Here's a quick re-cap of the action today:
First a quick rundown of what was there- 4 P-51s, 2 B-25s, AC-47, 2 DC-3s, C-123, Caribou, 9 C-130s (counting Fat Albert), Lancaster, 2 Spitfires, 2 Hurricanes, FG-1D, Hellcat, 3 Skyraiders, 2 Hueys, F-4, Mig-21, Mig-15, Mig-17, and various trainer/liaison types. I'm sure I missed something important in here somewhere, but someone will catch me.
P-51B "Old Crow" flew during the WWII battle in the morning. I think Jimmy Leeward was flying it.
The T-6 flight was very well choreographed. They kept the action completely in from of the crowd for most of the flight.
Vlado's fly-by after the Heritage Flight was probably the lowest past I've ever seen by a WWII fighter- SWEET!
The Victory Flight was impressive- Lancaster, 2 Spitfires (Russell Group Mk IX and VWoC MKXVI), 2 Hurricanes and VWoC P-51. They flew a couple circuits in trail formation and then tightened up to make a couple passes in "V" formation. Can't wait to see what some of you photogs got of this! Rick Volker also put on an excellent solo display in the Russell Group Spitfire.
Vietnam flight was pretty cool. The O-2s and L-19 did some spotting while two Hueys and the AC-47 circled overhead. Then the Skyraiders were called in for some low passes.
The F-4/ Mig-17 flight was the highlight of the day. They started with an opposing pass and then followed with two tail chases passes. The F-4 solo demo was incredible! It included some high speed passes, low speed, and a triple roll among other things. Easily the most impressive flying of the day, IMO. Having never seen an F-4 do those types of maneuvers, I was very impressed. Also met some great members of the Collings Foundation maintenance crew over by the F-4 who were able to share some interesting stories about the F-4 in Vietnam.
Probably the coolest moment of the show for me was when I was standing next to the taxiway, the 2 Hueys were flying past while the B-52 was passing overhead, the F-4 was preparing to taxi out and the 3 Skyraiders and O-2s were taxiing in. It was impressive seeing out on all that Vietnam hardware at once.
That's about all I got for now, I'm really too tired to go through my mediocre pics so I'll leave those to the guys with the big lenses. Wish I could go back tomorrow... I hope it's as good as today was. Great show again!
Login
Register
FAQ
Search
