US "Navy jets in death-defying skim"

[You Sir, Name!]

I'm not sure whose death they were defying, but them did it in style!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.html?in_article_id=486395&in_page_id=1811

http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/10_01/blueangles2_468x262.jpg

[Alber Ratman]

Brighton 1980, springs to mind..

[BEagle]

"Brighton 1980, springs to mind.."

Photoshop 2007 springs more to my mind...

[SirToppamHat]

I'm with Beagle ... sure I've seen that F18 picture before, but not with the boats...

STH

[JT Eagle]

Oh good grief, why does nobody believe anything anymore? Is everything slightly unusual Photoshopped or otherwise faked?

http://www.fencecheck.com/forums/index.php?topic=7642.120

http://tinyurl.com/yt87jh

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbcDhh3OYVg

etcetera, ad nauseum.

JT

[av8boy]

Having missed this year's Fleet Week show in SFO (first one I've missed in years) I can't attest to the authenticity of the photo. However, all of the photos were taken with a very long lens. Here, check this one out:

http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/10_01/blueangels1_468x319.jpg

The vessels on the water are all on the south side (San Francisco side) of the breakwater that you see just behind the white yacht. That concrete breakwater is one mile from the shore of Alcatraz you see in the background. The F18s are somewhere between the camera and Alcatraz flying parallel to the shoreline.

The F18 "shock wave" photo looks like it was taken from roughly the same vantage point in or near the San Francisco Maritime Historical Park, looking toward Angel Island or Lime Point, both of which are about 3.5 miles away. It would take some careful analysis to determine just how close the aircraft was to the boats. However, in all my years of attending this shindig, I have NEVER seen anything that even began to worry me, and I'm always the first to raise hell (old, obsessive ATC-er ya know). And I feel like the photos are a bit disingenuous, trying to add an element of controversy to an already exciting show. I've been to my fair share of these types of things, and I think I enjoy the SFO Blue Angels show most of all. What a setting!

Dave

[Alber Ratman]

Excellent Photoshop 2007....

Don't think Blue Angel No 5 would agree on that.

Nice picture whatever!!

[FFP]

I'll tell ya something for nothing.
They've been in Hawaii since Mon (well 1-4 got in Monday, 5-8 got in a bit later ;) )
They're doing a show at Kaneohe this weekend.
I'll get a friend to ask 5 on Mon....

[rodthesod]

Brighton 1980, springs to mind..

But the 'Red' was authorised down to 100' and removed 3' of a mast 103' above sea level. Just about right I'd say.

If that's not a Photoshop job I suspect there'll be a lot of pi$$ed off boat owners having been bounced by that shockwave.

[harrogate]

Amazing Photoshopping of this video: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=t98S8pZDuwA&NR=1

[MightyGem]

Isn't that shockwave a supersonic one?

[India Four Two]

Amazing Photoshopping of this video

Harrogate, you are right - it's wonderful what you can do with Photoshop nowadays ;)

I cannot make out if the start of the pass is over or under the Golden Gate Bridge (or just to the east of it). FFP, perhaps your mate can ask 5?

[Alber Ratman]

In 1980 , "The Reds" sycrho pair were authed to a lot lower that 100ft.
I do believe that they could fly to down to 40 ft.

The Yacht's mast was only 44 ft above sea level and it lost the top 6 ft......:ok:

[Al R]

Can you see us having Fleet Week?

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

Me neither.

[Runaway Gun]

Here's an even better short video.... looks quite real to me.

There were hundreds of photographers out there at SF Fleet Week, so I can't imagine that they all collaborated to photoshop the shots.

http://www.jumpcut.com/view?id=C009AF72755211DC9F89000423CF037A

[anotherthing]

Maybe the people who post the excellent low level photos from Wales on this forum would like to comment....

To get the F18 as sharp as that would take some panning - surely the boats which would be static or moving very slowly would be much more blurred?

[effortless]

But the 'Red' was authorised down to 100' and removed 3' of a mast 103' above sea level. Just about right I'd say. I witnessed this incident and can confirm that he was quite a bit lower when flying between the piers. Forty ft seems about right to me. He climbed a bit to get over the Palace Pier and, from my angle, appeared to drop down a few feet and clip the mast to the east of the pier. I was outside the Cruising club, about 1,000 ft east of the pier. There was a small amount of water rising in the vortex well behind the aircraft.

[Navy_Adversary]

I thought that the still had been photoshopped, but having seen the video highlighted by runaway, I now know different.

[rodthesod]

Alber and effortless,

Thankyou, I stand corrected, although I did have it in mind that the amount of mast clipped proved he was flying not below his cleared display height.

I was at Biggin at the time and watched the 'abridged' display when they returned. Ray Thilthorpe's commentary was priceless. As the remaining solo of the synchro pair completed a simple loop (one half of the 'spectacles') it went something like: '...and here we have a new manoeuvre - I suppose you'd call it the 'monacle'...'.

rts

[Alber Ratman]

Having seen the other videos, Picture was no Photoshop job.

Can any pilot say they can fly exactly at 40 ft coming out of a manouver and be absolutely on the button? 2 Ft is nothing at 350 Kts.

Boat had transgressed the display line as well.

