Gallery Update: Chasing a Jumbo Jet at an Unlikely Place

This really was a last-minute, unexpected spotting trip I decided to take for a specific reason despite the fact I wasn't planning on doing anything today. Let's just say I love the AvGeek-friendly website FlightAware! It was because of what I found out on FlightAware that I decided to drive down to Eugene, Oregon for the second time this year to do some planespotting. The time of day (not to mention the weather!) was not the most ideal for a variety of spotting at Eugene Airport but when you find out a chartered Boeing 747-400 is scheduled to land at EUG, you make an exception to go see it for yourself! Yes indeed, a Boeing 747 did fly into Eugene today and I did go down and photographed it! For a regional airport like Eugene, 747s are a rare and uncommon sight and are becoming rarer overall as wide-body twin-jets become the primary long-haul airliners. Plus, this is only the second Boeing 747 I've photographed since I started getting to planespotting and aviation photography (the other was the prototype 747 at the Museum of Flight.). United Airlines brought up one of their 747-400s from Victorville, California to Eugene on a military charter. Here's the link:

Eugene (EUG) 2

And the preview:

LearJet 60 (N860PD) departing.

United Airlines Boeing 747-422 (N122UA):

Slowing down upon landing.

Clearing the runway.

First view of the actual tail number.

Taxiing to the gate.

Parked at the gate.

Horizon Air Bombardier DHC-8-402 Dash 8 Q400 (N438QX) departing.

Horizon Air Bombardier DHC-8-402 Dash 8 Q400 (N422QX) clearing the runway after arrival.

SkyWest Airlines (d/b/a United Express) Bombardier CL-600-2C10 CRJ-701ER (N783SK) clearing the runway after arriving from Denver.

Empire Airlines (d/b/a FedEx Feeder) Cessna 208B Super Cargomaster (N700FX) clearing the runway after arrival.

Horizon Air Bombardier DHC-8-402 Dash 8 Q400 (N422QX) departing after a quick turn-around.

SkyWest Airlines (d/b/a United Express) Bombardier CL-600-2C10 CRJ-701ER (N783SK) departing back to Denver after a quick turn-around.

I certainly hope I get to photograph more active 747s in the future before they're all gone!

Amazing Aircraft: The Versatile and Indispensable, The Hercules

If there is one military aircraft that is described as versatile and indispensable because of the wide variety of roles it can play depending on the mission profile, the Lockheed C-130 Hercules, which first flew 61 years ago today, on August 23, 1954 comes to mind. And many sources and experts would agree... Appropriately named, the Hercules is capable of of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings and perform a variety of roles through different variants of the aircraft, which range from troop transport, medivac, cargo, humanitarian relief, gunship, airborne assault, scientific research, search and rescue, weather reconnaissance, maritime patrol, aerial refueling, aerial firefighting, and much more. There are over 40 different models and variants of the C-130 Hercules is in service with more than 60 countries worldwide.

Nevada Air National Guard C-130H Hercules at the 2014 Reno Air Races.

Along with the English Electric Canberra, Boeing B-52 Stratofortress, Tupolev Tu-95, and Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker, the C-130 Hercules is among aircraft to be in 50 years of continuous use with its original primary customer, in this case, the United States Air Force; to this day, the aircraft remains in continuous production, with the newer, updated C-130J Super Hercules succeeding older models. Other models of the aircraft include:

• the AC-130 Spectre/Spooky/Ghostrider/Stinger II fixed-wing ground-attack and close air support gunship.
• the DC-130 drone control aircraft.
• the EC-130 airborne communications jamming aircraft.
• the HC-130 search and rescue (SAR) and combat search and rescue (CSAR) aircraft. 
• the KC-130 aerial refueling tanker aircraft, mainly used by the United States Marine Corps.
• the LC-130 ski-equipped transport mainly used for arctic and antarctic operations.
• the MC-130 Combat Talon I/Combat Talon II/Combat/Dragon Spear/Combat Shadow/Commando II, used for clandestine special operations with STOL capabilities.
• the WC-130 Hurricane Hunter used for weather reconnaissance.
• the L-100 civilian variant used for freight transport.

Alaska Air National Guard C-130H at the 2009 Reno Air Races.

