Bill Leff and the T-6 Texan at Oceana Air Show

Bill Leff did all the restoration on the T-6 Texan and she shines like a jewel in the sun. This radial-engine prop trainer was used from WW2 to Vietnam in a variety of roles. Bill truly pushes the envelope as the engine sputters and coughs in protest as he flies upside down just feet above the ground.

What a beautiful warbird.
Peace,
John

Super Hornets at Oceana Air Show

Hey all,
The McDonnall Douglas F/A 18 Hornet was well represented at the airshow this weekend. These are two aircraft from the Fleet air power demonstration. As they roared overhead, pyro charges simulated a bombing run. Very cool.

This is a F/A-18E Super Hornet. The larger size (25% increase) of the airframe is not readily apparent, but the larger rectangular jet intakes are certainly noticable. I can't help but wonder what that did for the "stealthy-ness" of the aircraft.

A F/A-18F (two seater) Super Hornet gets a welcoming wave from a fan after its run. The jet intakes are really obvious from the front. The Blue Angels fly the A and B (two-seater) variants with much smaller and rounded intakes.

The Super Hornet pilots wave back to the crowd. It's nice to be able to show our appreciation to the men and women who fly these beautiful jets and used them to protect the freedoms we all enjoy.

Peace,
John

Blue Angels C-130T Hercules transport "Fat Albert"

The Blue Angels always bring their support crews and spare parts with them on a C-130 Hercules transport dubbed "Fat Albert." He's flown by Marine Corp Major Brendan Burks. It's nice to see the support staff getting a chance to show what they can do.

Peace,
John

Oceana Air Show 2010

The E-2C Hawkeye is a carrier based radar and command/control platform.
It provides essential tactical information and provides a comm link between aircraft and carrier.

A member of the Red Devils, the British Army parachute team, brings the Red, White, and Blue into show center as we all sing the National Anthem.

A Sea King (or Super Stallion?) brings in the Red Devils for their jump.

The wing of a KC=135 Stratotanker does make a good viewing platform.

F-22 Raptor at Oceana Air Show 2010

The F-22 demonstration didn't go as planned. The Raptor flew in did a quick vertical climb and did an almost right-angle turn due to its thrust vectoring capability. The announcer then said the aircraft had develolped a problem and couldn't finish it's demonstration. That was disappointing.

Peace,
John

Blue Angels at NAS Oceana 2010

Hey all,
Just back from a tremendous weekend at the annual Naval Air Station Oceana Air Show. My friend Chris Dover and I drove down to see the show, hear the roar, and smell the exhaust. The Blue Angels performed, and as always, did a superb job. Their job is to take normal manuvers and do them FAR lower and closer than normal aviators. This precison control and skill is a hallmark of the Naval Flight Demonstration Team.

The Blue Angels in their "Diamond Formation" there is only 18 inches separating the canopies from the wingtips.

Blue Angel 5 banks hard.
Notice the contrails forming over the leading edges of the wings. As the wing angle of attack changes during the turn, the air can't fill the void fast enough and clouds form in the low-pressure areas.

Lead Solo Lt. Commander Frank Weisser and Opposing Solo Lt. Ben Walborn cross during opposing minimum radius turns. They are closing at many hundreds of knots (800+?) and pass within feet of each other. Phenominal skill and nerves of steel are nececessary. (BTW - I'm proud I timed the shot just right. My Nikon D90 is so fast and responsive that it makes shots like this possible. I love it.)

All 6 Blue Angles form the "Delta Formation" and complete other manuvers.

The Diamond Formation breaks on the "Boss's" (Capt. Greg McWherter, Blue Angel 1) command and the aircraft maneuver independently.

If you get a chance to see Blue Angels in action you should. What a show.

Peace,
John