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Aircraft Super Thread Mk.VII


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Heh, I learned about that one quite early - when war comics were still a thing in the UK there was a story one of them ran occasionally about a two-seat Harrier with an A.I. fitted (Harrikaze?) and in one the pilots encountered some Tornado pilots who were quite sniffy about their aircraft; the Harrier retaliated by bringing up the "Blue Circle" [1] story!

[1] For those unfamiliar with this part of the Tornado ADVs development woes, there were major issues with the planned Foxhunter radar, which couldn't be installed in the early models; a ballast weight was installed in the nose instead, which was partly made of concrete - the term "Blue Circle" comes from a popular cement product of that time.

Edited by F-ZeroOne
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40 minutes ago, F-ZeroOne said:

Reportedly, Russia has deployed up to four Su-57s to Syria.

Why is a bit of an open question, as by most accounts they're some way from being operational and its possible they might give away more to interested parties than they take from the experience...

 

Gotta test it someplace... see how they hold up under operational conditions and sortie tempo if nothing else. see how гопник-proof they are compared to a regular Flanker.

Might as well be in an active combat zone where the AA threat has been reduced to civilians hurling rocks and the occasional random-MANPAD...

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3 hours ago, F-ZeroOne said:

Well, an entirely domestically developed F-3 is. Sounds like they're going to reach out to US firms for possible co-development. 

Not strictly aircraft related, but the wreck of the USS Lexington has been found:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-australia-43296489

Not completely certain, but does on of those images show the infamous 1.1 inch AA gun?

 

Yep, definitely looks like a quad mount 1.1 inch.

What's amazing is how well the markings have survived on the Devastator and Wildcat. The Wildcat still shows its Felix the Cat as well as kill marks.

28685830_2052877008327959_77435762867042

Edited by Vifam7
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So a UPS 747 comes to Guam every Sunday to deliver packages and mail.  Looks like this guy broke down as it was here for like a week.  Took a cool picture of what looks like a Kunming airlines B737-700, then I think a Shanghai Airlines B737-MAX, and the UPS 747-400.  Just past the 747, you can see a United 737-800 peeking out.  These 737s are ferrying from the Boeing plant to China almost weekly.

IMG_20180323_180100.jpg

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:(

https://theaviationist.com/?p=52727

Quote

USAF Major Stephen Del Bagno, Thunderbird #4, Was Experienced Pilot, First Year Thunderbird.

The U.S. Air Force has identified the member of the Thunderbirds flight demonstration team who died in a training accident near Nellis AFB, Nevada yesterday morning while training for the upcoming airshow demonstration season.

USAF Major Stephen Del Bagno, listed as being from Valencia, California by ABC7 News in California, was previously the F-35A Lightning II Chief of Standardization and Evaluation at the 58th Fighter Squadron, Eglin AFB, Florida. He became a Thunderbird demonstration pilot in 2017 for the 2018 airshow season.

Major Del Bagno is reported to have only had the opportunity to participate in one Thunderbird public flyover at the Daytona 500 NASCAR race in Florida on February 18, 2018 prior to his fatal accident. As an experienced tactical aircraft pilot with more than 3,500 total flight hours including 1,400 hours in U.S. Air Force aircraft, Major Del Bagno began flying and rehearsing with the Thunderbirds last year and was experiencd as the Number 4 “Slot” pilot in the Thunderbird diamond formation. He had flown over 30 types of aircraft, civilian and military, during his career.

The official USAF Thunderbird page for Major Del Bagno summarized his impressive career as an exceptional aviator:

“Maj. Stephen Del Bagno is the Slot Pilot for the U.S. Air Force Air Demonstration Squadron, flying the No. 4 jet. He is a 2005 graduate of Utah Valley State university, and commissioned from Officer Training School, Maxwell AFB, Ala. In 2007. Before joining the Air Force, Del Bagno was a civilian flight instructor, corporate pilot, skywriter, and a banner tow pilot. He enjoys snowboarding, water sports and spending time with family and friends. Prior to joining the Thunderbirds, Del Bagno served as an F-35A Evaluator Pilot and Chief of Standardization and Evaluation, 58th Fighter Squadron, Eglin AFB, Fla. He has logged more than 3,500 flight hours in over 30 different aircraft, with 1,400 hours as an Air Force pilot. Del Bagno is in his first season with the team and hails from Valencia, Calif.”

Major Del Bagno had replaced former Thunderbird #4 slot pilot Major Nick Krajicek, who moved within the Air Force to another assignment. Maj. Del Bagno, callsign, “Cajun”, was the first F-35A Lightning II pilot to fly on the Thunderbirds team in the F-16.

In a February 2017 release, Maj. Del Bagno talked about the capabilities of the F-35A Lightning II he was flying at the time, “This jet is going to take us to 2050 and beyond. As threats evolve, we need to continually stay ahead of them. It’s a multi role platform and this proves how versatile the aircraft can be. We can shoot missiles, we can drop bombs, so we can take the fight to the enemy.”

No further information has been released about the accident. As is common with any military aviation accident a formal investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Air Force.

 

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I've just got back from one of my trips to Japan and was rather interested to see that the airliner I got back was a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which felt rather new. I was in economy, but one impression I got was there seemed to be more vertical "space" overhead than I've felt before in other airliners.

Mind you, this might be just because the plane I flew out on was so old I think it still had Frank Whittles signature inscribed on the engines... :)

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18 hours ago, F-ZeroOne said:

I've just got back from one of my trips to Japan and was rather interested to see that the airliner I got back was a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which felt rather new. I was in economy, but one impression I got was there seemed to be more vertical "space" overhead than I've felt before in other airliners.

Mind you, this might be just because the plane I flew out on was so old I think it still had Frank Whittles signature inscribed on the engines... :)

 

What airline did you take? Also, what airport did you fly in/out of?

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Just now, Shadow said:

That'll buff out.

F22down_10.jpg

 

But seriously, glad no one was hurt and I hope they get it back to being operational soon.

"An F-22A Raptor belonging to Elmendorf Air Force Base's 3rd Wing was involved in a major mishap this weekend. Details remain sketchy and are likely to change, but a source told The War Zone that the jet may have retracted its gear too early during takeoff, with the aircraft slamming back down on the runway at relatively high speed and skidding its way to a stop. Thankfully the pilot was able to egress from the aircraft without major injuries." -- Link

 

Well... that explains the crowd of people on the left of the pic who all look like they're enjoying the pilot's pain entirely too much...:D lol :clapping:

 

on a more serious note, I'm not sure how much that'll cost, but it's going to be a full replacement of all the underside doors...

I hope he didn't bend the airframe... :ph34r:...

Edited by slide
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17 hours ago, F-ZeroOne said:

Good grief, that looks like someone had some "Ring Raiders" toys as a kid...!

Holy s#it, GET OUT OF MY MIND!!

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