In its 50 plus years of service, the Hercules saw much action and great usage throughout the Cold War and into the 21st Century. With great versatility, the C-130 was often used for experimental testing which pushed the capabilities of the aircraft beyond the limit. The Hercules, to this day holds the record for being the heaviest fixed-wing aircraft to land on an aircraft carrier. Between October and November of 1963, a USMC C-130 made 29 touch-and-go landings, 21 unarrested full-stop landings and 21 unassisted take-offs on the USS Forrestal (CV-59) at a number of different weights to test the feasibility of a Hercules playing the role of "Carrier Onboard Delivery" (COD) operations. Though the tests were considered successful, the idea was scrapped because it was considered too risky due to the aircraft's size. Instead, the COD role was given to the smaller Grumman C-2 Greyhound. 

C-130s also saw operational service in its usual roles during the Vietnam War, often staging from airbases in Japan and Thailand, as well as lesser conflicts in the Middle East and see's service today. Another experimental use for the C-130 occurred during the Iran Hostage Crisis. After the failure of Operation Eagle Claw, a C-130 was extensively modified with rockets, effectively creating a "super-STOL aircraft" capable of landing inside an Iranian soccer stadium and dispatch special forces soldiers to initiate rescue. The undertaking was known as Operation Credible Sport. The mission was failure during testing due to human error, when a set of rockets were fired prematurely, which brought the aircraft down; fortunately, no crews were harmed in the incident. The operation was ultimately scrapped when the hostages were eventually released concurrent with the election of Ronald Reagan. In a follow-on project, Credible Sport II led to the development of the MC-130 variant of the Hercules aircraft.

Overall, the C-130 is seen as a general support aircraft in a variety of roles, supporting military troops and civilians whenever the need arises. It's probably safe to say the Hercules can be called upon to support areas of conflict or whenever disaster arises. One such famous Hercules is the support aircraft for the United States Navy's premier air demonstration team, the Blue Angels. Nicknamed "Fat Albert," the team's C-130T Hercules is actually operated by the United States Marine Corps despite the fact they support a Naval team.

The United States Marine Corps C-130T Hercules famously known as "Fat Albert" parked on the ramp at the 2015 Oregon International Air Show.

Let's wish this venerable military workhorse a happy 61st birthday and may it's building legacy continue to be recognized as it continues operating for the military men and women as well as the civilians of the world wherever the need arises.

Statement in Response to the Shoreham Royal Air Force Association Airshow Accident

I have received several questions from friends and acquaintances regarding air show safety and certain risks associated about them. Having attended many air shows and even working at one, as well as witnessing a crash or two in addition to many near-misses, and feeling strongly about supporting air shows for various reasons, I hereby offer the following response:

In the wake of this most recent air show disaster that occurred in the U.K. the other day, there is guaranteed certainty that commentary and speculation with no relative context will arise. The media is bound to broadcast incorrect, often not-so credible information while so much detail remains unavailable or unknown at the moment. And unfortunately, next to the fatalities that resulted in this accident, the public will prematurely jump to conclusions based on said information released by the various media. And without a doubt, these anti-air show groups will milk this for all its worth to further their (in my opinion) ridiculous and irrelevant agendas to get all air shows banned over "safety concerns." I put those two words in quotation marks because like all sports and anything outdoors, there are associated risks. But like all sports and anything outdoors, you take the necessary precautions to minimize and mitigate potential hazards that come from said risks; air shows and the people who bend over backwards to organize them does just that, often working together with aviation regulators.

Last month, I attended the Oregon International Air Show up in Hillsboro, OR and it was one of the best I've seen in a long time. And I plan on attending the National Championship Air Races in Reno, NV next month. Whenever I go to these type of events, I don't even think about the risks associated with being an air show spectator, not even in the back of my mind. If you think that way, you have no business being at these sort of events. And I say the same to these anti-air show groups who are wasting their time: If you're so worried about safety, don't even get involved and let those of us who actually want to be at these events enjoy the air show. I am personally grateful to live in a country where air shows happen all over the place; many countries around the world have national bans that prevent one from happening over their respective soils. In my opinion, air shows are very safe overall. Not only do these events provide entertainment, but it is an opportunity to provide significant tourism revenue, education, and employment. Air shows are opportunities to see history come alive when vintage and historical aircraft that are still airworthy fly. I personally find it a true privilege to see old fighter planes from World War II or the Cold War in flight. And most important to me is that patriotic aspect air shows bring through the demonstration our country's military as well as their historical warbird contemporaries; I am proud to be an American whenever I see the Air Force Thunderbirds or Navy Blue Angels or even an old American warbird fly. To me these aviators display some of the truest patriotism this country has ever seen.

