Oshkosh 2010 Pic Stream #4 - AvGeek Nation! (26 pix)

 You see a little bit of everything at Oshkosh... this portable toilet 'environment enhancement' is just down the road from me in Camp Scholler. I would never have thought to do such a thing. Never.

  I've been seeing the very cool mega-super-sized-kind-of-a-Super-Cub airplane called Sherpa for years at Oshkosh, but I've never really got the idea that airplanes were being built, delivered or otherwise getting into the hands of people who want them. So, I stopped by the booth to find out what's going on. The bottom line is that after years of not quite having things all sorted out, things are now finally all sorted out. It looks like the Garrett prop-jet powered 8-place super STOL homebuilt airplane is ready to take on the world. I'll have more info on this big beautiful beast before long.

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Oshkosh 2010 Pic Stream #3 - Getting Settled In (16 pix)

 Check out that long morning shadow coming off that Luscombe! Tuesday started with loads of sunshine and stayed that way most of the day. Some overcast appeared for a while in the afternoon, but it was a good day for weather.

  Mid morning had lots of activity going on at AeroShell Square. Here, Art Nalls tells a very interested crowd about his Sea Harrier. This is the only privately owned flyable Harrier jump jet in the world. 

The airplane is scheduled to put on some flight demos thru the week, and I'm sure it will attract a lot attention. I also talked with Art and we're working on doing a podcast before too long. I'm sure it will be fascinating to get the story behind the journey of pilot and airplane to reach this point.

  How'd you like to have a grandpa who would make this for you?! As I worked my way around all the goodies on AeroShell Square, I spotted this ultra-cool DC-3 wagon with some pretty happy kids in it. Tho I think they might have been getting tired waving to all the people looking at them... they were very popular!

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Oshkosh 2010 Pic Stream #2 - Sunshine & Avgeek Happiness! (19 pix)

AirPigz 'Bacon Party' Tonight!  5pm-7pm in Camp Scholler
( Lindbergh Ave at 43rd Street - click for map )

 The campground is definitely drying out, but the big Class A motorhomes still aren't being let in as of late Monday evening. Hopefully tomorrow the ground will have firmed up enough for them. My campsite isn't really all put together yet... I've been too busy with airplanes and stuff.

 My early morning trip into the show grounds went right by the fabulous Kirby Chambliss Red Bull airplane that was sitting right outside the Cirrus booth. The second Red Bull airplane on a stick was pretty cool to see in the morning air as well.

  Just to the south of Kirby's airplane was one of the 16 Cirrus SR20's recently purchased by Purdue University for their flight school.

 The Kodiak sitting on amphibious floats was looking pretty sharp in the early sunshine. I've got the camera on the monopod up in the air as I often do, which can make the airplane look smaller than it is... note that the wing is essentially at the height of the building roof. This is a big and tall package of an airplane!

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Cool Aircraft Ramp Spotters (CARS): DC-3 At KCCO (Plus Dillan!)

Dillan Rayfield with a DC-3 at KCCO near Atlanta, Georgia

 
This DC-3 is being restored at KCCO

 Bill Rayfield sent in these recent pix for a CARS post.  Not only is it cool to have another DC-3 to look at, but this is a team of Cool Aircraft Ramp Spotters!  That’s Bill’s boy Dillan showing his great enthusiasm for flying machines!  The bonus pic below shows Dillan in front of a great looking Decathlon too (it’s never too early to cultivate a love for taildraggers!)

 The DC-3 is in the restoration process at KCCO (Newnan Coweta County Airport), a nice looking airport just a little southwest of Atlanta, Georgia.  Hopefully we’ll get a lot more DC-3 pix to post as we move closer to the big 75th anniversary celebration of DC-3’s at Oshkosh 2010.  It’ll be here before long, and I gotta say I’m getting pretty excited!

 It’s also great to see a little guy with so much enthusiasm for airplanes.  We need more of that.  Thanx Bill and Dillan for being Cool Aircraft Ramp Spotters : )

Wanna be a Cool Aircraft Ramp Spotter?  Check out this CARS post for details

Dillan with a great looking Decathlon

Cool Aircraft Ramp Spotters (CARS): Paintless DC-3 At KDKX

(click pic to enlarge)

 Matthew Everett, who runs LeavingTerraFirma.com, sent in this CARS pic of a pretty sweet  looking DC-3 even if it doesn’t have any paint.  It has the faded markings of Dodson International Air, but I don’t really know any additional specifics.  But I figure with the 75th anniversary of the DC-3 upon us, and the fact that a really big celebration of one of the most important aircraft ever made is scheduled to take place at Oshkosh this year, you just can’t look/think/live 'DC-3' too much these days : )

 As this EAA story about DC-3’s coming to Oshkosh tells, there might be 50 or more headed for OSH10, with as many as 40 arriving all at once!  That sight alone is gonna make this something extremely special to see.  I can hardly wait!

And as a reminder, here’s the info on CARS submissions:

 Fresh pix please, within the last month

 Gotta be Cool!  Rare aircraft, amazing paint, unique, odd or otherwise noteworthy

 Prefer jpg file, in sharp focus and at least 600 pixels wide

 Looking for everyday airport pix, NOT airshow/fly-in pix

 Send pix, questions or comments to mcc@airpigz.com

Video History Lesson: DC-3 On Amphibious Floats!

 The Douglas DC-3 is truly one of the most amazing aviation accomplishments of all time, and these videos show another pretty cool accomplishment... EDO putting the airplane on amphibious floats!  The first video is a bit long, but includes a lot of WWII era footage of DC-3's operating off the water - amazing stuff to see for sure.

 The second video is from the late 80's showing a privately owned DC-3 on the floats taxiing in on the water, and then right up onto the land via the wheels.  Again, very cool stuff to see.

 I never get tired of seeing DC-3's in action, which means Oshkosh 2010 is gonna be absolutely incredible (duh!) as there's a celebration planned for the 75th anniversary of the airplane.  There's already a 'mass arrival' of 35 DC-3's in the works, and more than that may be on site during the week.  This DC-3's at Oshkosh link has more info, aw well as TheLastTime.org  - I can hardly wait!