photography, but it was mainly cloudy so not quite as good-looking light. It was the Rooks of VAQ137 that were bouncing so that was cool, and they brought their CAG jet. Getting this in its nice colors was cool. The jet was operating clean which was slightly disappointing but, fortunately, the other jets that came in were carrying pods.