With that said, accidents do happen from time to time. And when they do happen, let the professionals assigned in investigating the causes do their jobs so they can formulate the appropriate responses to prevent similar accidents happening again, and ultimately preserve a unique, but important pastime. Don't dismiss an air show just because you've seen footage or images of a crash that occurred at one.

Amazing Aircraft: The Bearcat

Grumman Aircraft produced a number of notable, not to mention rugged aircraft during World War II, effectively earning itself the nickname "Iron Works" because of the capabilities its aircraft had of being able to absorb so much punishment in combat and still fly on and bring its pilots back home safely. In short, Grumman had a great deal of respect for the safety of combat pilots who flew their planes. One such aircraft they produced was the F8F Bearcat, which first flew 71 years ago today on August 21, 1944.

The Commemorative Air Force's F8F-2 Bearcat (N7825C) taxiing at the 2013 Reno Air Races.

The Bearcat was Grumman Aircraft's final piston engined fighter aircraft before moving on with the arrival of the jet age. It was considered to be a smaller and much faster follow-on to the famous Grumman F6F Hellcat, which was dubbed the "Zero Killer" as it played a key role in achieving air superiority over the Imperial Japanese Navy and their Mitsubishi Zero fighters in the Pacific Theater of World War II. However, unlike it's Grumman predecessers, the Bearcat arrived too late to see combat in the war. Nevertheless, it became the mainstay postwar fighter aircraft of the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps, albeit in smaller numbers with the latter. The Bearcat was considered by many to be one of the best-handling piston-engine fighters ever built,  because its performance was sufficient to outperform many early jets of that era. It also had capabilities for aerobatic performances, which was illustrated when the Navy's premier flight demonstration team, the Blue Angels selected the Bearcat as the team's very first demonstration aircraft in 1946. The Bearcat first saw combat between 1946 and 1954 in French hands during the French Indochina War. Following the First Indochina War, many Bearcats ended up in military service with air forces in Vietnam and Thailand prior to the breakout of the Vietnam War.

F8F Bearcat (right) flying with an F/A-18E Super Hornet (left) and a Grumman F6F Hellcat (center) as part of the U.S. Navy Heritage Flight at the 2012 Reno Air Races.

In the warbird community, the F8F Bearcat is perhaps most famous and popular in air racing. It is a popular aircraft among warbird owners and modified versions have broken speed records for piston-engined aircraft. A stock Bearcat flown by Mira Slovak won the first Reno Air Race in 1964. Perhaps the most famous and the most modified Bearcat out there today is Lyle Shelton's F8F Bearcat, #77 known as Rare Bear, which dominated the air racing circuit at Reno for decades. Rare Bear also set several performance records, including the 3 km World Speed Record for piston-driven aircraft (528.33 mph/850.26 km/h), set in 1989, and a new time-to-climb record (3,000 m in 91.9 seconds (6,425.9 fpm) set in 1972, breaking a previous record set in 1946. What sets Lyle Shelton's Bearcat apart from stock versions is the engine powerplant; Rare Bear is fitted with a Wright R-3350 (commonly found in A-1 Skyraiders) in place of the standard Pratt & Whitney R-2800 found in stock Bearcats. Rare Bear is truly built for air racing because a full-tank of fuel equals about 40 minutes of flight time. In short, it is a Bearcat designed to go fast!

Rare Bear (N777L) taxiing at the 2014 Reno Air Races.

Rare Bear in its previous livery at the 2008 Reno Air Races.

Let's wish this venerable and unique warbird a happy 71st birthday and may it's small legacy leave a big impact for future generations to witness, both as a warbird and as an air racer!