M. Wynn: "Wild Card" Aviation Photography & Images: Gallery Review: New Year's Montage 2016

About This Blog:

The primary purpose of this blog is to showcase the best of my aviation photography. As such, you will find links to my main aviation gallery on Facebook containing photos from aircraft spotting, some kind of aviation event such as air shows and fly-in events, as well as aviation museums. I also critique my flights on commercial airlines and the services they provide. Occassionally, you'll find personally written, independent articles based on news and current events involving aviation. And of course, I'll put up links to official and unofficial aviation-related websites when I find them. And when time permits, I'll talk and discuss about anything involving aviation. But most importantly, this is my way to document my journey into the aviation industry!

Saturday, December 31, 2016

Gallery Review: New Year's Montage 2016

After everything that we've seen happen in current events locally and worldwide, I would like to wish you all a Happy New Year. The year 2016 was quite an eventful for me as I got to spend more time doing aviation-related things including a museum visit or two, tons of planespotting, one air show, and even going to school to get started on flight training and started working towards earning my pilot's license (which is as of this date, a work-in-progress...). And as per usual, I have another year's worth of photos to show forth and I'd say it's that time of year to compile some of my best and favorite ones from this past year. This year was a little odd because of work; I started out the year not doing much but got around to doing things when I had time and when things were happening. Due to the vast number of photos I took throughout this year, I am going to condense this montage down to just personal favorites and highlights from all the photography this year as well as some memorable moments/milestones.

January 2016
I was sick at the outset of the year so I didn't get to do much initially. Plus, I was promoted at my non-aviation job during this month so I was busy enough as it was! The only thing I managed was some off-airport spotting with marginal results...

FedEx Express McDonnell Douglas MD-11F on approach to Salt Lake City International Airport over South Jordan, UT. What I liked about this photo is how you can see through the leading-edge slats on the front portion of the wing. Plus, it's an MD-11, a tri-jet that has become a rare sight in most places and one you can never fly again as a passenger!

February 2016
Ah, yes the month of February. It's a short one so it could be my favorite month of the year since it goes by so fast. But because Valentine's Day is the prevalent part of the month, it's also my least favorite because of the least favorite holiday of the year for me! But when single, you go do things you love to do the most and I managed a planespotting trip to Portland International (KPDX/PDX) ON Valentine's Day!

Hawaiian Air Airbus A330-243 (N395HA).

Gulfstream Aerospace G-VI G650 (N673HA). With the wet ground, it makes for excellent shots with partial reflections!

Frontier Airlines Airbus A320-214 (N228FR) "Orville the Red Cardinal." A wet runway combined with reverse-thrust makes for some great visuals!

Delta Air Lines Boeing 737-832 (N3765) bearing the SkyTeam Allaiance livery. This was the first time I was able to get a clear shot of any aircraft in this airline alliance livery.

Xtra Airways Boeing 737-484 (N148AS). I got to see quite a few charter carriers with their liveries this year.

Boeing 757-223 (N874TW) operated by the United States Department of Justice.

Jazz Air (d/b/a Air Canada Express) Bombardier CL-600-2D15 CRJ-705ER (C-GPJZ). I was happy to photograph one of these specially-configured CRJ-900s when I did because Jazz Air announced earlier this year that they've ordered standard CRJ-900s while the CRJ-705s are going to be converted to CRJ-900 standards. While they'll be pretty much the same on the exterior, the interior will be a different story.

United States Coast Guard Aérospatiale/Eurocopter MH-65D Dolphin (6548) during a day-trip I took with some friends to Lincoln City, Oregon.

March 2016
Not much really happened in March but I did make it to three different airports (Independence, Portland, and Eugene) due to certain circumstances. Plus I suffered a broken heart during this month (something personal related to the month of February that I feel isn't appropriate to share here!) and I needed to mend it with things and activities I loved to do (of course, the only I could think of was doing some planespotting!)!

