History Friday

[Wildo67]

Umm, hello...

This is your aircraft for every era.

Yeah but that airplane in the background with the thingys hanging off the back is really distracting to the picture.

Here is a better picture

[JarheadBoom]

OK... now that someone broke the fling-wing cherry, here's my favorite beast:

I was on-board for this pic, in the gunner's (left) window.

Worked on this BuNo a while back, before I was aircrew.

This was my squadron that did this F-15 lift in '03. I was the only crewmember in the squadron at the time who'd done an aircraft lift in the previous 5 years. Guess who didn't go on this flight...

Edited July 16, 2007 by JarheadBoom

[Guest markkyle66]

Modern Era

Vietnam

F4's all the way. I'm told they were hangar queens and flew like pigs... but if you ask me anything with two J79's oughta move pretty good! It sure looks the part of a fighter anyways!

Korea

WWII

PT-17 all the way! Absolutely some of the best flying you can do will be in a stearman. Nothing like open cockpit flying! I was fortunate enough to get a little time in one a while back.

Edited July 17, 2007 by markkyle66

[HerkDerka]

This is your aircraft for every era.

The man has a point.

HD

[Right Seat Driver]

I second the F-106. Grew up a military brat watching it fly at K.I. Sawyer. Old man was a fire control technician on the "6" and now retired chief. The aircraft markings in your pic are of the 87th FIS (Red Bulls) at K.I. Sawyer.

Yeah, I was born in raised in Michigan, and always loved staring at the -106 at the MTC Air Museum. I was torn between a picture of a -106 from the Six Pack or one from K.I., but I figure a lot of people had no idea that the 87th used to be an FIS back in the day.

[WeatherManC130]

I guess my first airplane is my favorite. I loved working the F-111, even though it was some what of a MX nightmare, it was a labor of love! Wicked fast and deadly accurate with great long legs...

This is my favortite aircraft as well!! Maybe I should move to Austrailia and fly with the Royal Air Force

WxMan

[Guest Xtndr50boom]

Maybe I should move to Austrailia and fly with the Royal Air Force

Me thinks you mean "Royal Australian Air Force".

Big difference between fish 'n' chips and vegemite sandwiches

[Guest NoleMet]

WWII: B-25 (the more guns on it, the better)

OR

Vietnam Era -

and Finally...

second dmeg130's post...

She's a sweet bird no matter how you dress her up...

Edited July 20, 2007 by NoleMet

[Guest IncompletePete]

Cold War machine, largely because my old man was an WSO in 'em:

[brickhistory]

Just finished writing a thing for the USAF/HO on the American Volunteer Group aka "Flying Tigers"

Without going into the mercenary aspects, these guys just lived to fly and shoot things down or strafe.

They'd try their best to gain the altitude advantage, throttle to the wall dive into the Japanese, then zoom climb for another go. Officially at something like 297 to 12-ish.......

Edited August 3, 2007 by brickhistory

[GSXR6Racer]

When I was in college in FL, my parents had a vacation place that they would come down and visit. In the same little community was a little old feller who would walk around. One day my dad was out walking his dog and happened to walk by this man. It turned out this guy was one of the flying tigers, and they talked about airplanes and his days in the tigers for hours. Man I can't remember his name, but it was cool. I guess they had some wild times over there.

[Guest illini52]

Since someone already posted the F-4 and F-106, here's another Cold War warrior.

Edited August 4, 2007 by illini52

[HuggyU2]

This is sort of a big week in U-2 history. On 1 Aug 1955, the U-2 taxi test at Groom Lake (Area 51) got airborne, making it the first "unofficial" flight in the Deuce. On 4 Aug (today) 1955, the first "official" flight took place, again with Tony LeVier at the controls. Not sure, but I think 8 Aug 1955 was the " 'official' official first flight", with VIP's in attendance to witness it.

Also, coincidently enough, Gary Powers died on 1 Aug 1977 in a helicopter accident. I met a few former U-2 drivers at Oshkosh last week that knew him. They said he was a real gentleman, and all spoke highly of the man.

