Well, I’m off to Oshkosh for two days to visit the greatest airshow around! Can’t wait to see the Warbirds, always somethin there I didn’t expect to see. Great oportunity for some close-up detail shots of the not-often-seen 'birds. Here’s a Yak 9U that was there last year:
Anyone else going there this year?
Have fun Frank, and take lots of pictures. For me I’m afraid it is once again “Maybe Next Year”.
I’ll be up there all day Saturday and Sunday. I haven’t missed a year since 1973. What days are you going Frank?
John-
Hard to miss it when we live this close, eh? I am actually headed up there tomorrow and Friday, sorry I’ll miss ya there!
I do hope you get to go sometime, it’s INCREDIBLE! 12,000+ airplanes in the same place. Everything from ultralights to the F-22 Raptor.
I was there in 1978 and got a lot of real nice pictures during the daily flyby’s. The sky there is great for taking photos, and the afternoon sun is at your back. Don’t know why I haven’t been back, but since I’ve retired this year there seems little excuse for not getting there.
John- I can understand that the trip from California to Wisconsin for an airshow could be difficult for one to justify. Still, it sure is a lot of fun for everyone! [8-]
Airventure is a great show. I haven’t been there for a few years but the last time I was there it was fantastic. Where else can you see 16 or 20 P-51s fly escort with a bunch of B-17s. I also met a lot of great people there such as astronauts, Pappy Boynton, Chuck Yeager, Tuskee Airmen and crew members from the Enola Gay and Bock’s Car. Hope you post a lot of photos because I can’t make it there this year.
I just got back from EAA, and am sorry to have to post bad news. During a landing after the pre-show unlimited air race, two P-51 Mustangs collided on the runway. We saw the fire and smoke. “Stang” a P-51D and Precious Metal II" collided, killing one of the pilots and seriously injuring the other. No word yet who was killed and who was injured. The pilot of “Stang” was Bob Odegard’s son was also in the race flying the #57 Super Corsair, and I am sorry to admit I do not remember the name of the other. I saw the P-51D standing on it’s nose and the end of the runway with the remains of “Precious Metal 2” burning near or underneath it. My prayers go out to their families.
Here are a few pics I took today:
F4U Corsair taxiing past:
Me in front of the Super Corsair:
Super Corsair racing:
Super Corsair and Precious Metal II neck and neck:
Precious Metal II:
Hawker Sea Fury:
DeHaviland Comet:
Me behind a 50 cal:
U-2 fly-by:
U-2 taxiing up:
U-2 up close:
U-2 pilot:
U-2 up VERY close:
P-38 “Glacier Girl”:
Great photos. Glacier Girl looks a lot better than when I saw it. It was just after it was recovered. They had pieces of it at Oshkosh. They were part of a display about how it was recovered. I heard about the P-51 accident earlier today. Very sad.
Thanks Gordon! I wish I could have seen her then, it would be quite a comparison!
Seeing the crash today was a heart-wrenching experience. Again, my deepest sympathies go out to the family and friends of the pilot.
The pilot who died was Gerry Beck. The airplane he was flying was his homebuilt P-51A. I’d hoped to see this ship up close and personal someday, as I really like the Allison-engined Mustangs and I truly admire the fact that Gerry built the bird more or less from scratch. I will never get to see it now, but that’s totally insignificant compared to the fact that I will never get to meet the man… truly a sad day…
Blue skies Gerry…
EDIT: Thought you folks might like to see some shots of Gerry’s P-51A… apologies to some of the photographers, I don’t have all the names…
This first shot was taken during the ship’s first flight.
This was taken either during the first flight or shortly thereafter.
These next two shots were taken by Charles Ward in September of 2006.
And some shots from Osh, including a few of the incident itself…
Mike Paschal photo
Mike Paschal photo
John Peters photo
The man himself…
Fade to Black…
Yeah, Why not have a Eulogy before the family has a chance too? [sigh]
This anecdote dates me, since it happened at the end of the 1980s, but it illustrates why Oshkosh is our own private piece of heaven: I was stationed on the ramp with the airplanes belonging to the now-defunct flying jet museum I worked for when two elderly gentlemen in rather loud shirts, one wearing yellow pants and a matching driving cap. They ignored our F-104, Hawker Hunter and MiG-15 and headed straight for the Sabre.