The Reds height limit was raised after Brighton to 100ft.

Off topic.

Believe it or not, it is ten years ago today that a certain Sqn Ldr went offically supersonic in a car for the first time.:ok:

[Two's in]

But the 'Red' was authorised down to 100' and removed 3' of a mast 103' above sea level. Just about right I'd say.

Hopefully that was AGL and not MSD...

[normally right blank]

Isn't that shockwave a supersonic one?
No. This is supersonic - note the "crack" on the soundtrack:
http://www.airshowbuzz.com/videos/view.php?v=68072713
Don't know the limits for the SF display. Many places it would be Mach .95

[normally right blank]

...I suspect there'll be a lot of pi$$ed off boat owners having been bounced by that shockwave.
I suspect only "thumbs up!" and "That's our boys. The best in the world!" :ok:;)

[AdLib]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prandtl-Glauert_singularity

[MightyGem]

note the "crack" on the soundtrack:
Ah, well, there wouldn't be a crack on a photo, would there?

[normally right blank]

No. But the discussion was about the Navy Week show in San Fransisco. (Blue Angels no. 5 fast pass). The videos showed that the still photos probably were not "photoshopped". (He was that low). None of the video sound tracks showed supersonic flight. (To me!).
But is it possible to know from a still photo?:8

[GreenKnight121]

I have seen that type of vapor cloud numerous times... from the deck of CV-61 USS Ranger in 1985-87.

The high humidity of a warm day on the ocean can create those visual effects as slow as ~500 kt at times... I even saw an A-6E Intruder produce one while flying level with 12-500lb bombs on the inboard pylons... no chance in h@!1 of that one being supersonic!

[harrogate]

That shockwave effect can occur at sub-sonic speeds. If you ever go to a Blues show, the commentator does a good job of explaining it.

It's a showpiece move and you'll see it in a lot of Blues shows. If the conditions are right, they'll do it.

It's definitely not supersonic. They manage to pull it off at SF most years, although not that low usually! Just google it.

Note the 2 kayakers at the start of the video... haircut, sir?

This is an example of when it doesn't happen:

http://my.break.com/content/view.aspx?ContentId=351527

Taken at SeaFair 07 (great show, by the way).

[effortless]

Rod,
Thankyou, I stand corrected, although I did have it in mind that the amount of mast clipped proved he was flying not below his cleared display height

I don't comment as to his height at impact, just his height as he passed me. I was a bit surprised that he ditched. When you consider how much ordnance some kites fly through..............

[fleigle]

I live in the San Francisco area and have watched the Blue Angels display every year that I could, since 1981.
The fast pass is done by one of a pair while the other 4 are off getting ready for their next part of the routine, it is NEVER done coming out of a loop!!.
The Coast Guard maintain a cleared corridor down the Bay just off the SF waterfront, that pic is genuine, not photo-shopped, and taken with a long lens.
One year, not so long ago, the water track was amazing!!
It is a great flying routine, especially if you park yourself on the end of the breakwater near the SF Yacht Club!!
Hi "av8boy" PM me!!

[Dunhovrin]

Not to pee on anyone's chips but I watched the BAs spending most of the day before the day before doing recces and the day before rehearsing. They're very very good I'll give you that (even better from Horizons in SAU) but...

when did the Reds ever need that amount of prep?

Besides, much more impressive was watching the Alcatraz Three (minus this one) doing The Swim in 41 minutes and 4' swells...

[Pitts2112]

And when did the Reds ever fly 3' wingtip to canopy?

[Alber Ratman]

Steve Johnsons Hawk totally lost roll control with the section of the wing that was removed and he ejected inverted at the absolute minimum parameters of the Mk 10 seat fitted.

[brickhistory]

when did the Reds ever need that amount of prep?

Perhaps flying a fighter makes it different? :}









Just an attempt at humor, not to be taken seriously....

[Flap62]

At least if they're displaying fighters, it's one less that could be dropping bombs on our boys somewhere hot and dusty!

[nigegilb]

I was lucky enough to be in San Fran on Thu, Fri, Sat. Watched the final warm-up from Horizons on Fri with glass of Sav Blanc in hand. Absolutely top quality from BA and superior wazzing by the Herc. Enjoyed A380 flying overhead!? Even sweeter when heard San Fran liberals tried to ban it.:ok:

[Kitbag]

Flap62 totally uncalled for comment.

[MightyGem]

That shockwave effect can occur at sub-sonic speeds.
Thanks, the only time I've seen it is in videos of aircraft going supersonic.

[samusi01]

This picture was shown on another site during a discussion regarding the low pass. My understanding is that it's a couple years old - '05 image, maybe? - and Fleet Week at SFO.
http://www.navy.mil/management/photodb/photos/051009-N-7559C-001.jpg

[Doctor Cruces]

There are similar pictures of Blue Angels on Airliners.net.

Doc C

[FFP]

Had my mate ask the BA's some q's today.
Asked what was the authorised MSD. Answer = 8 to 10 inches from the wingtip. Touche
Mentioned the photo and quoted "about 40 ft". He said the issue was masts of the ships in the harbour.
As long as speed doesn't exceed M1.0, then it's fair game in the display.
He was also glad to be away from Hawaii at last....;)