Gathering of the Warbirds

[SASless]

Day two of three...Gathering of the Warbirds in Olympia, Washington.

Flyby of a KC-135, US Special Forces Parachute Team...displaying a 33 foot by 65 foot American Flag underneath a Red/White/Blue Canopy (What other colors?), Yak 55, Fraser Blues Team (Navion Airplanes), A-1E Skyraider, two AH-1 Huey Cobras, Yak 11, Fouga Magister, Powered Parachutes, Car drop by a UH-1 Police Helicopter, Zero fighter and Wildcat dogfight, Mig 17, UH-1H and UH-1K, P-51 Mustang, and a mass of light-medium warbirds in one large gaggle, B-17 and B-24 doing Jolly rides, TBM, Mustang, Skyraider, Harvards, and a host of others doing Jolly's.

Beautiful weather....big party for the pilots/crews tonight...gosh, working for a living can have its moments.

...flew the UH-1H...museum quality warbird....in formation with the UH-1K. Flypast in echelon right, pass in trail, approach to land....hover...face right...face front...face left...(reverse for other aircraft), tails together....depart in opposite directions....level pass then vertical seperation pass at warp speed....Wackenclack Flight in Review! Exit stage West....join up and return in echelon to parking.

Biased observers said it was very effective...lots of blade whack...and doppler shift on the flypasts! :ok:

[TheStormyPetrel]

Sounds absolutely wonderful. No video?

[SilsoeSid]

I thought this thread may be something to do with the Lancaster thats parked just outside my window here. (but then realised this was rotorheads :{ )

Lovely sight, bomb bay doors open, like a girl I used to know a while back. ;) :E

[RDRickster]

I'll be looking for the pics!

[SilsoeSid]

RD,
I know that wasn't aimed at me, (was it?), but here's a pic of her in action with her bomb bay doors open! :E

http://www.damir.co.uk/images/aviation/waddington-2000/lancaster-bomb-bay.jpg

[SASless]

Oh Drats! Boss Fellah called a few minutes ago...seems a flight of three (AH-1/UH-1H/UH-1K) from Olympia to Bellingham, Washington tomorrow...returning Sunday....off to another airshow complete with overnight lodging and a Saturday night party...someone pinch me quick....I must be dreaming! When the job description noted "...and those other duties as may be imposed...", little did I know. Will post some photos from last weeks show when I get the technical side figgered out.:O

[Autorotate]

SASLess - Try and convince Brian to give you a rating in the Corsair, or Dimmers FM2. That would be just as big a buzz as the Cobras :E :E

Ned

[SASless]

Autorotate....

I have been putting on my best grovel act...bowing...sniveling...playing step and fetch it....making like the best "yes" man you can imagine. I have no shame in this matter....I look like John Kerry courting the Union vote! Three bags full!

The beauty of all this really....is being around people that really love what they are doing. Being involved in things just for the shear joy of it...and seeing some folks that are darn good at what they do, too!

Get yerself over here next year....hopefully I will be able to fly you around in the N3N....or the Cobra....(hope the boss fellah is reading this!)

:ok:

[Autorotate]

As long as I have known Brian the passion has been there for the warbirds, you can always see him light up when we start a conversation about the TBM, Corsair, etc. I was out at Ardmore today having a look over the Lavochkin LA-9, only one in the world. and the worlds fastest piston engine fighter. Gives you goosebumps looking at warbirds like these.

Will be there for the next show.

Ned

[Phil Kemp]

Guess what flew over my house this afternoon?

Guess who I met out at the airport?

Other than my old mate Brian, it was SASless with those shiny Huey's and a smart looking Cobra too.

(Guess who hadn't been reading PPruNe and didn't know they were coming) :)

I'll tell you, it's a small world.

[Heliport]

Just while SASless gets his pics ready to post .....

UH-1H 'Slick'
http://www.olympicflightmuseum.com/images/hh-1h.jpg


HH-1 'Sealord'
http://www.olympicflightmuseum.com/images/uh1k.jpg

AH1 Cobra
http://www.olympicflightmuseum.com/images/ah1cobra.jpg

[SASless]

Phil...

You missed a great time at the Casino last night...without going into details about all I can say is the Security staff took great exception to our levity and high spirits

We departed Bellingham in a vee of three...Cobra in lead, K Model on the right...me in the H Model on the left....got a bit to the south and were attacked by two Yaks....one a 17 and the other 55 being flown by a Father-Son acrobatic team. They made a 180 pass ,trailing smoke, then joined up with us to make a Vee of five. We proceeded to Paine Field, announced our passage to the ground bound, and the two airplanes broke off and landed there. We continued on to Olympia. It was another beautiful day in the Northwest!

Enjoyed the Pprune Bash....and the catchup on the old days!

Heliport....Thanks for posting those photos....will be adding some to our website this week and then we can post them to the site here. We have a pilot that does some pretty good work with a camera.

Debrief at the Point Tavern.....:ok:

[SASless]

Latest chapter....spent the day doing a video shoot about the Cobra. Should be lots of good shots...the UK based crew was in Thunder Bay, South Africa before coming here. They shot Buc's and Lightnings (English blowtorch types I guess), and will hit a few other places here in the US and then the Cold Lake Air show in Canada before putting their Television special together. Should be a very interesting program when they get it out.

Boss Fellah showed off the Cobra...I flew the camera bird. Made for some very interesting flying....wondered what the Boss meant when he said "You will be the target...I will make the pass." Now Cobra's are a pretty impressive sight from that angle, altitude, and rate of closure! He enquired after one pass...how did that look....did not have the heart to tell him I had my eyes closed!

:p