OSHKOSH Pic Stream #4 - Wednesday , July 29

This "prehistoric" flapping wing machine and wing-walker have been coming to Oshkosh for 25 years now.  It never gets old seeing it pop and sputter down the flightline!  You can also see skywriting for Scheyden eyewear drifting away in the background sky.

There was a really cool hand-propping demo going on each day in front of the Vintage Hangar.  It was a great op for people unfamiliar to get some good tips and cautions.

The que line for getting inside the the A380 was kinda long and slow moving.  Everyone I talked to tho that went thru was glad that they did.

Two main gear trucks with 6 tires each and two with 4 tires each... plus 2 at the nose makes for 22 tires in all.  That's only 4 more than the 747.

Another view of the Taylor Speedstar.  It's just a concept at the moment, but there was a lot of interest and hope that this will lead to an STC for this single turbine Aerostar modification.

Oshkosh doesn't get any better than this!

Matt Chapman in the CAP 580 putting on a great show for Embry-Riddle.  photo: Tim Stiffler

David Martin in the Breitling Extra 330 throwing smoke into the perfect blue sky.  photo: Tim Stiffler

The Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum had their fabulous Lancaster bomber on display.

For a $5 donation (to help pay for the fuel) you could climb up the ladder and all the way thru the Lanc.  What a fantastic experience!  I had a nice visit with Richard E.J. Pulley, one of the pilots as he told me some of the history on this specific airplane.

Beautiful Lockheed P-38 on display in the Warbird area.  photo: Tim Stiffler

A closer view looking inside the unusual P-38 cockpit.  photo: Tim Stiffler

The mouth and teeth of an excellent Curtiss P-40 ready to eat you up!  photo: Tim Stiffler

It's not warbirds without P-51's!  photo: Tim Stiffler

The care given some of these aircraft is absolutely amazing.  photo: Tim Stiffler

OSHKOSH 09 Pic Stream #2 - Monday, July 27

Jessica Cox is the amazing young woman born without arms who is also a licensed pilot.  A large and very supportive crowd gathered at AeroShell Square today to hear her very inspirational story.  Jessica rox! 

Jessica sitting on the wing of the Ercoupe while her instructor is being interviewed.  She will speak several more times through the week.  Learn more about Jessica by watching the video from my "World's Greatest Pilot?" post from May 2009.

You might think this is just a sleek orange airplane, but it's a lot more than that.  The Polen Special, built in 1972, shattered our idea of how fast a homebuilt airplane could go.  300+ mph on 180hp!

It's so amazing to see this airplane still airworthy, and still fast.  I thought since we can't sit in the cockpit and look over that nose, we'd just take a close look the other way : )

The sight and sound of the Avro Lancaster is simply stunning.  The airplane arrived in the afternoon while the weather was still nice.  After a pass down the runway, a large crowd gathered to watch it land.

The eager crowd was allowed right up to the airplane immediately after it was pushed into AeroShell Square.  It's refreshing to see the interest is still there for great WWII aircraft!

The Erickson Air-Crane arrived, but I was using the video camera as it demonstrated its water drop capabilities.  After it landed, I got some pix of it being towed into the Square.

I got the landing of Virgin Galactic's WhiteKnightTwo on video, and then had some still camera trouble as it sat in front of a large crowd.  I got a few good pix of it tho while the weather was starting to sour.  Soon it was raining and the airshow for the day was cancelled.

This Is How You Fly A B-17!

 This video is just a minute and 16 seconds long showing a really great airplane, a B-17, being flown in a really great manner.  What a fabulous example of a textbook landing!

 When I was just 13, my dad was unofficially teaching me to fly in a brand new 1973 Citabria 7KCAB that he'd just bought (he wasn't a CFI, but he was a great teacher).

 I remember that he taught me something very simple that can really make a big difference.  It was just this: make the airplane do what you need it to do, whatever it takes to make it happen.  It's the difference between mostly going along for a ride, and truly being in control.

 This landing shows what it looks like to be in control : )

Army's New T-11... The Square Parachute That's Kinda Round Too

 The old T-10 static line parachute used by the Army soldier hadn't really changed much since it was first used in the 1950's.  A totally new concept in parachute design has been tested as a replacement.  The unusually shaped T-11, which appears to have been in development for several years is finally ready to be put into service in 2009.

