Post amazingly cool pictures of aircraft (Volume 2)
Discussion
Eric Mc said:
Was it the fastest?
It's main attribute was the long wings which was supposed to give better performance at altitude. Very few were made and most ended up being used for local airfield defence, especially at airfields where Me 262s were based as the 262s were very vulnerable as the slowed down to land and needed protecting in and around their bases.
3 version, one High Altitude "Interceptor", ground attack and Medium altitude fighter. With Boost it was reportedly the fastest Piston Engine aircraft.It's main attribute was the long wings which was supposed to give better performance at altitude. Very few were made and most ended up being used for local airfield defence, especially at airfields where Me 262s were based as the 262s were very vulnerable as the slowed down to land and needed protecting in and around their bases.
British tests liked it.
Eric Brown, test pilot
"Flying the Ta 152
Having flown the BMW 801-powered Fw 190 on a many occaissions and in several versions, I was understandably delighted when an opportunity arose to get my hands on what was, from the production standpoint at least, the ultimate development of Kurt Tank's superb basic design, the high-flying Ta 152H-1. I recall that the sole example of this intriguing and allegedly potent fighter to be taken to the UK had been, for reasons unknown to me, dismantled in Germany and flown to the Royal Aircraft Establishment at Farnborough in the capacious hold of an Arado Ar 232B transport, wheras run-of-the-mill captured aircraft were almost invariably flown in. Oddly enough, this cotton-wool treatment of Tank's fighter continued, and I cannot recall that, after re-assembly, it was put through any specific flight testing other than that I was instructed to perform while flying it from Farnborough to Brize Norton for storage during the summer of 1945.
The original radial-engined Fw 190 had been, in my view, an aerodynamic beauty oozing lethality, but it struck me on first seeing the Ta 152H-1 standing outside Farnborough's famoua 'A' shed in the company of the latest Allied fighters - the Tempest V, the Mustang III, the Spitfire 21 and the Martin-Baker M.B.5 - that Tank's design had lost much of its aesthetic appeal over the intervening years, with its overly prominent proboscis and wings that seemed to stretch into infinity. If now less curvacious, it still exuded efficiency, however, and I had little doubt that it was capable of doing all that the Germans claimed for it.
High performance at all altitudes was ensured by its 18.71 Imp gal (85 l) of nitrous oxide (GM 1) and 15.4 Imp gal (70 l) of methanol- water (MW 50), which injected into the Jumo 213E engine according to the altitude at which the fighter was flying, boosted output mightily. Perhaps this was the clue as to why the Ta 152H-1 was never really put through its paces in the UK - we had no GM 1 or MW 50 at Farnborough! Nevertheless, lack of nitrous oxide and methanol-water notwithstanding, my adrenalin began to flow that summer morning as I eased myself into the cockpit of Ta 152H-1 Werk-Nr 150168 and peered along that immense nose which stretched out so far ahead of the windscreen - the only aircraft I was ever to fly offering a comparable stretch of nose was the Blackburn Firebrand. The German fighter was, of course, equipped with a oressured cabin and since I had done quite a bit of flying in the pressurised Spitfire XIX on clean air and turbulence investigation, the opportunity given by the flight to Brize Norton to make a comparison between the German and British fighters was irresistable.
The take-off of the Ta 152H-1 was shorter than that of the Spitfire XIX and the climb was steeper albeit somewhat slower than that of the British fighter, but once the 30,000 ft (9 145 m) mark had slipped oast the altimeter, the Tank fighter gave me the impression of holding its rate of climb better than its British counterpart. In so far as manouvrabbility was concerned, the story was very much the same; the Spitfire was certainly the better of the two below 30,000 ft (9 145 m), there being little to choose between British and German fighters between that altitude and 35,000 ft (10 760m), but above the latter altitude the Ta 152H-1 enjoyed a decided edge. I gave the German fighter its head on the way to Brize Norton and did a full throttle run at 35,000 ft (10 670 m), which, by my rough reckoning, worked out at around 425 mph (684 km/h), or about 35 mph (56 km/h) less than the SpitfireXIX was capable of, but, of course, the availability of GM 1 boost would have more than redressed the balance and the Ta 152H-1 was certainly the superior aeroplane on the score of range. In essence, however, these two potential opponents were remarkably close from many aspects, illustrating how closely parallel Britain and Germany were running in piston-engined fighter technology.