Cessna 172M Skyhawk (N5154R) parked on the ramp at Independence State Airport (7S5) with a wet tarmac giving a little reflection.

Saab 2000 (N92225) operated by the United States Department of Justice. A personal highlight because this was my first time seeing a Saab 2000!

Frontier Airlines Airbus A320-214 (N213FR) "Montana the Elk." I was glad to be able to catch the older livery while it lasted!

Horizon Air Bombardier DHC-8-402 Dash 8 Q400 (N434MK) named after the founder of Horizon Air, Milton G. Kuolt II.

Horizon Air Bombardier DHC-8-402 Dash 8 Q400 (N431QX) after departing Eugene Airport (KEUG/EUG). What I love about this photo is due to some prop vortices!

World Atlantic Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-83 (N807WA) "Ray Bradley." Another charter carrier to add to my photography portfolio!

NetJets Bombardier BD-100-1A10 Challenger 350 (N770QS). I never get tired of angles like this!

SkyWest Airlines (d/b/a United Express) Bombardier CL-600-2B16 CRJ-200LR (N920SW).

April 2016
Once the month of April rolled around, the weather in Oregon started to become more favorable and my planespotting activities picked up a little momentum as I made it out to Eugene once again and even did a little planespotting close to home in Salem.

Lancair Evolution (N613TX) at Salem-McNary Field (KSLE/SLE). Lancair will change it's name to Evolution Aircraft in order to favor the Lancair Evolution model after selling off its older lines of aircraft.

Piper J-3 Cub (NC3603K). Nothing screams "Classic!" more than the Piper Cub with a wooden propeller!

Compass Airlines (d/b/a American Eagle) Embraer E-175LR (N208AN) departing Eugene. A personal highlight because this was the first time I got to see this particular aircraft type in this particular livery.

Horizon Air (d/b/a Alaska Airlines) Bombardier DHC-8-402 Q400 (N433QX) about to depart Eugene. I really liked how clear this photo turned out. Plus, the pilots saw me and gave me a wave when they taxied by!

Allegiant Air Airbus A319-111 (N304NV). This was my first time seeing an Airbus in Allegiant's livery! Little did I know that I would be seeing more of these later in the year...

Horizon Air (d/b/a Alaska Airlines) Bombardier DHC-8-401 Q400 (N414QX) in San Diego State University Aztecs college livery.

SkyWest Airlines (d/b/a United Express) Bombardier CL-600-2C10 CRJ-702 (N780SK). Because I'm nowhere near a United hub, it's become somewhat uncommon for me to find CRJ-700s in the UAX livery.

May 2016
For the month of May, I managed to make THREE separate trips up to Portland International Airport for various reason and opportunities, including an inaugural flight with new airline service out of Portland.

Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-890 (N566AS). The Alaska Air Group introduced a complete refresh of their brand at the beginning of this year and this was my first time seeing one of their 737s in the new livery.

Frontier Airlines Airbus A319-111 (N934FR) "Larry Jr., the Lynx Cub." Especially at place like PDX, I always appreciate the less-common carriers and their respective liveries whenever I get a chance to photograph them!

Virgin America Airbus A320-214 (N636VA) "airplane 2.0." As of December 14, 2016, the acquisition of Virgin America by the Alaska Air Group has been completed. As for what will become of the Virgin America brand, Alaska still has yet to decide on that...

Compass Airlines (d/b/a Delta Connection) Embraer ERJ-170-200LR E-175LR (N610CZ).

Delta Air Lines Airbus A330-323 (N803NW). I always appreciate the sighting of a wide-body aircraft at a busy airport that see's more narrow-bodies 85% of the time.

Jazz Air (d/b/a Air Canada Express) Bombardier DHC-8-402 Q400 (C-GGOY). This was another first for me, seeing a DCH-8-400 in the Air Canada livery.