 Looking a lot like a freaky UFO, the T-11 is a little heavier overall, but it offers a much more comfortable harness, a lower opening shock, significantly reduce rate of descent, far less oscillation, and a much lower rate of malfunction.  In case you don't know much about parachutes, those are all really good things!  Want more info?  Watch this vid too. 

F-35 Joint Strike Fighter On The Leading Edge Of A Battle

Third F-35 JSF 'BF-2' made first flight February 25, 2009
Photo: Scott Fischer at Fence Check 

 

Original F-35 prototype 'AA-1'

 The top pic is of F-35 ‘BF-2', the second ‘B' model to be completed.  It flew for the first time February 25, 2009 in Fort Worth, Texas making it the third F-35 prototype to fly. The ‘B' model is the short takeoff/vertical landing (STOVL) variant.  The bottom pic is the original prototype 'A' model which is (CTOL) conventional takeoff and landing and first flew December 15, 2006. 

 While the JSF program is moving forward, the aircraft might find itself going to battle much earlier than expected.  Our financial crisis may cause some in government to try to take a hatchet to the program.  I sure don't have all the answers, but I'm thinking this is a program we NEED.

 I'm all for watching where and how we spend taxpayer dollars, but the world isn't getting any nicer... but it is getting much more capable of building high-tech weapons.  I'm sure that's a game the planet still desperately needs us to be at the top of. 

 Here's an interesting UPI news story titled "Buying two engines for the F-35 wastes billions of dollars" that seems shows an easy way to save boatloads of cash without holding the JSF program back.  I don't think we've ever seen a more critical time for the United States to make absolutely sure that we continue to fund essential defense projects that will be effective at keeping as much peace as possible around the world.

'Caption Contest' #9 And A Two-Time Winner!

 It was just a few weeks back when twitter follower @Captain_Ron was draggin his toes in the dust cuz he thought he'd never win a 'Caption Contest' here at AirPigz.  Now look at him... he's a two-time winner!  Good job, and thanx for showing the world the fine art of persistence.        

 So, now he's already banked up $40 in Airpigz funny money that he'll be able to trade later in the year for cool aviation stuff.  Thanx to everyone for playing once again... and, I'd like to ask that you spread the word on the game, we need more av geeks getting in on the fun : )

1953 Wet Jet! Convair F2Y Sea Dart

 That the engineers even tried an idea like the Convair F2Y Sea Dart is pretty amazing to me... and it actually showed a surprising amount of promise (well at least compared to what seems like simply too much to ask of a jet powered aircraft).                  

 And while it did 'work', it just didn't have the power or functional success to get past prototypes.  But it's still a very interesting aviation achievement and makes for some really cool 1950's video to watch!  I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Have You Pull-Started Your 'Me 262' Lately?

Screenshot from 'Flight Check Fighters' video

 Maybe this pic doesn't strike you the way it does me... but a guy pulling a handle on a rope that's attached to something inside the engine on an Me 262 definitely makes me go, hmmm (out loud). 

 Let's back up a minute here. Since my dad passed away recently, I've been going thru boxes of stuff he'd accumulated over the years.  In a recent box, I found a 2 DVD set from 2007 titled ‘Flight Check Fighters' - ‘The How-To-Fly Series' that's available from TimelessVideo.com.  These 2 DVD's have tons of actual footage from military training films that show you about everything you need to know to properly fly the P-38, P-39, P-40, P-47, P-61, and the Me 262.  It's a great set that you should seriously consider adding to your collection.

 It was the Me 262 that caught my eye on the package right away.  So I tossed the DVD in the computer and start watching an actual German training film on the first jet aircraft to go into service in WWII. Cool stuff.

 I'm just watching away thinking this is pretty amazing to see (and I'm thinking, wow, the crazy mechanical nightmare that were the aircraft from that era!).  After a bit, an instructor is showing a student about the throttles and engine controls when a third guy walks up and grabs a handle on a rope located right at the hole in the bullet in the middle of the nacelle. Then, he starts yankin' on it!  I'm thinking, what the heck?!  Is this some kind of crazy pull-start pre-rotator for the compressor? What in the world is he doing?