On the descent from altitude to Brize Norton, I had time to make quick checks on the stability and control of the German fighter. I found a noticeable reduction in roll rate and an increase in the stick force per g by comparison with its BMW 801-powered predecessors, some of the more attractive qualities of the original fighter having been sacrificed in order to acheive the best possible performance at extreme altitudes. I therefore expectede the stability to be improved over that of the Fw 190, as indeed it was, but it was not so good that a protracted flight at 45,000 ft (13 715 m) would not have been a fatiguing experience, a fact evidently recognised by the provision of an autopilot.
The landing at Brize Norton from an aproach at 118 mph (190 km/h) was staightforward enough although I took the precaution of landing off a curved final to see round that fantastic nose. With its wide-track undercarriage, the aircraft felt very stable on the landing run, a characteristic for which I was to be thankful some weeks later, after the powers-that-be had decided that our Ta 152H-1 should take its place in the static park of the Exhibition of German Aircraft and Equipment that was being organised at Farnborough.
On 22 October 1945, I returned to Brize Norton to bring the Ta 152H-1 back to Farnborough for the exhibition, the fighter having been in storage since I had delivered it there on 18 August. Needless to say, I gave the aircraft a pretty thorough pre-flight check and engine run-up before taking-off for Farnborough. In the event, the flight was uneventful, but once I touched down on Farnborough's main runway and began to apply the foot brakes I immediately realised that these were very weak indeed. In fact, they faded away rapidly to zero effectiveness. A slight swing started to develop and I let this go enough to steer me on to the grass in order to slow the aircraft. I then applied full opposite rudder to prevent a ground loop developing. After a few adrenalin-pumping seconds, the Ta 152H-1 slowed gently to a standstill. I doubt that this hydraulic fault was ever rectified as I cannot recollect the fighter ever flying again.
In my view, the Ta 152H-1 was every bit as good as any of its Allied piston-engined counterparts and, from some aspects, better than most. It was unfortunate for the Jagdflieger but undoubtedly fortunate for the Allies that it arrived on the scene too late to play any serious role in the air war."
yellowjack said:
As others have said, it's a Fairey Gannet, specifically an AEW3 version. A late 1950s "stop-gap" design evolved from the anti-submarine/strike version to replace the Douglas Skyraider ( https://www.fleetairarm.com/exhibit/douglas-skyrai... ) in the AEW role for the FAA. Still soldiering on nearly 20 years later, it would probably have gone on longer if the carriers it lived on hadn't been scrapped.
There's one (XL502) at Elvington... http://yorkshireairmuseum.org/latest-news/explorin...
And another AEW3 (XP226) at Newark... http://www.newarkairmuseum.org/
Newark's example...
https://www.jetphotos.com/photo/8724899
On board Ark Royal in '72 with B Flight. Prince Charles was with us serving as radar op in the back. Boss had Red Dragons stencilled on the tails. Soon as the Ark skipper saw them - ordered their removal There's one (XL502) at Elvington... http://yorkshireairmuseum.org/latest-news/explorin...
And another AEW3 (XP226) at Newark... http://www.newarkairmuseum.org/
Newark's example...
https://www.jetphotos.com/photo/8724899
See that climb up to the cockpit? I recall one time, the cab is running up on the cat when the jockey signalled me to come up! Whaaaaat?! It's burning/turning! Up I gingerly climbed - buffeted/blown to hell. Something catching under the rudder pedals he 'signed'.
I was upside down between his legs trying to get a view of the pedals - nothing there I could see. I was aware of the sight being presented to flyco and I took some stick in the crewroom afterwards!
Was surprised but delighted to encounter 502 again at Elvington a few years ago.
The AEW 3's were beginning to show serious structural defects in the wings back then and needed a LOT of maintenance. My specialism - radio & radar - that Aps20 radar and its waveguides haunts me to this day
321freeflow said:
On board Ark Royal in '72 with B Flight. Prince Charles was with us serving as radar op in the back. Boss had Red Dragons stencilled on the tails. Soon as the Ark skipper saw them - ordered their removal ...
