Interesting or unusual planes?

[TimC]

Yep. Hit 50 years last year.

[clarion]

Proper workhorse

[sg37409]

Jacques Cousteau had one.

[TimC]

Jacques Cousteau had one.

A Catalina, not a P3!

[clarion]

My Airfix model of a Catalina was painted to look like Cousteau's.

[TheLurker]

According wikipedia (I just checked) they're still operational ( P-3Cs ) but are being replaced by Boeing P-8A Poseidons.

Tell you what though, they're smokey old birds.   It was approaching roughly head on and to start with I thought it was a clapped out Herc.

This might explain what it was doing hereabouts, edited extracts from wiki page.

"'...Since the start of the current war in Afghanistan, U.S. Navy P-3 aircraft have been operating from Kandahar in that role.[22] Royal Australian AP-3C Orions operated out of Minhad Air Base in the UAE from 2003 until their withdrawal in November 2012. During the period 2008 - 2012, the AP-3C Orions conducted overland intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance tasks in support of coalition troops throughout Afghanistan.[23]

Recently the United States Geological Survey used the Orion to survey parts of southern and eastern Afghanistan for lithium, copper, and other mineral deposits."

[TimC]

Tell you what though, they're smokey old birds.   It was approaching roughly head on and to start with I thought it was a clapped out Herc.

Same Allison T56 engines. We regularly used to get reports from Wales and Scotland of 'a six-engined bomber crashing' as people saw a Herc disappear at low level over a ridgeline. From anywhere within 45 degrees of stern-on, the smoke would look pretty horrendous. The six engined bit was because people would mistake the wing tanks for engines.

[sg37409]

Jacques Cousteau had one.

A Catalina, not a P3!

Correct.
*My Airfix model* of the Calypso hat a calalina and a diving cage with sharks.

[spesh]

Tell you what though, they're smokey old birds.   It was approaching roughly head on and to start with I thought it was a clapped out Herc.

Same Allison T56 engines. We regularly used to get reports from Wales and Scotland of 'a six-engined bomber crashing' as people saw a Herc disappear at low level over a ridgeline. From anywhere within 45 degrees of stern-on, the smoke would look pretty horrendous. The six engined bit was because people would mistake the wing tanks for engines.

Given the vintage of the design, I'm not surprised. The T-56 first entered production in 1954, and it's derived from the T38 - which was first run in 1947! Combustion chamber development's come a long way since then.

Mind you,, the ultimate for smoke is several B-52s taking off using water-injection to boost engine power, in a minimum interval take-off exercise.

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:B-52G_taking_off_from_Barksdale_AFB_1986.JPEG

[Russell]

We cycled up to Lasham to have lunch yesterday and amongst all the glider lovelyness one of these landed.  The way the propellor folds away is very neat.

Not my photo because as usual I forgot the camera!


Stemme S10


http://www.stemme.info/s10/

And then on the way back into Farnborough 4 monoplanes came over in formation and turned on smoke as they crossed the airfield and then a Spitfire flew over - no idea why though.

[JonBuoy]

We cycled up to Lasham to have lunch yesterday and amongst all the glider lovelyness one of these landed.  The way the propellor folds away is very neat.

It may be neat but...  it isn't a particularly good glider and I suspect it isn't a particularly good powered aircraft either.  Fortunately when it noses over (which they seem to do regularly) the propellor blades readily shear which means that you don't have a prop shaft thrashing around in the cockpit with you.

[Torslanda]

A couple of stonking pics from this bloke

I bet you'll never see this again.



And BBMF wouldn't allow this at all



Look carefully, the pilot has blue eyes 

[Mr Larrington]

Slightly shop-soiled F111 at Battle Mountain airport

[fuzzy]

Slightly shop-soiled F111 at Battle Mountain airport

Oh yes indeedie!  do liek the Aardvark

[Vince]

<Notes background trees and lack of wheels>
Rhur dams?

[JStone]

Bit slow in posting the photos, but this pair paid a short visit to Plockton when we were there at the end of May

[clarion]

Mongolian Yaks?  How appropriate.

[clarion]

I'm on a crowded commuter train rather than the quiet one I was hoping for.  That's because, as I rounded the corner at Guys Hospital, I heard a roar of engines, and a trimotor aircraft flew by, tracked by a helicopter.

As I reached the concourse outside London Bridge station, I saw it completing the first of two passes by the Shard, and I waited outside to get photos of the second pass.

I don't have a good lens with me for aviation, and nor do I have the functioning shoulders which would have helped, and an achingly long shutter lag placed the aircraft behind a crane tower for the closest shot.  But look out for some massively over-enlarged fuzzy dots later.

Not sure what it was, as there were a number of similar aircraft at the time.  First thought was a Junkers Ju-52, but I don't think that's it.  I think there were Fokkers and Sacchis too in the same format, but I suspect this was a Ford.

I'll gewgall later.  But it was an exciting moment.

[Andrij]

Ah, that's what my co-workers must have been gawking at earlier.  My window doesn't really have a view, and I was too busy to see what the commotion was about.

[clarion]

I meant Savoia Marchetti for the Italian one.

[clarion]

Here we go:  As I say, not the right lens for the occasion, and the light was a bit low.  As were the wings, which rules out a Ford or a Fokker:


IMG_5623e by TJ Clarion, on Flickr


IMG_5622e by TJ Clarion, on Flickr


IMG_5625e by TJ Clarion, on Flickr

And playing hide & seek:


IMG_5624e by TJ Clarion, on Flickr

[clarion]

Bloody hell, it's just flown past the window!

[clarion]

Here's some information.  It's a Ju-52 all right.

http://forums.flyer.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=85341

[spesh]

Here's some information.  It's a Ju-52 all right.

http://forums.flyer.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=85341

Technically, it's a CASA 352 (a licenced copy/locally-produced "Aunty Junkers")- see:

http://www.rimowa-in-the-air.com/en/ju52_daten.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_airworthy_Ju_52s

[Jurek]

Both the plane and the chopper rumbled over me in Walthamstow at around 17:00 yesterday - at a guess I'd say heading in Duxford's general direction.

All a bit Where Eagles Dare, if you ask me.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVpOeJPQ1eI