United Airlines Boeing 737-724 (N17730). A 737-700 operated by United is surprisingly a rare sight in Portland as I've personally only seen A319s, A320s, 737-800s and 737-900s in some of my most recent spotting trips there. United-operated 757s have also become a rare sight in Portland as well.

Horizon Air Bombardier DHC-8-402 Q400 (N405QX). What I loved about this photo is getting the underside anti-collision light in the photo!

Delta Air Lines Boeing 767-332 (N130DL). Domestic 767s are also a pretty rare sight these days.

Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-490 (N706AS) "The Spirit of Make-A-Wish." Glad I caught this special livery while it lasted because the 737-400s' days in the Alaska Airlines' fleets are numbered!

Air Transport International-ATI (d/b/a DHL Aviation) Boeing 757-222PCF (N531UA). Another first for me this year was catching the DHL livery!

Horizon Air Bombardier DHC-8-402 Q400 (N435QX) in University of Washington Huskies livery.

American Airlines Airbus A321-211 (N153UW). This was my first time photographing one of American's A321s in the livery depicted here!

Horizon Air Bombardier DHC-8-402 Q400 (N452QX) "Employee Powered" livery. This was another special livery scheme I waited a while to photograph!

Peninsula Airways (PenAir) Saab 340B (N365PX). After first seeing this airline here in PDX late last year, I'm glad I've gotten an opportunity to photograph PenAir's previous livery while it lasted!

Empire Airlines (d/b/a FedEx Feeder) ATR-42-300 (N913FX). These French ATRs are also a rare sight here in the states.

Air Canada Embraer ERJ-190-100IGW E-190AR (C-FHKE) on the inaugural flight to Toronto after the airline resumed this route. This was my first time photographing the mainline Air Canada livery as well as the first E-190 I've photographed.

Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-890 (N560AS) "Spirit of the Islands."

Horizon Air Bombardier DHC-8-402 Q400 (N403QX) in Montana State University Bobcats livery.

American Airlines Airbus A321-231 (N537UW) still in US Airways titles and colors IN 2016, long after the merger between the two carriers was completed! This was truly a rare sight to behold in 2016!

Horizon Air Bombardier DHC-8-401 Q400 (N407QX) in University of Oregon Ducks livery. Ducks didn't have a great football season this year, by the way!

Boeing 777-306/ER (temporarily registered as N55141, now registered as PH-BVR with KLM-Royal Dutch Airlines). I've always wanted to see a "naked" Triple 7 (that sounded so wrong!) on its way into the paint shop!

SkyWest Airlines (d/b/a Alaska Airlines) Embraer ERJ-170-200LR E-175LR (N178SY). This was the first time I got to photograph an E-175 in the new Alaska livery.

Delta Air Lines Boeing 757-351 (N589NW).

June 2016
June was a pretty eventful month, as I got to attend Warbirds Over the West close to home and got to see another inaugural flight at Portland. In addition to that, I got to see another new aircraft type in the form of a charter carrier.

Delta Air Lines Boeing 767-332/ER (N174DZ).

Jazz Air (d/b/a Air Canada Express) De Havilland Canada Dash 8 DHC-8-311 (C-FACF), with some obvious patch-work applied to the left side of the fuselage.

Frontier Airlines Airbus A319-111 (N919FR) "Lance the Ocelot."

Cessna 525 CitationJet (N328CJ) with no engine cowling!

Delta Air Lines Airbus A330-323 (N811NW).

United States Air Force/Nevada Air National Guard Lockheed C-130H Hercules (92-0547) of the 152nd Airlift Wing, the "High Rollers" from the Reno Air National Guard Base.

Jazz Air (d/b/a Air Canada Express) Bombardier CL-600-2B19 CRJ-200ER (C-GJZJ). I'm glad I got to see the old Air Canada Jazz livery once again!

Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-890 (N570AS) in the "Adventure of Disneyland Resort" livery; my first time catching this livery!

United States Air Force/Oregon Air National Guard McDonnell Douglas F-15D Eagle (85-0130) in full afterburner! Nothing screams "freedom" better than an F-15 Eagle in afterburners!!!

United States Air Force/Kentucky Air National Guard Lockheed C-130H Hercules (91-1235) from the 165th Airlift Squadron.

Virgin America Airbus A320-214 (N623VA) "three if by air."

Sun Country Airlines Boeing 737-8BK (N808SY) on the first day of it's new scheduled service between Portland and Minneapolis.

United States Coast Guard Aérospatiale/Eurocopter MH-65D (SA-366G-1) Dolphin (6514) from CGAS North Bend in the commemorative centennial livery at Warbirds Over the West held at Salem-McNary Field.

Grumman (McKinnon) G-44 Super Widgeon (N45PV).

ERCO 415-C Ercoupe (N3095H).

Ryan PT-22 (ST-3KR) Recruit (N60805).

CC&F Harvard Mk IV (NX1466) "Time Machine."

Beechcraft (D45) T-34B Mentor (N9EJ).

Cessna 195A Businessliner (N1010D). I have always wanted to see one of these in flight and see how they sounded and it was truly a privilege to have gotten such an opportunity this year!

North American B-25D Mitchell (N88972) "Grumpy."

"Grumpy" making a high-speed pass.

"Grumpy" in another high-speed pass showing off those D-day stripes.

"Grumpy" making a pass with bomb bay doors open.

"Grumpy" taxiing back in for display

The West Coast Ravens demonstrating formation flying at the 2016 Warbirds Over the West.

The West Coast Ravens flying the Wedge Formation.

The West Coast Ravens flying the Vulcan Formation.

Gyroflug SC 01 Speed Canard (N5HN) at Independence State Airport (7S5).

Schweizer SGU 2-22 glider (NC2202).

CZAW Mermaid (N42SK). I am a fan of the livery!

Key Lime Air (d/b/a Denver Air Connection) Fairchild-Dornier 328-310 328JET (N398DC) at Salem-McNary Field. This was my first time catching one of Key Lime Air's planes as well as it being the very first 328JET I've ever photographed. Salem saw a few large charter flights this year.

July 2016
July ended up being not very eventful, apart from my biggest planespotting trip out to PDX so far, as well as catching another charter flight in my hometown of Salem.

Delta Air Lines Airbus A330-323 (N819NW).

Delta Air Lines Boeing 757-232 (N695DL).

Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-7H4 (N714CB) in the classic "retro" livery named after Colleen Barrett.

Jazz Air (d/b/a Air Canada Express) Bombardier DHC-8-402 Dash 8 Q400 (C-GGMZ).

Horizon Air (d/b/a Alaska Airlines) Bombardier DHC-8-402 Dash 8 Q400 (N402QX) in the University of Montana Grizzlies livery.

Compass Airlines (d/b/a American Eagle) Embraer ERJ-170-200LR E-175LR (N218NN). American Eagle-branded flights started making appearances at PDX this year as well.

Sun Country Airlines Boeing 737-8Q8 (N805SY) on a casino charter.

Jazz Air (d/b/a Air Canada Express) Bombardier DHC-8-402 Dash 8 Q400 (C-GGMQ). These have become quite a common sight at PDX.

Icelandair Boeing 757-256 (TF-FIT) "Helgafell."

Spirit Airlines Airbus A319-132 (N507NK). Not surprisingly, many are still not fans of this ultra low-cost carrier that has successfully made beaucoup bucks and piss off people at the same time.

Condor Flugdienst Boeing 767-330/ER (D-ABUI).

Horizon Air (d/b/a Alaska Airlines) Bombardier DHC-8-401 Dash 8 Q400 (N400QX) in the University of Idaho Vandals livery.

Eastern Air Lines Boeing 737-8CX (N277EA) with Carrie Underwood on board. Never in my wildest dreams did I think that I'd photograph a 737 operated by the newly revived Eastern Air Lines in a place like Salem! No doubt, this opportunity was one of the most memorable planespotting experiences I had all this year.