Hmmmm? what is it with commissioned officers and their dislike of Red Dragons on military kit? ...Serving with 73 Fd Sqn just before the '91 Gulf War, we were cross-posted as a complete troop to 39 Fd Sqn. (We'd been trialling the 'Close Support Engineer Regiment' concept, but it wasn't deemed suitable for the orbat of 4 Armd Bde, and we had to swap things around a bit to fit in with the brigade battle plan). First I upset "their" OC by creating a t-shirt with "our" Sqn emblem, a wild boar, destroying their Sqn emblem, a fortress. I also had to paint out our "Pigs Fight Back" logo on the tank, so my commander and me both being Welsh decided to have a Dragon on the front. He lost his schizzle over that too. So we covered it in tape, painted over the tape, let him see the tank without the Dragon, and when he fecked orf we peeled off the tape and kept the Dragon where it belonged.
Meanwhile the hotel-dwellers flying above us had all sorts of "nose art" on their aeroplanes, which had at worst a blind eye turned toward it, and at best was officially sanctioned.
yellowjack said:
321freeflow said:
On board Ark Royal in '72 with B Flight. Prince Charles was with us serving as radar op in the back. Boss had Red Dragons stencilled on the tails. Soon as the Ark skipper saw them - ordered their removal ...
Hmmmm? what is it with commissioned officers and their dislike of Red Dragons on military kit? ...Serving with 73 Fd Sqn just before the '91 Gulf War, we were cross-posted as a complete troop to 39 Fd Sqn. (We'd been trialling the 'Close Support Engineer Regiment' concept, but it wasn't deemed suitable for the orbat of 4 Armd Bde, and we had to swap things around a bit to fit in with the brigade battle plan). First I upset "their" OC by creating a t-shirt with "our" Sqn emblem, a wild boar, destroying their Sqn emblem, a fortress. I also had to paint out our "Pigs Fight Back" logo on the tank, so my commander and me both being Welsh decided to have a Dragon on the front. He lost his schizzle over that too. So we covered it in tape, painted over the tape, let him see the tank without the Dragon, and when he fecked orf we peeled off the tape and kept the Dragon where it belonged.
Meanwhile the hotel-dwellers flying above us had all sorts of "nose art" on their aeroplanes, which had at worst a blind eye turned toward it, and at best was officially sanctioned.
think our Boss spent some time with US forces. He had crew names stencilled below the cockpit rail - they survived 
I've got lots of pics of my time on NASU/Buccs, Ark/B Flight, HQ Lossie - must dig them out sometime.
321freeflow said:
think our Boss spent some time with US forces. He had crew names stencilled below the cockpit rail - they survived I've got lots of pics of my time on NASU/Buccs, Ark/B Flight, HQ Lossie - must dig them out sometime.
I do have one of me mucking about as the "door gunner" on a Huey, but it was firmly on the ground at the time. I've no idea where all my photos are now though, as we moved to a smaller house in May and many things are still secreted away in places where you'd not expect to find them...
CanAm said:
FourWheelDrift said:
Few B-24 Liberators too. Now there's a "Where's Wally" Gold star if you can spot a B-32 Dominator.
B-32? I'm having trouble spotting the B-17s!A bit tricky see where in that main photo, it might even be missing them out of shot.
Quite pleased with these. The SU27 was far and away the most photogenic thing at RIAT this year IMHO
SU27 invoking cloaking by Jim Pritchard, on Flickr
SU27 at RIAT by Jim Pritchard, on Flickr
DSC_1805 by Jim Pritchard, on Flickr
SU27 invoking cloaking by Jim Pritchard, on FlickrSU27 at RIAT by Jim Pritchard, on FlickrDSC_1805 by Jim Pritchard, on Flickr
Trevatanus said:
Quite pleased with these. The SU27 was far and away the most photogenic thing at RIAT this year IMHO
SU27 invoking cloaking by Jim Pritchard, on Flickr
SU27 at RIAT by Jim Pritchard, on Flickr
DSC_1805 by Jim Pritchard, on Flickr
The Russians don't half make great looking aircraft SU27 invoking cloaking by Jim Pritchard, on FlickrSU27 at RIAT by Jim Pritchard, on FlickrDSC_1805 by Jim Pritchard, on FlickrGassing Station | Boats, Planes & Trains | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff