This is the place where the majority of the warbird (aircraft that have survived military service) discussions will take place. Specialized forums may be added in the new future
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Wed Apr 23, 2008 9:42 am

Have to be a member to see that F117.jpg on the canon site.

Wed Apr 23, 2008 9:49 am

I remember one of them coming to an airshow at NAS Atlanta in the spring of 1990, right after they came into the light. If I recall correctly, there was a KC-135 tanker with it.

The plane flew in on Friday and was immediately placed in a locked hangar with armed Marines. It was on display Saturday and Sunday, also with armed Marines all around.

Monday the Marines had disappeared, and the F-117 was out on the ramp in front of the hangar for a photo op with a Stearman. I walked right up to it and no one said a word. Of course I spent as much time looking at the Stearman as the F-117.

It flew away later in the day Monday.

Walt

Wed Apr 23, 2008 11:15 am

mustangdriver wrote:One is on display in the NMUSAF.


I was there the day it flew to the museum and came back the next day when they had it on display out in front of the museum. I went inside bought a F-117A poster and had all the Air/test crew sign it. Still have it.

Great memory.

Image

Shay
____________
Semper Fortis

Wed Apr 23, 2008 11:38 am

Borrowed from the Canon site........

Probably the last Civilian Pic of a flying F-117

Mark H

Image

Wed Apr 23, 2008 12:56 pm

Hello,

Didn't we hear somewhere that one is going to the Udvar Hazy facility of NASM? If so I assume that will be flown in, so there still may be another opportunity to take pictures of a F-117 in flight.

Kevin

Wed Apr 23, 2008 1:38 pm

Heres a link to the local paper:
http://www.avpress.com/n/23/0423_s1.hts

This page has a pic of the flag F117, but the link will only be good for today:
http://www.avpress.com/

More from today:
http://www.avpress.com/n/23/0423_s16.hts

and lastly:
http://www.avpress.com/n/23/0423_s19.hts

Wed Apr 23, 2008 8:33 pm

old iron wrote:Hello,

Didn't we hear somewhere that one is going to the Udvar Hazy facility of NASM? If so I assume that will be flown in, so there still may be another opportunity to take pictures of a F-117 in flight.

Kevin


Udvar Hazy's "Become a Pilot Day" open house is June 14. If they are going to fly an F-117 in, that would be the optimal day to do it - more people visit the Dulles Museum on that day than on any other day during the year. I'd really like to know what bird it'll be - I still have time to finish one of my -117 kits as the NASM bird for the model display that I take part in.

I remember the first time I saw an F-117 in person (flying or otherwise). June of 1991 ... was positioned with a bunch of friends on the Memorial Bridge side of the Lincoln Memorial circle for the Desert Storm Victory Parade. We heard the crowd on the other side of the Memorial start cheering and screaming ... and the sound seemed to be rolling down the Mall building towards us like a wave. As the cheering on the other side of the Memorial crested, the -117 screamed over the top of the Memorial very low and going very fast, pulled up into the vertical somewhere between Memorial Bridge and Arlington House, executed several rolls and then peeled off over towards Ballston. Absolutely amazing experience, and it definitely made up for missing seeing the AV-8B sandblast the Hirshorn Sculpture Garden when it landed for display on the Mall.

Thu Apr 24, 2008 3:55 am

you'd think that the usaf would allocate a couple of stealths to nasa for future systems research as they did the sr-71.

Thu Apr 24, 2008 9:33 am

tom d. friedman wrote:you'd think that the usaf would allocate a couple of stealths to nasa for future systems research as they did the sr-71.


For the same reason they don't have a P-51 or an F-105: there's no reason for it.

Unless NASA is interested in studying 30 year old stealth technology. Everything else in the jet is either off-the-shelf from another aircraft or very obsolete.

The SR-71 had something that was useful to NASA...speed and altitude. The 117 doesn't really have anything to offer.

Thu Apr 24, 2008 2:06 pm

warbird1 wrote: As you recall, shortly after this incident, we accidentally bombed the Chinese embassy in Belgrade. That incident did us no favors in world relations.

wasn't us. That was an Italian bird that dropped on the Chinese... :?

Fri Apr 25, 2008 8:58 am

Here's a decent slide show from a Las Vegas paper:

http://www.reviewjournal.com/media/slideshow/stealth/

Enjoy the Day! Mark
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