August 2016
August was a busy month for me; it was the month I got to attend the Oregon International Air Show (sadly for me, it would end up being the only air show I got to attend this year!), I quit the job I worked at for the past year and a half, left home and made my way out to Provo, Utah, and enrolled at the Aviation Science program at Utah Valley University in hopes of getting started on flight training. A lot happened in August...

McDonnell Douglas F-15C Eagle (79-0041) from the 173rd Fighter Wing out of Klamath Falls painted in the Oregon Air National Guard "Screaming Eagle" 75th anniversary livery on display at the 2016 Oregon International Air Show at the Portland-Hillsboro Airport. I waited the whole year to see this special paint job and I must say, it was by far one of the most badass F-15s I've seen!

United States Marine Corps Bell-Boeing MV-22B Osprey (168614) of Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 161 (VMM-161), the "Greyhawks" out of Marine Corps Air Station Miramar. This was another major highlight of the year for me as this was my first time seeing the versatile V-22 in action! Considering that the Osprey demo team was making only four air show appearances this year, I'm glad I got to see them in Hillsboro!

The MV-22 making an approach.

Hover demonstration.

The Osprey taking a bow!

Coming in for a full-stop landing.

The USMC has some pretty cool toys! My hats off to these guys!

THE SOUNDS OF FREEDOM!

Oregon Air National Guard McDonnell Douglas F-15C Eagle (84-0021) from the "Redhawks" of 142nd Fighter Wing out of Portland Air National Guard Base. I am very proud of this shot!

Oregon Air National Guard McDonnell Douglas F-15C Eagle (78-0479) from the "Redhawks" of 142nd Fighter Wing out of Portland Air National Guard Base. I think this has to be one of my all-time favorite shots of the year as I was very pleased with how this one turned out!

Alaska Airlines Boeing 737-990/ER (N251AK) smoking the mains as it arrived at the air show for a very poignant moment of the event; honoring Ed Johann, a United States Navy sailor and Oregon's oldest living survivor of the Pearl Harbor attacks. This wasn't really about the airplane but rather about the V.I.P. they had on board. My hats off to Alaska Airlines for doing something special such as this!

Interstate S-1A Cadet (NC37266) "The Pearl" from the Heritage Flight Museum. This was the very same aircraft that Cornelia Fort was flying with a student pilot when the Imperial Japanese Navy attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the day that would be remembered as a day of infamy. Truly a privilege to see this living piece of history preserved and still in flying condition!

Mitsubishi A6M3 Reisen "Zero" (N712Z) from the Commemorative Air Force's Southern California Wing making a pass. Zeros like this are really rare and it was a privilege to see one flying this year!

Grumman F6F-5 Hellcat (N1078Z) "Minsi III" from the Commemorative Air Force's Southern California Wing making a pass.

The Zero and the "Zero Killer," two former adversaries of a bygone era in one shot!

Grumman (General Motors) F4F/FM Wildcat (N58918) from the Erickson Aircraft Collection making a pass.

Another highlight photo for me; catching three distinct fighters from the Pacific Theater of World War II! A shot like this was truly a rare opportunity!

Horizon Air Bombardier DHC-8-402 Dash 8 Q400 (N440QX) in the Oregon State University Beavers making a dirty pass. You just don't get see commercial airliners do this sort of thing at air shows often!

N440QX making a high-speed pass. In unrelated news, Oregon State beat the Oregon Ducks at this year's Civil War football game!!!

United States Navy F/A-18F Super Hornet (166973) from Strike Fighter Squadron 122 (VFA-122), the "Flying Eagles" out of Naval Air Station Lemoore executing the Dirty Roll in afterburner!

The Inverted Pass with some vapor trailing of the right vertical stabilizer.

The Slow Speed Pass.