I started to give my canned speach about the Sabre when they introduced themselves to me: the smaller guy was triple P-47 ace Hub Zemke (18 kills) and the guy in the loud clothes gave his name as Francis Gabreski, who practically wrote the book on fighting with the F-86. (After having shot down 28 Axis planes in WW II and made ace again in Korea with 6.5 kills as commander of the 4th Fighter Wing). As the saying goes, “Boy, was my face red.” Here I, with my ticket that allowed me to fly nothing more vicious than a Piper Cherokee, was about to tell two multiple aces the basics of the F-86. That same year I met legendary test pilot Fitz Fulton and Neil Armstrong. I also remember the late aviation writer Jeff Ethell, who lost his life in a P-38 crash, stopping by our little pied a terre for a chat.
Now that I think about it, to heck with Nats. It’s Oshkosh next year. It’s just been too long.
TOM
Wolf, I had a chance to speak with Gerry’s younger friend at Oshkosh last year. Both those guys are amazing fellows. He told me that Gerry had been collecting Allison engines, among other parts for the P-51A, and that they had plans to build about 10 of them. I hope someone else realizes Gerry’s dream and continues his work. May he rest in peace.
I had not heard that, but it would be nice to see more of these new-build Allison Mustangs in the air. Hopefully someone does continue his work… it’s just a damn shame that he’s no longer with us and can’t do it himself. [:(]
Well, now that I’ve hijacked Frank’s thread… perhaps we should move on from the somber mood here and ask, “any more pix to share Frank?”
Seriously, I’d especially like to see some shots of the CAF’s B-24. It’s scheduled to be here in my area next month for an airshow in Niagara Falls, but I’m not sure that I’ll make it. I’ll try my damndest though because I’m anxious to see ‘Ol 927’…
Anyhoo, I dunno if ya’ll are aware of it or not, but ‘Ol 927’ is the B-24 formerly known as 'Diamond ‘Lil’. During the offseason a mighty effort was made to start converting this ship back to its originally intended configuration as a B-24A.
For those who have not followed this project’s progress on WIX, (Warbird Information Exchange) there’s a gargantuan thread on that forum which can be seen HERE. I must warn you… it’s a VERY long thread… 'twas at 167 pages as of this posting. But if you’re a B-24 fan, or if you wanna see some genuine 1/1 scale model building, check this thread out. The driving force behind this project is a fella named Gary Austin, and at times he’s provided what amounts to step-by-step, photo-illustrated explanations of how he fabricated various components for the aircraft. There’s also good coverage of the work done by many volunteers who have helped out. There are LOTSA photos in that thread so, again, be warned… especially if you’re dial-up.
If you have an entire night to waste, check it out, it’s well worth the time…
Fade to Black…
Steve-
Here are a few more pics of “Ol’ 927”. I didn’t take very many of her, as they gave me a really cool little magazine about her after I finished the tour through her with tons of great photos. After going in and playing with the waist mounted 50 cal (my girlfriend kidded me after poiting it at the camera she was holding saying “I thought you said you would never point a gun at me?”) I stooped to walf under the wing and sat there for about 20 minutes in a little jump seat near the cockpit. It was about 100 degrees inside, and I couldn’t help thinking how awful it must have been inside those things for the guys who fought and died in those aluminum beasts. My hat is off to the all. Well, sorry about my rambling. Here are a few more photos:
F7F Tlgercat:
U-2 I thought this photo really showed how even an all-black aircraft has a lot of variations in the hues:
U-2 speedbrakes:
Boogies, 2 o’clock high!
Details of a Sea Fury wing fold:
Sea Fury landing gear:
Sea Fury wheel bay:
Corsair coming right at me!
Helldiver:
I liked this not-often-seen view of the P-38:
Ol’ 927 Port Quarter:
Starboard gear:
Looking forward:
Looking down the wing:
Again, I didn’t take many phots of Ol’ 927 since the pictures provided in the magazine they give you after your tour were absolutely amazing. The ones taken by Greg Morehead at sunset (or sunrise?) are especially beautiful.
Nice stuff Frank… thanks a bunch!
I too have thought about WWII aircrew and how they managed, especially those who flew in the B-24. I was able to get inside of ‘Strawberry B itch’ at the AFM many years back, and although I was in much better shape back then, I was having a time of it trying to get around in certain areas inside the bird… and while wearing only t-shirt and shorts. How the hell they did it back then, wrapped up in all that flight gear and with who knows how many layers of clothing… it makes you think. Sure, they did it more often than any other group of people, and it was probably second nature, but still…
Anyhoo, thanks again for the pics. I really dig that shot of the Helldiver, but then I’m highly biased there…
Fade to Black…