Aviation BS and Photo Thread

I remember almost going off the side of Thunder Bay’s 200 foot wide runway on my first solo landing. I’ve improved a bit since.
Congrats @FlyingWolfe. Hopefully the first of many powered flight milestones for you. And it’s nice to see someone not wearing shorts and flip flops when they fly a single engine aircraft. Dress for the worst case, not for comfort.

 

My instructor said he had a student throttle up and drive off the side of the runway on his third solo years back but now flies F-whatevers in the military. Hes like ‘theres hope for everyone’. My first solo was my best landing to date, right smack on centerline and barely felt the wheels touch. Second one I got extended up and downwind and all screwed up from traffic, got slow right off the deck and ended up plopping all three wheels but was fine otherwise. Boss was watching, he said they looked perfect both times.. I lived so they were successful.
I used to race Ducatis in NH and the saying is ‘gear for the slide, not the ride’ which has carried over into the other silly assed sports that I do..

 

The boom feels like it's jack hammering itself retracting it during testing.

At least I can say I don't really deal with the refueling systems typically, mostly LAIRCM and comm/nav stuff for me.

 

I was planning to fly to Carlsbad, NM today with a friend but we ended up canceling yesterday because the weather was supposed to be terrible all day. The weather turned out to be great, but we didn’t get going early enough to make the trip happen. We just went and putted around locally for a little bit with the pup instead

 

Redmond, 2 loops over my house... way out east of Bend.
Then up to Wibdey Island.
Tracked with flightradar24.
Really quiet BIG plane.

And you guys were right about that refueling i spotted...year before?
Have seen 4 fighters and the tanker.
And a 4 + 1 refueling.

...was even a dogfight SE oregon, and a U-2...spotted on flightradar24.

No affiliation, just a radio,ADSB,SDR nerd.

Here is that sneaky Navy plane.

 

Looks like a Navy P-8 Poseidon.








Also know as a Boeing 737.

 

Not "super" sneaky, just a P-8 Poseidon, which is a militarized 737.

Generally designed for anti-submarine work but does have some cool electronic surveillance capabilities.

 

That grey against the overcast sky blends well, you dont notice it till its right on top of you...i thought it was kinda cool.

...and i really need to buy a good camera, sorry for my crap pics...lol.

 

The CFM56 is a pretty quiet motor unless its right over you too.

 

Puff piece for sure, but something I could get on board with.
Special Ops Want to Turn the C-130 Into a Seaplane. Really. (msn.com)

 

Hmmm

 

The F2Y Sea Dart was very much a thing, just never got mass produced

 

The idea of the seaplanes of old making a comeback makes me smile.

 

Just make it out of low observable wood and .. hey it's the Goose!

 

The spruce goose is an awesome plane. I toured it a couple of times when it was next to the QM.

 

That bird is heavy as hell. They’d be better off with a purpose-built seaplane.

 

I've seen it a few times driving by when it was stored in McMinville, OR with the wings removed. I need to make the trip back down and see it one of these now that they have it put back together.

 

They do, it's in the Evergreen Air/Space display; built the building around it.

 

I remember a few years ago when the navy E-6B flew around Reno. All white with limited markings. People were calling the local “ask Joe” news person asking if they were being spied on I worked on that plane for years so I had a good laugh and knew some of the crew onboard

 

I have some good pics of the Spruce Goose when it was in Long Beach.

I was working a project with McDonnell Douglas and they took me (and associates from Finland) out one weekend to site-see and we visited it and the Queen Mary (for brunch).

I will look for them and back then you could go up the steps right beside the aircraft and look inside and take a pic within a couple of feet of a real looking Howard Hughes sitting in the cockpit at the controls .... pic was about circa 1986-1987