Post amazingly cool pictures of aircraft (Volume 2)
Discussion
MartG said:
Yes - and every single one of them has to work perfectly, along with the swivelling nozzle and lift fan&clutch, to achieve a landing on a carrier. I have a nasty feeling we are going to lose a few when something minor like a microswitch on a door fails and there's no diversion field within range 
I’m sure that after a hundred years of manned powered flight, such a trivial thing has been taken into account. After all, they can trust it with just one engine. 
lloyd h said:
Haven't posted in here for a while but some recent shots from Mali and South Africa..
Fighting Fire by Lloyd Horgan, on Flickr
RCAF CH-147F by Lloyd Horgan, on Flickr
Stunning images and locations Lloyd , Glad to see your still putting them out , From your images 6+ yrs ago up the 'loop' i got hooked in the LL stuff , shame that Fox2 went but life goes on, Switching from Canon to Nikon , From 300mm F4 to F2.8mm . and bodies on both ..I work out you owe me over 10k'ish ! Fighting Fire by Lloyd Horgan, on FlickrRCAF CH-147F by Lloyd Horgan, on FlickrSold it all now but great times up there in all weathers .. All the best ...Jon
Not sure if I posted this from back earlier in the year, apologies if I did.
AN124 getting a bit sideways on landing at Brize.
2nd shot shows the tyres marks left on the runway.
AN 124 landing at RAF Brize Norton. by Jim Pritchard, on Flickr
IMG_0234 by Jim Pritchard, on Flickr
AN124 getting a bit sideways on landing at Brize.
2nd shot shows the tyres marks left on the runway.
AN 124 landing at RAF Brize Norton. by Jim Pritchard, on FlickrIMG_0234 by Jim Pritchard, on FlickrI have memories of watching C-5As on approach to Dublin Airport in 1978 making use of their swivelled undercarriage to facilitate crosswind landings. I was actually standing under the approach to Runway 24 watching them approach almost from a head on viewpoint.
Of course, my memory may be inaccurate.
Of course, my memory may be inaccurate.
MartG said:
Dang, missed the wire...
s
t !
Why angled flight decks are such a good idea
Captain William H. Bezzell, in his F9F-4, having a bad day on 3/9/1953 after he missed a trap coming aboard the USS Bennington.
Wow ! What sort of speed would he have been doing at impact ?s
t !Why angled flight decks are such a good idea
Captain William H. Bezzell, in his F9F-4, having a bad day on 3/9/1953 after he missed a trap coming aboard the USS Bennington.
Edited by MartG on Thursday 20th December 13:48
Ayahuasca said:
It is fairly well know that the Yanks flew unarmed photo-recce Spitfires, but this one is fully gunned up, and is a Mk V.
The USAAF 334th Fighter Squadron flew Spitfires until 1943.
As you were.
334th Fighter Squadron (QP) (Former 71 Squadron)
335th Fighter Squadron (WD) (Former 121 Squadron)
336th Fighter Squadron (VF) (Former 133 Squadron)
The "XR" on that Spitfire Vb is the Squadron Code for 71 (Eagle) Squadron, RAF. So it's an early photo after their transfer to the USAAF, with the RAF roundel painted over with the US star. No aircraft serial number either (photo censored for official release?)
The 4th were very successful at destroying enemy aircraft during WW2, Their Spitfires served until they switched to Republic P-47 Thunderbolts in March 1943 and then to North American P-51 Mustangs in April 1944.
I served at Carver Barracks (formerly RAF Debden, home to the 4th Fighter Group) for seven years. There's a lot of history still there, with a fair few wartime buildings still intact within the barracks, and a substantially intact two-runway concrete/tarmac airfield and associated perimeter tracks outside the barracks fence. Some of the buildings even still have "authentic battle damage", including the former parachute drying tower, with shrapnel damage from bomb hits (on a nearby, destroyed building) between August and September 1940 during the RAF's Battle Of Britain period of use.
The chap in the centre of the group (holding a pipe) in this picture is Lt. Col. Chesley G. Peterson D.S.O., D.F.C., U.S. Army Air Force 4th Fighter Group. (He went on to serve until 1970, ending up as a Major General). The photo was "Passed by the U.S. Army censor on 30 March 1943". But remember folks ~ no smoking near the aeroplanes, yeah?
On March 6, 1944, the 4th's commander Lt. Col. Donald Blakeslee flew in the first Mustang over Berlin, during an escort mission in support of B-17s and B-24s of the 8th Air Force bomber groups. Blakeslee flew over 500 missions/1,000 combat hours. Blakeslee was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross by both Britain and America.
Summary of US Spitfire use here... https://warisboring.com/americas-spitfires/ ...although I'm not sure if all of the facts are good 'uns.
As an aside, the RAF Sector Operations block at Debden is still there, and largely intact. A large concrete and brick structure, heavily armoured and protected by banks of earth, it contains a big plotting room and associated offices...
https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/li...
http://www.subbrit.org.uk/rsg/sites/d/debden/index...
Largely unused since WW2, parts of it are much as they were left. It had some post-war use as a model room for EOD ops briefings/training, and the plotting room floor (the table, sadly, has gone) once housed a boxing ring. I got access a few times while it was being repaired (the roof leaked badly and ruined the wooden floor of the code room). I wish I'd taken more advantage of the access I had to such a secure historic site before I lost it...
http://www.americanairmuseum.com/place/105
ETA: Apologies for the Daily Mail link, but there's a fair few photos of US Spitfires in it... https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4891372/S...
Edited by yellowjack on Friday 21st December 11:49
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