Delaware Valley Historical Aviation Association Museum - Horsham, PA. Photo: http://www.williammaloney.com/

  <Air Victory Museum - Lumberton, NJ
Photo:  http://www.williammaloney.com/

 Well, my friend ‘Mr. Google' helped me out... and I found out something very interesting.  Seems the Germans engineered a small 10hp 2-stroke 2-cylinder gas engine into the nacelle to use as the starter for the turbine when a ‘cart' wasn't available!

 So, the guy is actually pull-starting that little gas engine, which then spins the compressor enough to fire up the turbine engine.  I think that's just cool, crazy, and topped off with more cool! I never knew the Me 262 was really a 4 engine, turbine/2-stroke hybrid!  Also very interesting to note that these early turbines had a TBO of only about 25 to 50 hours!  Ouch! 

 The upper picture above shows a 2-place version of the Me 262 from the Delaware Valley Historical Aviation Association Museum in Horsham, PA.  This beautifully restored aircraft makes it easy to see the pull ring in the center of the nacelle, and the 2-stroke is nestled inside the 'bullet'.   

 The lower pic is from the Air Victory Museum in Lumberton, NJ and shows the little Riedel 2-stroke engine on the front end of a Junkers Jumo 004 engine (with the center ‘bullet' removed).  Apparently this 2-stroker could be started from the cockpit via electrics, and the pull start option was for back-up. The large 'pull' ring is clearly visible here.  Looking close at the 2-stroke engine design, and the compressor blades behind it, it's fascinating to see how little has changed in 65 years.  Materials and details have improved greatly, but the basic concepts are very similar. 

 Pretty stinkin' cool stuff all the way around. Just goes to show that you never know what you don't know! Keep this in mind the next time you're at a sweet aviation museum.  Dig a little deeper into the displays cuz you just don't know what cool tidbit is just waiting for you to discover : )

2009 USAF Thunderbirds Schedule Now Available

 The new year is here (like it or not) and I’m pretty sure right now is a really good time to be thinking bold, fast and strong. You know, like the USAF Thunderbirds! 

 The economic outlook around the world might seem a little gloomy right now, but the best way to face the challenges of this new year is to do it just like a g-suited F-16 pilot ready to slide in close enough to count whiskers on a chin... with discipline, practice, and excellence!

 And while you and I will probably never be hanging on to the ‘lectric jet’s side-stick controller, we can still take time to check the Thunderbirds 2009 show schedule and make plans to go watch them tear up the sky. 

 AirForceTimes.com has an easy to readschedule that will help you see if a trip to see some really shiny red, white, and blue F-16’s is in your future.  I know I’m gonna be making me some of those plans!

 Now is also a perfect time to stop and think about the awesome, amazing, and often extremely difficult lives that the men and women of the military (and their families) live every day.  There's a lot of sacrifice there that often goes unnoticed. 

These are difficult times standing up for freedom, and there’s no way we could ever thank them too much for their dedication and service to the USA!  AirPigz is very proud to say “Thank You”.

2009 Blue Angels Schedule Now Available

 It’s gotta be one of the toughest jobs in the world, but absolutely one of the best too.  A Blue Angels pilot: driving a blue & gold F/A-18 Hornet at up to 700mph and as low as 50 feet in front of millions of spectators across America.

 I can’t imagine a more difficult and demanding job than flying 30,000 pounds of military jet at high speeds and as close as 2 feet away from several more!  And then, doing it day in and day out… all the while representing the United States Navy. There's only one thing that could compare, doing the same thing for the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds flying the F-16 Fighting Falcon!

 The Blue Angels 2009 air show schedule has just been made available.  You can easily find it at the official Blue Angels website.  Now is a good time to plan your summer schedule around an awesome Blue Angels performance. 

 The Thunderbirds 2009 schedule isn’t available yet, but should be soon. Watch for lots more AirPigz coverage of both teams, especially looking closer at just how much training, discipline, and skill is required to fly for the best of the best.

 And, if you have 10 minutes to spare, go watch the HD video of 'One Six Right' creator  Brian Terwilliger’s ride with the Blue Angels.