Tag Archives: washington

Sabreliner Duo Passing Through

The large exercise that was taking place in Alaska attracted a lot of unusual types and I have posted about the Hunters and the Northrop Grumman testbed heading up there already. They weren’t the only ones, though. Paine Field had a couple of transients too with a pair of Sabreliner jets heading north. This vintage bizjet is a pretty agile type and Clay Lacy used to display one on the air show circuit. These two had an interesting pod mounted under the front fuselage – presumably for some sort of electronic warfare role. I was able to head up to Paine Field that weekend to get them as they arrived. I didn’t have the time to get them departing although they weren’t around for long – just getting some fuel and then heading onwards.

They did route back through Paine Field when the exercise was done so I was able to get a second go at shooting them then but the conditions were much as before, so the shots are not too different. I did take a bit of a chance with my shots by dropping the shutter speed down pretty low to try and get some good motion blur – always a risk when shooting something new!

Mukilteo From the Sea

Leave a Reply

I spent a lot of time covering the construction of the new Mukilteo terminal for Washington State Ferries. The only limitation was that the best angle on the terminal was from the water and I didn’t have a good view on that. Since it is north facing, the best time to get a photo of it is in the summer late in the day. We were coming home from Whidbey on a Saturday evening, so I took the chance to finally get some photos of the terminal from the water. The artwork can be seen from this angle which is not so easy from other places.

Sometimes Missing Sunset Is Not a Problem

Leave a Reply

The last 747 to be built was conducting test flights from Everett in advance of being delivered to Atlas. It was due to get back from a test flight one evening and the timing looked good for a landing just before sunset. Along with plenty of other photographers, I headed up to Paine Field to await its return. As we tracked the flight, it was looking more and more like they would not get back before sunset. A few people decided that this wasn’t worth the wait and headed off. I figured I had made the effort so I was going to get a shot, even if the conditions weren’t any good. I was there, after all.

Sure enough, the sun went down while we waited and a little while later, the familiar shape of the 747 appeared in the distance. However, luck was going to be on my side this time around. While the sun had now set, the higher-level clouds off to the west were now being illuminated from below turning them a warm red color. The light from these clouds was now what was landing where we were and, as the 747 came down the approach, it had a warm and soft glow to it from the remnants of the day’s light. Far from being a disappointment, this was actually really attractive. What a lucky break for me and those that remained.

Hunter Surprise

Leave a Reply

The number of times I have just missed something or didn’t even know it was close by I cannot count. However, sometimes I can get lucky, and I had one day when things just clicked. The result will be several posts. I was at Boeing Field to catch a test jet from Gulfstream (which I did and will appear here soon). I was waiting for it to show up on approach and was scanning FlightRadar24 when I saw an odd registration appear turning in to the approach. I tapped on it, and it showed as a Hawker Hunter.

Needless to say, this was quite a surprise. Then, another one appeared. The two came down the approach in trail. I got shots of both of them being a little brave/reckless with my shutter speed. Even as this was happening, a third and a fourth popped on screen and it was not long before the second pair had made it into my viewfinder.

They taxied to the ramp at Modern and shut down. Sadly, I wasn’t able to be there when they made the next leg of their trip to Alaska. One was delayed by engine issues and my friend was able to get some shots of it testing. I was hoping to catch them during their return but that took place while I was up in the Islands. However, I had got them once and that was a lucky break I am grateful for.

Two Old Esprits

Leave a Reply

My soft spot for the Lotus Esprit has shown itself with various posts over the years with historic shots or more recent images of preserved examples. Most of these have been of the later versions of the Esprit when the styling was slightly more curved, and the bigger engines were installed such as the Turbo SE or the V8. The Classics Day at Exotics@RTC provided two of the original versions of the Esprit. They were parked in the prime spots in Redmond Town Center and garnered plenty of attention.

Yellow and red are two colors that will definitely get attention for a sports car and there were lots of people checking them out. The red one had the tartan interior which really tells you the era when this car was produced. I bet you weren’t seeing that sort of finish in the late 80s! I had got there early so did okay getting shots without too many people in the way but as the morning wore on and more people showed up, the shots got harder to make. A little Photoshop effort would be needed.

Lucky Encounters With NG’s Testbed

Leave a Reply

This is a continuation of my string of good luck. I was back at Boeing Field awaiting the G700 movements. I had headed down to the south end of the field and was glancing at FlightRadar24 when I saw a CRJ700 on the display making a track that looked like it was coming to BFI. Normally, aircraft like that show up with a call sign/flight number rather than just as a CRJ. For some reason, I thought this might be an unusual CRJ and my mind jumped to the Northrop Grumman testbeds.

I had missed them once at BFI before when one took off while I was over at the museum. Having seen the BAC-111 testbed many years ago, I wanted to catch this one. I decided to try and get to the other end to see what it was just in case. The road along the airfield is not well suited to swift travel but I was patient as I figured there was just enough time. I made it to the other end and grabbed the camera quickly. Barely any time passed and then there it was. It was indeed one of the NG testbeds. Result!

I hung out for a while before deciding to head back to the other end. Nothing interesting was due in so I figured I’d see what was departing. When I got back, I pulled up FR24 just to see what was moving on the field and, lo and behold, the CRJ was up at the hold, ready to go. Rapidly out of the car, grab camera and, just as I am ready, here it comes. This was a continuation of my string of good luck. It’s all going well. Then I see that some Sabreliners are heading north. The streak continues!

Can You Make Your Mini Look Retro?

Leave a Reply

I had no idea what this car was when I saw it. There was something familiar about it, but it was still a mystery to me. Then I overheard a conversation from someone, and they explained that the underlying car was a Mini and it had a body kit added to it to result in this outcome. I have no idea why that seemed like a good plan to the owner, but I guess they like it. Once you know it, you center of the vehicle is definitely recognizable as a Mini.

Another Janet in Town

Leave a Reply

The Janet 737s go to ATS on Paine Field for maintenance when required. I should, therefore, see them more often but I usually don’t know anything about it until they are gone. Consequently, when I caught one this time, it was purely by chance. Luck is to be embraced, of course. Another Janet might seem a little repetitive, but I don’t care.

Air Tanzania Cargo 767F At Last

Leave a Reply

Air Tanzania Cargo placed an order for a 767-300F and it recently came off the line at Everett. I saw various shots of it from local photographers, but it never flew when I was able to shoot it – i.e., when I wasn’t at work. When I did get up to Paine Field, it had been parked off at the back of the ramp and didn’t look like it was going anywhere soon. Then, I saw that it had become active again. I figured that meant it would be delivered soon. Fortunately, one of the flights was during an afternoon and it was due back late in the day – after work! I was able to get up to Paine Field after leaving the office and be there for the return. Just as well I did as it got delivered shortly afterwards.

The Eco-Demonstrator Lives – Where’s the New One?

Leave a Reply

Boeing has had a number of aircraft in its Eco-Demonstrator program. The most recent one is a 787-10 that they have been using to test air traffic control innovations including some trans-Pacific flights in coordination with control agencies in various Asian countries. When I shot the 777 demonstrator a while back, I thought it was the end of the line for that plane and it was heading to desert. Apparently not. It is back and flying and made a trip to the Paris Air Show. I got it on its return recently from Europe. Maybe we shall see more of it in the coming months. Now to try and find the 787!