The Bolter Pass.

Going up into the vertical!

High Speed Pass just shy of breaking the sound barrier!

Gotta love those vapor shots!

The Carrier Break.

Beech C18S (N9109R) with Matt Younkin at the controls.

You just don't see Beech 18s doing aerobatics everyday and Matt Younkin is a master of energy management when it comes to his air show routine!

Matt Younkin making a photo pass.

The Breitling Jet Team opening their demonstration with the Avenger Formation in their Aero L-39C Albatros.

The B01 Formation.

The Blackbird Formation, the signature of the Breitling Jet Team

The main group flying the Rocket Formation.

Breitling #7 performing the Apache Roll around the main formation.

Jacques Bothelin leading the main formation through the difficult Ocean Master Wave.

The final photo pass by the main formation.

The final formation break with the teams signature Final Salute.

Releasing a crowd-pleasing, awe-inspiring barrage of flares to finish out the show!

The Breitling Jet Team really made a dent during their two years touring North America, and I'm glad I got to see them for a second year in a row, not mention seeing them make their debut appearance at the Oregon International Air Show!

Cessna 172N Skyhawk II (N5174E) at the Albany Municipal Airport (S12) just before my uncle and I took it up flying for a morning outing down to Cottage Grove the weekend before I left home for school.

Allegiant Air Airbus A319-112 (N324NV) at Provo Municipal Airport (KPVU/PVU).

United States Air Force Lockheed C-130H Hercules (93-1036) from the 94th Airlift Wing out of Dobbins Air Reserve Base.

United States Air Force C-130H Hercules (92-0551) from the 94th Airlift Wing out of Dobbins Air Reserve Base.

Allegiant Air Airbus A319-111 (N305NV).

Allegiant Air McDonnell Douglas MD-83 (N879GA).

Allegiant Air Airbus A319-111 (N311NV).

September 2016
September rolls around and I finally get assigned a flight instructor and get started on flight training and logging my very first flight hours! Sadly for me, I couldn't make it out to Reno, Nevada for the air races this year... But I still got to see some unique things I've never seen before, plus I did get to attend an event as well as a local fly-in (where I got to meet one of my aviation heroes!), so I suppose they make a decent consolation. Also, get ready for an overdose of Allegiant Air (Don't judge me! I finally got to be someplace where Allegiant Air sightings are relatively common for me!)!

Allegiant Air Boeing 757-204 (N902NV). My first time seeing an Allegiant-operated 757 in what would be its last year with the airline before being phased out (The BYU football team was quite useful in allowing me to catch these rare birds!).

Allegiant Air Airbus A319-111 (N302NV).

Allegiant Air Airbus A319-111 (N328NV).

Ford 5-AT-B Tri-Motor (NC9645) on display at the Bountiful Skypark Airport (KBTF/BTF) during the Experimental Aircraft Association Fly the Ford Tour .

The Tri-Motor getting airborne. It was quite a privilege to see this 1920s relic fly!

Allegiant Air Airbus A319-112 (N308NV).

With Colonel Gail Seymour "Hal" Halvorsen, a true gentleman, inspiration, Cold War hero, and one of my aviation heroes at the 2016 Aeroplanes, Trains, & Automobiles Open House held at the Spanish Fork-Springville Airport!

North American SNJ-5 Texan (N156SG) from the Commemorative Air Force's Utah Wing on display at the 2016 Aeroplanes, Trains, & Automobiles Open House in Spanish Fork, Utah.

Boeing N2S-5 E75 Kaydet (N1387V) from the Commemorative Air Force's Utah Wing on display.

PZL-Warszawa-Okęcie PZL-104MA Wilga 2000 (N123T). It happens to me every year; I see and learn about an aircraft type I never heard of before and usually I find them in the unlikeliest of places!

Lancair Legacy 2000 (N707MM), Race #32 "Turbulence." I've actually heard of one Lancair Legacy with a turbine engine from some articles, but I had no idea it would be at Spanish Fork!

Erco 415D Ercoupe (N99924) "Miss Dolly."

Beechcraft Model G18S (N50WA).

Allegiant Air McDonnell Douglas MD-83 (N417NV).

Boeing 737-73Q (BBJ) Boeing Business Jet (N977JG).
(Seriously, I WANT one of these! But at the same time, I know I'll never get to own one during my lifetime... :-( )

Allegiant Air Boeing 757-204 (N906NV).

SkyWest Airlines (d/b/a Alaska Airlines) Embraer ERJ-170-200LR E-175LR (N182SY). This was quite the catch at Provo, considering that it was diverted due to weather.

Allegiant Air McDonnell Douglas MD-88 (N403NV). This was my first time seeing an MD-88, as they are a pretty rare aircraft sub-type.

Allegiant Air Airbus A319-111 (N303NV). This airframe inaugurated the first flight between Allegiant's new service between Provo and San Diego during the latter part of September.

Allegiant Air Airbus A320-214 (N225NV). As of this moment when this photo was taken, I have seen at least one example of every aircraft type operated by Allegiant Air!

October 2016
With school, I did what I could in between flight lessons and studies. I also got to take an airfield tour at Salt Lake City International Airport. But perhaps the most memorable part of October 2016 would have to be the day I took my first solo flight!

Allegiant Air Boeing 757-204 (N905NV).

Allegiant Air Airbus A319-112 (N325NV).

Allegiant Air McDonnell Douglas MD-83 (N877GA). I was quite thrilled to catch one in the slightly older, dated livery again. But when I look at this one, talk about bland!

Delta Air Lines Airbus A320-212 (N341NW) with the control tower for Salt Lake City International Airport (KSLC/SLC) in the background. I got to take this photo during a class airfield tour while standing on Runway 16L/34R!

SkyWest Airlines (d/b/a Delta Connection) Bombardier CL-600-2C10 CRJ-701 (N603QX). I got this shot while standing near the departure end of Runway 17 during the airfield tour!

Another shot from the airfield tour while standing on the departure end of 17, this time with one Delta's Airbuses.

American Airlines Airbus A320-232 (N675AW).

SkyWest Airlines Bombardier CL-600-2B19 CRJ-100ER (N988CA). There are not many CRJ-100s left in the SkyWest fleet, let alone any regional carrier's fleet...

Delta Air Lines Boeing 757-232 (N6703D).

Right after my first solo flight!
(Photo credit: Nick Forshee, my awesome (and patient!) flight instructor.)

Allegiant Air McDonnell Douglas MD-83 (N422NV) after a little rain shower. The rainy weather was a sign of poorer weather to come...

November 2016
Not much can be said about November, other than a few jets from Allegiant Air; I was pretty much reduced to chasing airframes I haven't photographed and to avoid repeat-airframes at this point! I also got to go on a few cross country flights during this month. I will admit however that some aspects of my flight training started to slow down during this month...

Allegiant Air McDonnell Douglas MD-83 (N421NV).

Allegiant Air McDonnell Douglas MD-83 (N429NV).

Allegiant Air Airbus A319-112 (N306NV).

The view from the Diamond DA-20 Katana during the first cross country flight my instructor took me on to Richfield, Utah.

December 2016
And we come to the end of the year! I finished the semester strong in all my classroom activities with a respectable GPA, but my flight training was stalled (much to my disappointment) due to weather delays and scheduling conflicts, both elements that were out of my control. So in reality, the end of my first, full semester at Utah Valley University was somewhat a frustrating and lackluster one. While I hoped that I would get my Private Pilot Certification by the end of this year, it didn't happen, so I am going to have to finish things up at the beginning of the next semester... Aside from that, I am keeping my head high and the dream alive by reminding myself of the goals I've yet to achieve through planespotting and observing the aircraft I hope to fly in as pilot-in-command someday.