Here's a shot over NE Afghanistan.

Edited August 4, 2007 by Huggyu2

[brickhistory]

Very cool pic!

[Guest Rainman A-10]

Great pic Huggy.

I especially love the pencil holders on the yoke! How many pecils had to get dropped before they came up with that idea?

[Guest Rainman A-10]

Without going into the mercenary aspects, these guys just lived to fly and shoot things down or strafe.

$500 a kill. Damn good money back then. It would still cover a bit of a bar tab today.

[R-Dub]

Here's a shot over NE Afghanistan.

Is that a Garmin next to the left side of the canopy?

[HuggyU2]

I especially love the pencil holders on the yoke! How many pecils had to get dropped before they came up with that idea?

If you only knew. They had those pencil holders in the old C-models "back in the day". There are some things they originally put in the cockpit, and are still there, that just make you scratch your noggin'. It's downright comical.

When I was new at the whole pressure-suit-thing, I had a sortie where I dropped 5 of the 6 pencils I had in the jet. Isn't that when you'd yell "Winchester" in a fighter?? You're out of 30mm, and I'm out of pencils. The pencil is mightier than,..... nevermind.

Most folks now carry those long, metal, flexible things with the claws on the end, so you can get stuff off the cockpit floor, and they work great.

We're finally putting the pencil holders on the glare shield. What I'd really like is something like the A-10 saddle bags, or whatever y'all called them.

The cockpit is an F-104 cockpit widened about 10" and made about 8" deeper. The yoke is a C-130 yoke. Do you Herc guys have those pencil holders?

Yes, that's a Garmin. We attach one (we now use the color 296 or 396) to the left mirror with a rubber band. Works great.

This is an old shot (about 3 years), and the old display on the right has been replaced with another 6x8 display, i.e. we now have three 6x8 displays.

The moving map is a piece of FOD, but works for what we're using it for. The moving map I've flown with in the Cirrus is a heck of a lot nicer. Overall, though, the displays are nice. There's a small 3x3 backup display on the emergency bus that will get you back should you lose your main MFD's. It provides attitude, heading, altitude, speed, mach, and ILS/LOC capability.

Overall, though, 52 years of U-2 tradition, unhampered by progress. Gotta love it.

Edited August 5, 2007 by Huggyu2

[Bergman]

Great pic Huggy.

I especially love the pencil holders on the yoke! How many pecils had to get dropped before they came up with that idea?

69, of course.

Most folks now carry those long, metal, flexible things with the claws on the end, so you can get stuff off the cockpit floor, and they work great.

The mental image of a pilot in full-up pressure suit trying to lean over with a magnetic claw while at 69,000 feet to pick up 5 dropped pencils is pretty funny. May I suggest tying a string on the pencil next time?

Edited August 5, 2007 by Bergman

[HuggyU2]

A couple more for you. Here's Napa Valley and the Grand Canyon:

Edited August 5, 2007 by Huggyu2

[Guest Jimmy]

I don't feel like searching and pardon the squawk 7500, but are you rated an astronaut as a U2 driver?

[HuggyU2]

I don't feel like searching and pardon the squawk 7500, but are you rated an astronaut as a U2 driver?

Nope, note even close.

[brickhistory]

Huggyu2,

Outstanding pics! Thanks for sharing; a very different perspective there.

Re astronaut wings; I believe 50 miles up is the line to earn those wings. Besides those riding rockets, a couple of the X-15 guys won them that way.

I stand to be corrected on the altitude limit by someone doing a google search, however.

[HerkDerka]

Are those statute or nautical miles? :)

I would assume nautical.

HD

[HuggyU2]

I would assume nautical.

I would have, too. But it turns out that it is "statute". The reason, I'm guessing is that 50 statute miles (264,000 feet), or ~80 kilometers, is the US standard for being an astronaut.

The international standard, set by the Federation Aeronautique Internationale (FAI) and used by everyone else, is 100 kilometers, or 328,000 feet.

If you remember the Space Ship One flight a couple of years ago, that aircraft's registration was N328KF, as in 328 thousand feet, which was their goal.