Aviation BS and Photo Thread

Really sums up most military equipment.

Congrats on your theatre degree, here's an Apache billet -US Army to one of my classmates

 

Very tangentially related to aviation, but I have heard from multiple people this past weekend that Top Gun 2 is incredible.

 

I don't know if I would go so far as to say it was incredible but it was a good movie and there is a good chance I will see it a second time in theaters. It was a good mix of nostalgia and new story and there was some damn good plane porn even if it was completely unrealistic.

 

I understood that this bird was designed to have the fastest rate of climb to combat kamikaze attacks. That powerplant and prop sure justifies that claim.

 

I saw Top Gun also. I enjoyed the watch and it did have a lot of cool aviation content even though it was a bit far fetched. Still gave me that feeling in my stomach of “holy crap this is awesome and how quickly can I sign up”

 

Read up on the Grumman Bearcat. It entered service too late to see action in WW2. It still holds the time-to-climb record for a single engine piston powered prop driven fighter. Went from brakes locked on the runway to 10,000 in 90 seconds. They served with numerous other countries in the 50s and 60s. There's a handful of them still flying. Warbird God Steve Hinton does restorations of them in California, and fortunately brings another one back to life every so often.

 

Just found this thread!

I'm a new Taco owner (since January) but long time amateur WWII and overall aviation enthusiast, and professional scale model builder and mod on a large scale model aircraft site.
Living close to an airbase and airshows, I grew up with a love of aviation for sure, which led to my current (semi) professional hobby.

 

Indeed, Rare Bear was at Reno for a long time......we got to see several resto bearcats and RB fly in 2015 live. It's a hell of a sound.

My dad was retired USN, and used to regail me with tails of how some of the land based USNR guys flying older naval reserve F4Fs used to get messed with by the AF guard guys flying new
P-51s out of the local AFB......

The Wildcats would take off for patrols, lift out and tuck up thei gear (which in an F4F is a trial) and some of the AF guys in P-51Ds would roll up in formation with the clean Wildcats, then drop their gear down and power away from the F4Fs, laughing all the way.
FF to 46/47 when some of the squadrons transitioned to F8Fs.......some of those same guys in P-51Ds would roll in with the USN guys thinking they were lining up with clean Wildcats and it turned out to be a formation of F8Fs......
All 4 Bearcats in the two, two man flights dropped their long spindly gear in front of the clean P-51s and powered up and away from them through the clouds.
Always loved that story as a kid.....

Here is a 1/32nd F8F I made for a client that started off being a DSB carrier based model, but the customer backed out before it was finished so I finished as a natural metal RTAF Bearcat covered in aluminum foil

 

I had an M60 at 17 and was pretty excited about that.

 

I get to see a bearcat, and a super Corsair fly regularly at my home airport, as well as P-51s and spitfires and more. Almost every day I’m there one of them is in the pattern.

 

Sounds like your home airport has a CAF wing...lucky guy!

 

You do beautiful work!

 

Aviation is not just a passion...it's a like a really BAD drug addiction. I used to skydive too, and worked weekends ay my home DZ hauling jumpers. I think the jumping addiction was worse, lol. I was a sick young man!

 

Home to a gazillionaire. Lots more toys as well.

 

I miss the times before Covid and when Paul Allen was still alive. I work right next door to where his Flying Heritage and Combat Armor Museum is/was. They used to fly all summer with a ton of different US, British, Japanese, German and Russian WWII planes, drive around tanks and test fire them with blanks (scared the crap out of people who didn't know what was going on).

After he died things slowed down a bit and then a couple years ago they closed the museum due to Covid and it seems like at this point like it probably isn't going to re-open. They did bring out a Corsair and run it up a few months ago but it has been few and far between hearing action over there anymore.

After digging a bit it appears one of the Walmart heirs recently bought the collection so it sounds like the planes you are seeing may be the ones that were here?

 

Went to HS in Harlingen, TX back when that was the CAF HQ. Was also getting my Private then, so I was in the pattern and the practice area with the coolest and most rare birds in the world! I also got free admission to every airshow and never missed a one. I was one lucky SOB to be there and see them everyday. Will always appreciate that!

Had great conversations with the aircrews too since they wanted to hear of my dad's exploits in B-18s, B-24s & B-17s in actual combat.

 

That's a HUGE bummer. That was one of my favorite museums I've been to world wide.

 

The only recent addition was the Bearcat. The P-51s, Spitfire, and Super Corsair have been here for awhile. It wouldn't surprise me though if he bought more and is storing them somewhere else. His hangers are pretty dang full.

 

Hmm maybe not then, Paul Allen's collection never had a Bearcat but the Historic Flight Foundation across the runway did. They moved out of Everett to Spokane, WA a couple years ago though.