Tag Archives: preserved

Edwards Plane On A Pole

Heading into the show at Edwards took you past a lot of planes that had been preserved outside the base buildings. The parking areas around these buildings had been coned off given that there were thousands of vehicles making their way along the roads so stopping to grab shots looked like it might be frowned upon. However, we weren’t always moving so it was possible to grab shots out of the window. I would like to have got more and have seen the shots of others that I missed but I did get a P-59 Airacomet on one of the poles which is a relatively rare beast.

Gate Guards At Klamath Falls

Leave a reply

The 173FW at Klamath Falls has flown a variety of types over the year. One of the advantages of the base being open for Sentry Eagle 2022 was the chance to check out the preserved examples that they have. There is a central avenue on base that is the location of an F-4, an F-15 and an F-16. They are mounted on poles and in the colors of the unit. The lighting can be a bit tricky depending on the time of day but there are ways of making the most of what you can get.

Each plane is set up in a dynamic pose as is appropriate for a fighter aircraft. They are well looked after and there aren’t too many items on them that you would want removed, like spikes to deter birds from landing. I was surprised how few of the visitors to the event actually came to check them out as they weren’t far from the main route to the ramp but it certainly made it easier trying to get some shots.

London Buses in the Strangest Locations

Leave a reply

In the center of Fairhaven, I was surprised to see an old London bus. This wasn’t a Routemaster but an older vintage of bus. It was tucked in a shady area next to a building on a sunny day so it was a touch tricky to get a shot of. It was also surrounded by various stuff so I maneuvered to get a reasonably clear shot of it. It still has its UK registration plates so anyone that is familiar with London Transport history, can probably advise what it is. No doubt there is a website for this sort of thing somewhere if I looked hard enough.

The Edwards Museum

Leave a reply

Edwards AFB has been the home to an amazing range of interesting aircraft types. Many of them have found their way to prominent museums around the country given the significance of what they achieved. Others never found interest and got disposed of. Some never lasted long enough to be preserved given the hazardous nature of what they did. However, there was a storage program for the rest and Edwards has a museum of some of these preserved airframes.

I haven’t been to Edwards for a long time so I don’t know what the current situation is with the collection but I did get to check it out on a previous visit. The collection was mainly front line types that had been used for testing purposes. (This is the USAF side of things rather than the NASA collection.) There are some types there that I didn’t see which I would like to have done like the YA-7F. However, there was a test A-7D with an air data boom. Here are some of the shots I got that day. I also shot a couple of other jets that were away from the rest but these were only with my phone and phone quality in those days was not what it is now.

Big Steam Engines

Leave a reply

In the days of steam, power was produced by huge machines. If you needed a more powerful machine, you just made it bigger. The huge wheels and pistons that resulted were most impressive. The Henry Ford has quite a selection of these old steam engines of various designs. The efficiency improved as they introduced multiple phases to the machines to recover more work from the output of the engine. The big beams and pistons remained a theme, though. The large brick structures and the associated metalwork have been nicely preserved and displayed.

Another Preserved Loco

Leave a reply

Preserved locomotives seem to appear in a lot of towns in Washington and Newhalem was no exception. This old steam locomotive seemed to be particularly well preserved given the rugged location it lives in for a good chunk of the year. I assume Seattle City Light has enough cash to keep it looking good for the many visitors to the town. Indeed, getting a shot of it without someone climbing all over it took a bit of patience!

City Center Steam Locomotive

Leave a reply

I passed this locomotive several times while in Tokyo. It was sitting in a square near Shinbashi station. I never got off but I did finally get some shots of it while we were stopped at the station. Consequently, I know nothing about it although I suppose if I was truly interested I could look it up. There must be something about it on the internet. It probably has a Wikipedia page. Guess I won’t find out though.

Redundant Capstan

Leave a reply

There are three sets of lock gates on the main lock at Ballard. If the two end sets are used, the full length of the lock is available. However, if that isn’t needed, a middle set of gates can be used which reduces the amount of water displaced. The gates are now moved by hydraulic rams. That wasn’t always the case though. Alongside each set of gates are some capstans. Now preserved and serving only a decorative function, they are a reminder that things used to be a bit more manual. The markings of the manufacturer are nicely maintained on the top of each capstan as a testament to companies long gone that used to make such engineering efforts.

The Constellation in the Inner Harbor

Leave a reply

The USS Constellation is the last sail powered warship built for the US Navy. She is now preserved in the harbor in Baltimore. I saw her a few times from a distance while I was in Baltimore but I didn’t get a chance to take a shot until I was walking back from a reception. By that time it was dark and, since I only had my phone with me, that had to suffice. The phone on the camera has a wide angle lens so, even though we were quite close, the ship is a little small in the original shot. However, she still looks pretty impressive. I imagine she would have looked even better when under sail!

Preserved KC-97

Leave a reply

A strange airfield means time for a trip around the perimeter to see what is around. Medford didn’t disappoint. A small museum included a nicely preserved Boeing KC-97 tanker aircraft. Sadly, everything was closed up so I couldn’t take a closer look. Meanwhile, the fencing around it was pretty close in so it was a bit of struggle to get a clean shot but there will still some options. The boom was no longer fitted but, otherwise, it looked just like you would hope.